Predators at Penguins
Once teetering on the fringe of the playoff picture, the Pittsburgh Penguins are now sitting pretty after winning nine of their last 10 contests to reside just one point from second place in the Metropolitan Division. The white-hot Penguins vie for their fourth win in a row on Thursday when they wrap up a modest two-game homestand against the Nashville Predators.
"I see a group that has bought in to playing a certain way," coach Mike Sullivan told the team website on Wednesday, one day removed from seeing his club rally from an early three-goal deficit to post a 5-4 shootout victory over Buffalo. "We can beat any team we face when we play the right way." Pittsburgh certainly has been doing that to move one point behind the New York Rangers while closing in on punching its ticket for a 10th straight playoff berth. Nashville failed in its initial bid to book a second consecutive trip to the postseason by dropping both ends of a back-to-back set. James Neal notched an assist as the Predators suffered a 5-2 setback to Dallas on Tuesday, but the former Penguin has 11 points (seven goals, four assists) in his last eight games and also tallied versus Pittsburgh in a 2-1 overtime loss on Oct. 24.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSN Tennessee (Nashville), ROOT (Pittsburgh), TVA, NHL Network
ABOUT THE PREDATORS (39-25-13): Ryan Ellis scored a short-handed goal versus the Stars for his third point in four outings before suffering an upper-body injury and did not return. The 25-year-old's availability versus Pittsburgh is in jeopardy, prompting Nashville to recall fellow defenseman Stefan Elliott from Milwaukee of the American Hockey League on Wednesday under emergency conditions. The 25-year-old Elliott has scored six goals and set up 11 others with the Admirals following a trade from the Arizona Coyotes.
ABOUT THE PENGUINS (43-25-8): Defenseman Kris Letang logged a career-high 35 minutes, 14 seconds of ice time versus the Sabres and recorded his personal-best 44th assist to extend his point streak to three games (one goal, three assists). "I want a rest, that's for sure," said Letang, who also has a career high in goals (15) and points (59). "For us, in the situation that we are in, I don't think it really matters who we're playing. The points are all really precious." Sidney Crosby notched an assist on Tuesday to record at least one point in 15 of his last 16 games (seven goals, 16 assists), but the captain was held off the scoresheet in the previous meeting with Nashville.
OVERTIME
1. Nashville G Pekka Rinne made 23 saves in the initial encounter with Pittsburgh this season to fall to 1-3-2 in his career versus the club.
2. Penguins LW Chris Kunitz scored in the previous meeting with the Predators and has 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists) in 22 career encounters.
3. Nashville has scored a power-play goal in five of its last seven games, but went 0-for-3 in the initial meeting with Pittsburgh.