The Nashville Predators are in the center of the hockey universe tonight as they take on the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Air Canada Centre. The Predators are on a three game win streak and a six game point streak that has put them back in the thick of the Western Conference race. The team practiced yesterday before leaving for Canada and caused a minor freak out among Pred Nation when Marek Mazanec was called up and Pekka Rinne wasn’t on the ice for practice. It came out quickly that Rinne was given a maintenance day and was just fine…
… and there was much rejoicing. Until word broke that Rinne is listed as day-to-day with a lower body injury.
So now we can expect Marek Mazanec between the pipes tonight against this young and rather inconsistent Leafs team, look no further than this past weekend for proof. After a spectacular comeback win over Philly, the Leafs laid an egg in Pittsburgh. Toronto has not gotten the goaltending they were expecting as both Jonas Enroth and Fredrik Andersen have not exactly lit it up. No official word yet, but I do expect Andersen in net tonight. He should expect to get a lot of work tonight as the Leafs have allowed 40 or more shots in last six games and Nashville is certainly not afraid to throw the puck at the net.
I know that I will be watching Filip Forsberg closely tonight as he finally scored his first goal Saturday night and James Neal has scored goals in the last four games as well. The top lines are getting it done, the defense has locked it down more and this team is playing like they were expected to at the beginning of the season.
This is the Predators first look at Auston Matthews, the Maple Leafs 1st round draft pick in July and the anointed “Next One.… After a rocket hot start to the season, the youngster has cooled some as he adjusts to not only the grind of the NHL, but the laser like focus he gets from opponents. Now that Nashville has righted the ship, it’s time to get their road act together, no better time than the present. Game time is 6:30pm CST with pregame beginning at 6pm. Coverage on Fox Sports Tennessee with Willy Daunic and Stu Grimson on the call, radio coverage on the Predators flagship station, 102.5 the Game with the Voice of the Predators Pete Weber and Brent Peterson handling the action.
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Random Notes
- The outdoor rink is back! The Preds Pond opens this Friday at 4pm and will be open for public skating through February 20th. The rink will be open every day except Christmas and Thanksgiving. Rink hours are 4pm – 10pm Monday through Friday and Noon – 10pm on weekends. Skate rentals are available.
- The entire Central Division is in action tonight, the Preds stand 6th in the division, 1 point back of Dallas, 2 points back of St. Louis and Minnesota and 3 back of Winnipeg.
- Congrats to the Arizona Coyotes for getting a plan in place to get the hell out of Glendale. A city that has shown that a contract means nothing and that you can’t trust the word of the city leaders. Moving back closer to the season ticket holder base is a wise, prudent move, rectifying a mistake that previous owners made. Hey Glendale… enjoy the empty arena caused by your city leadership's lack of integrity.
- The new arena is being proposed in Tempe and will be a multi-use facility that will also support ASU and the budding Sun Devil NCAA Division I hockey program.
- Thirteen games in the NHL today, all times central – 6pm – OTT @ PHI, SJS @ CAR, WSH @ CBJ. 6:30pm – NSH @ TOR, FLA @ MTL, TBL @ DET. 7pm - BUF @ STL, CGY @ MIN, CHI @ WPG. 7:30pm – NJD @ DAL. 8pm – LAK @ COL. 9pm – NYR @ VAN, EDM @ ANA.
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