The Nashville Predators are set to conclude a back-to-back set tonight in Calgary when they face the Flames at Scotiabank Saddledome for a 9 p.m. CT puck drop. This evening’s contest is the third and final meeting between the two clubs this season; the Preds have fallen to the Flames twice.
After closing out 2024 with a trio of losses, the Predators began the new year with a 3-0 victory last night in Vancouver. Nashville said their effort in the win wasn’t their best the whole way through, but they got the job done. Now, it’s about improving on that showing tonight with a chance for another two points.
“Just build some momentum off the win,” Preds forward Steven Stamkos said following last night’s triumph. “I think we can clean up some things, but anytime you win, it's a bit better feeling about yourself going into the game tomorrow.”
Predators forward Ozzy Wiesblatt made his NHL debut on Friday night after being recalled from Milwaukee (AHL) on Thursday. The winger registered two hits and drew a penalty in 9:40 of ice time.
Prior to Friday’s game, the Preds also recalled defenseman Spencer Stastney and forward Fedor Svechkov from Milwaukee. Both players appeared in Friday’s game, with Stastney recording 17:54 of ice time in his first game with Nashville this season.
Tommy Novak (upper body) and Jeremy Lauzon (lower body) both missed Friday’s game with injuries and are both considered day-to-day. The Preds also placed defenseman Adam Wilsby on Injured Reserve with his upper-body injury to join forward Cole Smith on IR. Winger Zach L’Heureux also missed Friday’s contest as he served the first of his three-game suspension.
Last Time Out:
Stamkos gave the Preds a 1-0 lead before Gustav Nyquist and Colton Sissons added empty-netters in Nashville’s 3-0 win last night in Vancouver. Goaltender Juuse Saros stopped all 27 shots he faced for his fourth shutout of the season.
Per NHL Stats, Steven Stamkos scored his 567th career goal to pass Patrick Marleau (566) for 24th place on the NHL’s all-time list. Mike Bossy ranks 23rd with 573.
The Good Guys:
Filip Forsberg leads the Preds with 31 points (9g-22a), followed by Jonathan Marchessault (14g-14a) with 28 points and Roman Josi (7g-18a) with 25 points. Stamkos has 12 goals and 24 points; Ryan O’Reilly has nine tallies and 22 points. Saros is now 9-16-6 on the season; Justus Annunen is 8-6-0 in net.
The Opposition:
The Flames have alternated wins and losses in their last four outings, including a 5-3 loss to Utah on Thursday. Jonathan Huberdeau leads Calgary with 16 goals and 29 points, followed by Nazem Kadri with 14 tallies and 27 points, and then Connor Zary with 10 goals and 22 points. Dustin Wolf is 12-5-2 in net; Dan Vladar is 6-8-5.
All-Time Meetings:
The Predators are 42-29-(4)-13 all-time against the Flames, including a 19-15-(3)-5 mark on the road.
The Predators are 1-4-0 in their last five games against the Flames; they are 5-4-1 in their last 10; and 3-2-0 in their last five on the road.
The Predators have only lost seven times in regulation to the Flames since Dec. 15, 2015 (13-7-6) and have picked up at least one point in 28 of their last 39 games (20-11-8).
Notables Versus Calgary:
Steven Stamkos has recorded 18 points (11g-7a) in 21 career games against the Flames. Stamkos has a point in nine of his last 12 meetings (7g-4a-11pts).
Jonathan Marchessault has tallied 17 points (6g-11a) in 27 career games against the Flames.
Ryan O’Reilly has 27 points (8g-19a) in 45 career games against Calgary.
Roman Josi has six goals and 21 assists in 36 career games vs. Calgary.
Filip Forsberg leads all Nashville skaters with 13 goals in 27 career games against the Flames.
Mark Jankowski was selected by Calgary in the first round (21st overall) of the 2012 NHL Draft; he had 64 points (36g-28a) in 208 games with the Flames from 2016-20.
Watch & Listen:
Coverage for tonight’s game begins at 8:30 p.m. CT with the Predators LIVE! pregame show on FanDuel Sports Network South, hosted by Lyndsay Rowley. Play-by-play announcer Willy Daunic and analyst Chris Mason will have the call on the television side.
Max Herz and Hal Gill will call the game on 102.5 The Game and the Predators Radio Network. The game will also be broadcast in Spanish on El Jefe which airs on 96.7 FM, 105.3 FM and 810 AM. (El partido también se transmite en español por El Jefe en 96.7 FM, 105.3 FM y 810 AM.)
