Flames at Predators
A pair of teams holding down the final two playoff spots in the Western Conference square off when the surging Calgary Flames visit the Nashville Predators on Thursday night. While they own comfortable leads in the wild-card chase, the Flames are one point out of third place in the Pacific while Nashville is tied on points with St. Louis for third in the Central.
After dropping their first four games this month (0-2-2), the Predators are 4-1-0 in their last five contests following Monday's 3-1 victory over Arizona in the opener of a three-game homestand. Filip Forsberg is one tally shy of his second straight 30-goal season and faces a favorable opponent -- he had a hat trick against Calgary last month and has netted five goals in nine games against the Flames. Calgary fell at NHL-leading Washington 4-2 on Tuesday to drop to 12-2-0 in its last 14 and will be seeking to avoid back-to-back losses for the first time since a four-game skid that started with a 4-3 defeat to the Predators on Jan. 19. The Flames have won six of the past eight meetings, although seven have been decided by one goal, including their 6-5 victory at Nashville on Feb. 21.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, Sportsnet Flames (Calgary), FSN Tennessee (Nashville)
ABOUT THE FLAMES (41-28-4): Brian Elliott's franchise record-tying winning streak was halted at 11 games in Washington and he allowed five goals in his last matchup against Nashville, but he's 8-4-0 with a 2.25 goals-against average and three shutouts against the Predators. Johnny Gaudreau collected four assists last month versus Nashville, sparking a 14-game stretch in which he's amassed 18 points. Gaudreau has lit up the Predators in his career with three goals and nine assists in eight games.
ABOUT THE PREDATORS (36-25-11): Craig Smith has not scored since the All-Star break and was a healthy scratch at Carolina on Saturday, but he set up a pair of tallies in Monday's victory. A 20-goal scorer in each of the past three seasons, Smith had his first multi-point game since scoring twice versus Columbus on Jan. 26. "He's obviously been a little bit snake-bitten for his standards, but to see him get those two points -- huge, not only for him, but for our team," defenseman Ryan Ellis said.
OVERTIME
1. Nashville is 1-for-11 on the power play over the past six games while Calgary is 0-for-7 in its last four.
2. Flames rookie F Matthew Tkachuk will serve the second of his two-game suspension for elbowing Kings D Drew Doughty in the face.
3. The Predators are 24-1-5 when leading after two periods this season.