Jets at Predators
The Nashville Predators have yet to suffer back-to-back defeats this season and look to keep that streak intact when they host the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday. The Predators, who lost at Winnipeg 3-1 on Nov. 4 as part of a six-game road trip, had their three-game winning streak halted with a 4-3 setback at St. Louis on Thursday - their fourth straight one-goal decision. Rookie Filip Forsberg continued his stellar play with a goal and two assists to boost his team-leading point total to 20.
The Jets are making the fourth stop on a five-game road trip but are holding up well during a grueling portion of their schedule that features 9-of-11 contests away from home. Winnipeg rebounded from a 3-0 loss at Montreal by beating Carolina 3-1 on Thursday to improve to 7-1-2 in its last 10 games despite scoring more than three goals only once in that span. "Our style of play is tough to play against," said Blake Wheeler, who scored twice against the Hurricanes. "You can feel teams getting frustrated out there."
TV: 7 p.m. ET, CITY (Winnipeg), FSN Tennessee (Nashville)
ABOUT THE JETS (9-6-2): Even though Winnipeg is ranked 29th in the league with an average of 1.82 goals per game, there was no sense of panic after the shutout defeat in Montreal. "We like the way we've been playing recently and we didn't want to get away from that because of one loss," Wheeler told reporters after Thursday's victory. "We're a confident group right now. You never want to lose two games in a row. That's a staple of good teams, teams that are playoff-caliber teams. We didn't want to let this slide." The Jets allowed a power-play tally in Carolina but have killed off 23-of-25 penalties in the last eight games.
ABOUT THE PREDATORS (10-4-2): Forsberg not only is the top rookie scorer in the league, he has tallied seven times during a franchise record-tying six-game goal-scoring streak and has hit the scoresheet in seven consecutive contests - including seven points in his last three games. "He's been consistent in his game," coach Peter Laviolette said. "In his attack, he's able to make plays, find holes and find space. He's got a terrific shot." Backup netminder Carter Hutton was in net for the loss at Winnipeg, but Pekka Rinne is 5-0-0 with a 2.40 goals-against average versus the Jets.
OVERTIME
1. Forsberg has collected 13 points during his seven-game run.
2. Jets G Ondrej Pavelec has surrendered 13 goals over his last eight starts.
3. Laviolette needs one victory to reach 400 for his career.