Twenty-six game into the season and the Nashville Predators are 17-7-2 with 36 points good for second in the Central Division and fourth in the Western Conference. That is very solid positioning for a team that has missed the playoffs the past two seasons after an excellent run of seven playoff appearances in eight seasons. So let’s take a look at three things that are going well for this team… and three things that are not.

Let’s start with the not …

Special Teams – A power play conversion percentage of 11.5%... including a horrendous 1-45 at home. The power play is ranked 28th in the league, barely above the Wild and Sabres. Everything this team does right five-on-five is not happening with the man advantage… too cute passes and looking for the perfect shot with no real flow. This will get better… the team is simply too talented to languish like this. The penalty kill is improving, having moved up from 26th in the league to their current 19th, killing penalties at a 79.7% clip.

Backup Goaltending – Another puzzling one. Carter Hutton is a solid goaltender but doesn’t seem to be coming up with the right save at the right time to build the team’s confidence in him. Hutton has posted a decent save percentage at .914 and a solid GAA at 2.32, but his record of 0-2-1 stands out. Again, Hutton is too good not to have a better win record and this should balance out as the season progresses.

Slow Starts – The Goals Scored by Period Stat is a telling one. Goals in the first period - 16, the second - 22, the third - 28. The Predators outscore their opponent in every period but the first. There is something to be said for resiliency, but you also can’t expect to come back in every game, see last Saturday night as a perfect example.

Enough of the negative… there is plenty going well, here’s just three …

Pekka Rinne – Pekka is back to being… well… Pekka. Leading the NHL in wins and save percentage among starters and posting a sparking 1.89 GAA... Rinne is back where belongs, at the top of the NHL goalie heap and proving the naysayers wrong about his impact and recovery.

The Nine Line – The Line of Mike Ribeiro, James Neal and Filip Forsberg has been a revelation to Pred Nation. The chemistry shown, the scoring prowess, this could be the best top line Nashville has iced in its history. As I write this, this line is responsible for 28 of Nashville’s 67 goals, going a collective +41 so far this season.

Home Dominance – 11-2-1 at home thus far this season... While the home power play isn’t dominating, the record is. The crowds have been excellent, playing to 98.4% capacity through 14 home dates. Even though it never went away… home ice advantage is definitely back in Smashville.

As the Predators head west today, they are well positioned for improvement, the next test in is Colorado tomorrow night where they attempt to avoid losing back-to-back games for the first time this season and retake the lead in the Central Division.

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Random Notes

- The Preds have a 7-3-1 record against the central so far.

- Tuesday’s game is Denver is the first of five between the Preds and Av’s.

- Predators prospects Joonas Lyytinen (Finland), Juuse Saros (Finland), Jack Dougherty (US), Kevin Fiala(Switzerland) and Vladislav Kamenev (Russia)have been named to their respective countries World Junior Teams.

- Three games tonight – Devils @ Canes, Pens @ NYR, Panthers @ Blues.

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