After a three-week hiatus for the Olympic Winter Games, NHL hockey is back – and so are the Predators.
Nashville returns to the ice tonight when they host the Chicago Blackhawks for a 7 p.m. CT puck drop at Bridgestone Arena. This evening’s contest is the third of four meetings between the division rivals this season; the Preds and Hawks have split the series thus far.
Tonight’s contest also marks Nashville’s second Hockey Fights Cancer Night of the season with a focus on raising awareness and funds for pediatric cancer research at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt. Notably, Predators goaltender Justus Annunen will wear a custom mask designed by pediatric cancer patients. Vaughn Pro Choice donated the mask and David Gunnarsson of DaveArt donated the paint job. Fans may bid on the mask by texting ANNUNEN to 76278; the auction will close Thursday, March 12 at 8 p.m. CT.
With 10 days off and a week of practices now in the rearview, the Predators are more than ready to get back into game action tonight. Nashville remains within striking distance of a Wild Card spot in the Western Conference, and they’re aware of what’s at stake beginning tonight against Chicago.
“It’s huge,” Preds Captain Roman Josi said Wednesday of the magnitude of the first game back from the break. “Coming off a break…you never know what to expect from the other team either. I think the team who’s more urgent and comes out harder always has the advantage, and we know where we’re at. The Trade Deadline is close, so those are big games before [the deadline]. We want to make a push here and sneak into the playoffs.”
“We don’t have the luxury of easing our way back into this,” Preds winger Luke Evangelista said Wednesday. “We need points right off the bat. We need to play our game right away. We have no time to come easy out the gate. We’re looking to have a good start and get some momentum under our feet right away, and kind of build for the few games before the deadline.”
On Sunday, the Preds recalled forwards Zach L’Heureux and Matthew Wood from Milwaukee. L’Heureux, who appeared in 62 games with Nashville last season, has yet to play an NHL game in the current campaign.
On Wednesday, the Predators reassigned goaltender Matt Murray to Milwaukee after he served as a practice goaltender with Juuse Saros away for the Olympics.
Both Saros and Erik Haula have arrived back in Nashville after winning a bronze medal with Finland at the Olympics but have not practiced with the team yet. Head Coach Andrew Brunette said Wednesday that Saros and Haula will be reassessed Thursday before determining if they’ll play against the Blackhawks.
The Good Guys:
The Predators went into the Olympic break with a 6-5 overtime loss at home against Minnesota before falling in Washington by a 4-2 final on Feb. 5. Previously, Nashville had earned a pair of wins over the Islanders and Blues. They enter tonight’s game with 26 wins and 59 points through 57 games played thus far.
Ryan O’Reilly has 20 goals and continues to lead the Preds with 56 points, followed by Filip Forsberg (24g-23a) with 47 points. Steven Stamkos leads Nashville with 28 goals and has 44 points, while Evangelista has 34 assists and 42 points on the season. Saros is 21-17-5 in net; Annunen is 5-7-2.
The Opposition:
The Blackhawks entered the break with a 4-0 loss to Columbus and had dropped six of their last seven overall. Connor Bedard (23g-30a) leads Chicago with 53 points, followed by Tyler Bertuzzi with 25 goals and 42 points. Spencer Knight is 16-16-7 in net; Arvid Soderblom is 5-9-2.
All-Time Meetings:
The Preds are 73-53-(4)-12 all-time against the Blackhawks, including a 40-24-(3)-3 mark at home. Nashville is 5-5-0 in the last 10 outings versus Chicago and 3-2-0 in the last five meetings at Bridgestone Arena.
The Predators have earned at least a point in 31 of their last 37 games against the Blackhawks (27-6-4), holding Chicago to two-or-fewer goals 29 times in that span. The Predators and Blackhawks have played against each other 142 times, Nashville’s most against any single franchise.
Nashville Notables:
The Predators enter Thursday’s game – their first in 21 days – with a 18-11-3 record (39 points) in their last 32 games dating back to Dec. 1. In that span, Nashville’s 18 wins are tied for the third-most in the Western Conference, trailing only Minnesota (20) and Colorado (19).
Nashville’s special teams ranked among the NHL’s best heading into the Olympic break – the Predators’ penalty kill on home ice is third in the League at 83.3 percent, and the team has scored a power-play goal in nine of its last 13 games (12-for-40).
Milestone Watch:
Jonathan Marchessault is one assist from 300 in his NHL career.
Brady Skjei is three points from 300 in his NHL career.
Andrew Brunette is four games from 300 as a head coach in his NHL career.
Watch & Listen:
Coverage for this evening’s contest begins at 6:30 p.m. CT with the Predators LIVE! pregame show on FanDuel Sports Network South, hosted by Lyndsay Rowley and Hal Gill. Play-by-play announcer Willy Daunic, analyst Chris Mason and rinkside reporter Kara Hammer will have the call on the television side.
Voice of the Predators Pete Weber and Jay More will call the game on 102.5 The Game and the Predators Radio Network, with pregame, postgame and intermission coverage by Max Herz beginning one hour before puck drop. 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.)