Predators at Jets
The Winnipeg Jets moved atop in the Central Division with a resounding 4-0 victory over St. Louis on Friday, only to see the Nashville Predators leapfrog into first place two nights later with a 4-0 blanking of the Blues. The Jets and Predators will vie for supremacy at Bell MTS Place on Tuesday when they play the third contest of their five-game season series.
Patrik Laine extended both his goal and point streaks to five games (six goals, three assists) by tallying twice to highlight Winnipeg's five-goal second period in Saturday's 5-3 triumph over Dallas. The high-octane Jets, who have outscored their foes 29-13 en route to winning five of their last six, bolstered their arsenal on Monday by acquiring Paul Stastny from St. Louis for a conditional first-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, a conditional fourth-round pick in 2020 and forward prospect Erik Foley. While Winnipeg's third-ranked offense is paying significant dividends, the same can be said for Nashville as it has outscored its adversaries by a 19-5 margin to highlight a four-game winning streak. Kevin Fiala scored versus the Blues and has recorded a goal and an assist in both Nashville's 5-3 win over Winnipeg on Nov. 20 and a 6-4 setback against the Jets on Dec. 19.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FS Tennessee (Nashville), TSN3 (Winnipeg)
ABOUT THE PREDATORS (38-14-9): While the Music City representatives have been making noise with their eighth-ranked offense, NHL Second Star of the Week Pekka Rinne continues to tune out the opposition as his 27-save performance versus the Blues accounted for his sixth shutout of the season. "The biggest thing for me is we did a great job defensively and didn't give them too much," said the 35-year-old Finn, who owns a 13-1-1 mark with three shutouts in his past 15 starts. Fellow veteran Mike Fisher is ready to join the fight for the Predators, as the 37-year-old officially ended his retirement by signing a one-year, $1 million contract on Monday for the remainder of the season.
ABOUT THE JETS (37-16-9): Stastny, who is expected to slot in as a third-line center, brings veteran leadership as well as a scoring presence (40 points this season, 633 career) to a Jets team on the rise. "I think because it's Winnipeg, there is a lot of excitement there," the 32-year-old Stastny told TSN. "When you look at that roster, or playing against them for the two, three years, it's a team that plays a high-quality game, offensively a juggernaut. Looking at the roster top to bottom, that was one of the favorites to come out of the West." Captain Blake Wheeler, who played with Stastny in Germany during the 2012-13 lockout, is riding an eight-game point streak (four goals, 10 assists).
OVERTIME
1. Nashville acquired F Ryan Hartman and a fifth-round pick in the 2018 NHL Draft from Chicago on Monday for a first- and fourth-round pick and F Victor Ejdsell. The Predators also acquired F Tyler Gaudet and D John Ramage from Arizona for F P.C. Labrie and D Trevor Murphy.
2. Jets LW Nicolas Ehlers, who tallied twice in his last encounter versus the Predators, has four goals and three assists over his last seven contests overall.
3. Nashville's fifth-ranked penalty kill has aided in the team's most recent success, thwarting all 13 opportunities over the last three games.