The Penguins return to the ice for the first of two straight road games and tonight they battle a scorching Nashville Predators team, who are riding a five-game winning streak.
In their most recent pair of games, the Predators beat two Central Division rivals in the Western Conference. Recently, they snuck past Winnipeg on Sunday and throttled St. Louis on Friday, 8-3.
Meanwhile, the Penguins look to build some momentum heading into December. Currently, they’re 10-10 and sit third-to-last in the Metro Division, just one point ahead of New Jersey and two points behind last place Columbus. Over their next nine games, the Penguins will play seven of them on the road, with their only home games coming this Saturday against Philadelphia and December 12th against Arizona.
Looking at the numbers, the Penguins have struggled on the man advantage this season. They’re the sixth-worst team in power play percentage, the fourth-worst team in power play goals, and sit near the middle in short-hand goals. One of the brighter spots, however, has been the penalty kill as they are eighth in the league in PK percentage.
Coach Mike Sullivan knows the Penguins’ special teams needs to step up if they want to make the most of this tough schedule.
Sullivan did add that he was pleased with his team’s effort over the early parts of the season.
Evgeni Malkin said the Penguins had some troubles finding their identity through the first 20 games of the season, but he knows things will get better if they can get by Nashville and Tampa.
Sullivan added that Bryan Rust will be a gametime decision for tonight as he continues to deal with a lower body injury. He did not travel with the team for their game Saturday against Toronto, but he was seen in practice this weekend.
Tonight’s game faces off shortly after 8 o’clock. Airtime is 7 p.m. on U92.5 FM.
NHL
The Minnesota Wild fired head coach Dean Evason yesterday. He led the Wild to four playoff appearances since taking over in 2019, but encountered a tough start to this season, going 5-10-4. Former Predators coach John Hynes will step in as the Wild’s coach.
The NHL is bringing back the All-Star Draft, marking the first draft in nearly a decade. Four All-Star captains and celebrity co-captains will draft teams in front of fans in Toronto, with the All-Star Game set for Saturday, February 3.
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