Inside the Numbers: Jets vs. Predators

Which team has the edge in the Jets and Predators' Round Two series according to the statistics? Here's an analytical look at how the two teams fared across 82 games and in their respective first-round series, with some notes on how the stats played out in the clubs' five-game season series (which Nashville won 3-1-1).
The higher-ranked team is listed first with the 31-team League rank from the regular season listed in parenthesis (in the case of a tie, the highest rank is given):

Goals For/Game - Winnipeg: 3.33 (2nd) | Nashville: 3.18 (7th)
Both clubs ranked among the League's best on offense, with the Jets finishing second to only the Tampa Bay Lightning. Winnipeg had four 60-point scorers in the regular season, including 91 points for captain Blake Wheeler and 44 goals for Patrik Laine. The Jets are deep enough up front to spread their talent out across three formidable lines.
The Predators also finished in the Top 10 in scoring during the regular season and have been slightly better than the Jets during the postseason. Nashville scored five goals in three of their four playoff wins for an average of 3.67 goals for/game in the postseason. That number ranks fourth, with the Jets coming in at seventh (3.20). However, it's worth noting that the Jets likely faced a more-talented defensive front from the Minnesota Wild in Round One than the Preds did in their series (against the Colorado Avalanche).
Goals Against/Game - Nashville: 2.49 (2nd) | Winnipeg: 2.63 (5th)
Only the Los Angeles Kings allowed fewer goals during the regular season than the Predators, but until Game 6, Nashville's defense had some trouble with the speed of the Avalanche in Round One. The Jets' tendency to create offense off a low-zone cycle has traditionally been a system the Predators' defensemen have fared better against.
Despite both clubs being some of the stingiest during the regular season, the five-game season series between Nashville and Winnipeg didn't play out that way. The Preds and Jets combined for 41 goals in the five games, with the winning team hitting five or more goals four times (one game went to a shootout).

Power-Play Percentage - Winnipeg 23.4% (5th) | Nashville: 21.2% (12th)
Winnipeg and Nashville have maintained similar conversion percentages on the power play in the playoffs to what they compiled in the regular season.
Preds defenseman Mattias Ekholm says not giving the Jets unnecessary chances with the man advantage should be a focal point for Nashville. Historically, games between the Preds and Jets have featured an abundance of post-whistle shoving, face washes and retaliatory penalties.
"This team is good at knowing when too much is too much and knowing when to maybe give that extra push or maybe lay off it," Ekholm said of the Preds. "We got a little bit of it in Colorado, but I think this is more like a St. Louis or an Anaheim series that we had last year. I think we've all been there, and we've all played those kind of games. We've been in those situations, and I think we're prepared for it. It becomes a new challenge, that's for sure. Other than that, they're a skilled group, they're a fast group so we can't be worried too much about what they're going to do. We have to be worried about the way we approach games. If we can keep playing like we did in that last game in Colorado, I think we have a good chance."
Penalty-Kill Percentage - Nashville: 81.9% (6th) | Winnipeg: 81.8% (7th)
In the first of three categories the Preds and Jets virtually tied in, both teams had Top 10 penalty kills during the regular season. That wasn't always the case head to head, however.
Nashville allowed six power-play goals to the Winnipeg Jets on 19 chances (31.6 percent) during the five-game season series. Similarly, the Preds went 5-for-16 against the Jets (31.2 percent).
The Predators have killed off 90 percent of the power plays they've seen so far in the postseason - allowing just two 5-on-3 PPGs - but that level of success can't be counted on against the Jets' fifth-ranked power-play in the regular season.
Shots For/Game - Nashville: 32.2 (14th) | Winnipeg: 32.2 (14th)
Both Preds Head Coach Peter Laviolette and Jets Head Coach Paul Maurice believe in a high volume of shots in order to create offense. Nashville will need more shots on target from the blue line than they received in Round One.

Shots Against/Game - Winnipeg: 31.9 (13th) | Nashville: 32.4 (21st)
Nashville ended up allowing more shots per game than they traditionally do under Laviolette, but the season-long statistics are somewhat misleading. Following the return of Ryan Ellis, the Predators allowed nearly a half shot fewer per game in 44 games (32.07), which would have ranked them 16th in the League.
Shot Attempts Percentage (also called Corsi) - Nashville: 51.51% (8th) | Winnipeg: 51.51% (8th)
The advanced statistics also favor these two teams, who finished No. 1 and No. 2 in the League standings after 82 games (in regard to points). Guess who also ranks No. 1 and No. 2 in shot attempts percentage through one round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs?
The Jets sit first at (58.87%), while the Preds are second at (54.59%). Both teams advanced to Round Two with their best performances in the playoffs in their series-clinching games. Nashville beat Colorado, 5-0, while likewise, Winnipeg beat Minnesota, 5-0.
Shot Attempts Percentage When Tied - Nashville: 53.66% (2nd) | Winnipeg: 50.46% (15th)
This subset of SAT% takes into consideration how much a team generates shots (and offense) when the score is tied. Admittedly, it's a very specific statistic, but in essence, it's trying to illustrate how much a team can drive offense and maintain possession when everything else is equal (a tie score and 5-on-5 play). The Predators were dominant in this respect.
Face-off Win Percentage - Nashville: 53.3% (2nd) | Winnipeg: 52.4% (5th)
Nashville followed up a strong regular season at the face-off dot by emerging at the top of the charts after Round One after facing a poor face-off club in the Avs. Preds center Mike Fisher won more than 75 percent of his draws during the six-game series and could be a key factor in helping Nashville's fourth line start with possession.
Winnipeg finished fifth in faceoff-winning percentage during the regular season, the highest percentage among teams still in the playoffs (outside of Nashville).