Avalanche at Predators
The Nashville Predators have dropped three in a row and sit two points behind the eighth-place St. Louis Blues in the Western Conference. The Colorado Avalanche, who visit Nashville on Tuesday, should be the perfect team against which to end the slide. The Avalanche are sitting in last place in the West and have scored the fewest goals in the conference. Colorado has not won on the road since Feb. 14 at Minnesota (0-9-3).
The Predators appear to have gotten their goaltending back in order after a 7-4 loss to Phoenix last Thursday but have dropped their last two games in extra time, including a 1-0 overtime loss at the Avalanche on Saturday. Nashville peppered Semyon Varlamov with 34 shots in that one but could not sneak the puck past him. The win was the only one in the last six games for Colorado and marked the first time in the last 10 contests the team had allowed fewer than three goals.
TV: 8 p.m. ET Altitude (Colorado), FSN Tennessee (Nashville)
ABOUT THE AVALANCHE (12-19-4): Colorado followed up its win over the Predators by allowing the first three goals at Detroit on Monday en route to a 3-2 loss. The Avalanche are without two of their best scorers in Paul Stastny (shoulder) and Milan Hejduk (shoulder), as both were placed on injured reserve, and are trying to fill the gaps by getting more from Matt Duchene and PA Parenteau. Duchene’s tally brought Colorado within a goal late on Monday, but Parenteau was denied by Detroit goaltender Jimmy Howard on a late attempt. Rookie defenseman Tyson Barrie provided the lone goal in the victory over Nashville, slamming a rebound past Pekka Rinne 50 seconds into overtime. Barrie has recorded two points in four games since being recalled from the American Hockey League but was held without a shot on Monday.
ABOUT THE PREDATORS (14-14-8): The goaltending tandem of Rinne and Chris Mason appeared to be in shambles during the loss to the Coyotes, when Rinne started, was pulled before the end of the first period and ended up going back in for the second in relief of an ineffective Mason. But while Rinne has put together two solid performances in the last two games, the goals have not been there. The offense began to wake up in the third period on Monday. After totaling 13 shots over the first two periods, Nashville put 15 on goal in the third and ended up sneaking two in to force overtime before falling in a shootout at Chicago. “We didn’t play well and we got away with one point,” Rinne told reporters. “I think that’s a positive thing.”
OVERTIME
1. Nashville will play three straight and seven of its next eight games at home.
2. The Predators had won nine straight in the series before dropping two at Colorado this season.
3. Avalanche RW David Jones (knee) has missed the last five games and is day-to-day.