NASHVILLE — BOSTON — The Nashville Predators open the second road trip of their season Thursday night at TD Garden against one of the NHL’s hottest teams.
Nashville (3-2-3) arrives off a 5-2 win over St. Louis that ended a three-game winless stretch. Boston (7-3-1) comes in after a 3-2 overtime loss in Dallas on Tuesday, which snapped the Bruins’ five-game winning streak. The Predators split two games with the Bruins last season, winning at home but losing on the road. Here are three things to watch Thursday.
1. Can Nashville slow Boston’s offense without giving up a power play?
Boston’s offense has fueled the Bruins fast start this season. The Bruins averaged 3.6 goals per game through their first 10 games, good for seventh in the NHL. They have plenty of skill at the top of the lineup. The Bruins’ top line against Dallas featured J.J. Peterka, Pavel Zacha, and David Pastrnak together. Pastrnak leads the team with four goals and 12 points. Peterka isn't far behind, scoring three goals and six points, and Zacha has two goals and five points of his own.
The Predators have some history on their side. The Bruins haven’t scored more than three goals in any of their last seven meetings with Nashville. The Predators took five penalties in Saturday's win over St. Louis but still won thanks to outstanding penalty killing. Nashville has killed 85.2 percent of their penalties this season, and the Bruins have scored six power-play goals, converting on just 25 percent of their penalties, but the Predators would be wise to avoid giving a talented team an extra-man advantage in their own building.
2. Little Juice or Big Juice vs. Swayman
The goaltending matchup is one of the game's best individual battles. Jeremy Swayman has a 1.98 goals-against average and a .928 save percentage, with a 6-1-1 record this season. He's stopped 206 shots this season, anchoring the Bruins' defense.
Nashville has gone to Juuse Saros in all but one game this year. He is 3-2-2 with a 2.82 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage, and he's tied for fourth in the league in total saves (193) heading into Tuesday. That workload is worth watching with five games in eight days starting Thursday. If the Predators can limit Boston’s best looks, Saros can make the difference against a team this good. Nashville has leaned heavily on Little Juice this season as Big Juice, Justus Annunen, started the season on the injured reserve. Annunen was activated in the middle of last week, but didn't play. Could Andrew Brunette start the road trip by giving Annunen his first action of the season?
3. Does Nashville’s energy from Saturday carry over?
Nashville’s third period against the Blues is what Brunette wants to build on. The Predators scored twice in the first 8:14 of the third period to pull away, and head coach Andrew Brunette said the energy at practice has carried over. Adam Wilsby put it more simply: keep the desperation.
The Predators also have a few players to watch offensively. Filip Forsberg scored his first goal of the season, Jonathan Marchessault scored on a penalty shot, and Adam Edström scored his second short-handed goal in three games. Depth scoring will matter against a Boston team that tends to control stretches at home, and Nashville is 1-0-2 away from Bridgestone Arena this season.
The bottom line
Thursday marks the first of five games in eight days for Nashville, and it starts against a Bruins team among the league’s best on both ends. The Predators don’t need to be perfect. If they stay disciplined, get timely saves from Saros, and keep the energy they showed against St. Louis, they can take points on the road. Forward Mavrik Bourque is day-to-day and could return Thursday, so check the lineup before puck drop.
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