The Nashville Predators went into San Jose on a two-game winning streak, trying to take down the surging Sharks. The Preds went down early with a goal from Tomas Hertl, his 7th of the year.
The first period was a struggle as they were out-shot 18-7, but came back. By the beginning of the third period, Nashville was trying to answer against Antti Niemi‘s performance, yet were unsuccessful. In the end, the Predators gave up an empty net goal to lose against the Sharks 2-0.
The next opponent for the Nashville Predators will be the Boston Bruins. Every year, the Bruins are one of the top teams coming out of the Eastern conference, and this matchup will a significant task for the Predators. In their last outing, the Bruins lost to the Ottawa Senators 3-2 in a shootout. There was a continual battle between these two, which ended in the shootout with an outstanding goal from Bobby Ryan.
The Boston Bruins are currently being led in points by Patrice Bergeron with 20 points, 5 goals and 15 assists. Brad Marchand leads Boston in goals with eight.
Keys to watch
The Injury Bug–“Boston-style”
With a record of 15-13-2 and currently in 6th place in the Atlantic conference of the Eastern Conference, Boston has lots of injuries to key players on the season. These injuries have put a damper on the season. Currently on IR, Marc Savard has been on the list since October 7th for Post-concussion syndrome. Adam McQuaid is currently on the IR for a broken thumb. David Krejci is on the list for hip issues. With all these issues, and many more, the injury bug has hit Boston. If they can ever get healthy, this team will surely be making another run for the Stanley Cup.
Preds vs the Eastern Conference
In this season, the Nashville Predators are 4-3 against the Eastern Conference. They’ve played the Senators (10/9 W, 11/20 L), Penguins (10/25 L), Maple Leafs (11/18 W), Panthers (11/22 W), Blue Jackets (11/29 W), and the Hurricanes (12/2 L). With the eighth match-up on the season, the team has had some success against the Eastern conference. Look for continual success against the teams from the East.
Weber vs Chara
These two have faced off before. In the 2012 Hardest Shot Competition, Weber came in 2nd place against Chara . Weber had a shot of 106.0 MPH, but Chara had a top shot of 108! With two of the hardest shots in the NHL, its always a blast to see them face off. All I can say is, if you want to block shots, expect lots of bruises. My advice…. GET OUT OF THE WAY!!!
With the Preds making it back to Bridgestone Arena after a 3-game roadtrip, expect a very raucus crowd at home. The game will start at 7:00 pm. If you can’t make it to the arena, the game can be watched on FS-TN or you can listen live on 102.5 The Game.
