Coyotes at Predators
The Phoenix Coyotes are doing their best to play themselves out of the postseason chase and will carry a five-game losing streak (0-2-3) into Thursday night's matchup at the Nashville Predators. The Coyotes trail Dallas by two points - with a game in hand - and are trying to stay alive in the playoff hunt until they host the Stars in the regular-season finale. "The bottom line is now we’re in a situation where we’ve got to win out," Phoenix coach Dave Tippett said. "That’s just the way it is."
The Coyotes are going up against an opponent with nothing for which to play after the Predators were eliminated from playoff contention with a 3-2 shootout loss in Dallas on Tuesday night. Nashville was on a 6-1-1 streak, including victories at Anaheim and San Jose on back-to-back nights, before the Stars ended its run. "Played some good hockey, feel like we got better through the season, so we can obviously hang our hat on that," Predators center Mike Fisher said. "But it's still disappointing."
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FSN Tennessee (Nashville), FSN Arizona (Phoenix)
ABOUT THE PREDATORS (35-32-12): Star defenseman and captain Shea Weber is having perhaps his best season with Nashville, but that was no consolation after Nashville's bid to make the postseason was derailed. "Nobody likes losing. It's frustrating," Weber said. "I hate it. Everyone in here hates it, and it's not a good feeling. Something's got to change. We have to get better, and we have to find a way to get into the postseason." Weber has one goal and four assists during a four-game point streak to match his career-best total with 53 points.
ABOUT THE COYOTES (36-28-15): No. 1 netminder Mike Smith, who has missed the past seven games with a lower-body injury, participated in practice Wednesday but Tippett didn't think he'd be ready to return to the lineup versus Nashville. Martin Erat, who spent 11 seasons with the Predators before parts of two disastrous seasons with Washington, is expected to play in his 800th career game. Erat, who scored only two goals in 62 games during his tenure with the Capitals, reached 50 points five times in a span of six seasons with Nashville.
OVERTIME
1. Phoenix is in the midst of its longest rut since a seven-game winless drought (0-5-2) in March 2013.
2. Predators C Patric Hornqvist, who had 14 points in seven games before he was blanked Tuesday, has six goals and six assists in 14 games versus the Coyotes
3. The teams have split a pair of meetings this season with the home team winning both times.