Preds Prey: Weekly Preview 2/25/18-3/3/18

The Nashville Predators look to stay atop the Central Division even with having to play three of their four games on the road.

The week will begin on Sunday with a big Central  Division game against the St. Louis Blues, who haven't been playing well of late. The Predators will then visit Winnipeg to take on another Central Division foe in the Jets. They will then travel to Edmonton to face Connor McDavid and the disappointing Oilers. Nashville will end the week with another game on the road, where they will take on the Vancouver Canucks.

On Sunday afternoon, the Predators look to gain a valuable two points from the St. Louis Blues, who have not looked good in their last five games. The Preds will need to make sure that they get off to a good start in this game and set the tone early. Nashville should be good with the puck because the Blues can force some turnovers. The Predators want to establish the forecheck and cycle game to keep the puck in the offensive zone and make the Blues defend. The Preds need to win the special teams battle since the Blues have a power play that is not very good considering the players on both of their power play units. Nashville should keep an eye on Brayden Schenn and Vladimir Tarasenko when they are on the ice since they are the two leading scorers for the Blues this year.

The Blues need to be engaged in the game from the drop of the puck, whether that is physically or just getting some early offensive zone pressure. St. Louis is going to have to be willing to work for the puck and win puck battles since Nashville won't make it easy for them to do so with two big points on the line. The Blues need to be discipline because the Preds power play is among the best in the NHL. St. Louis will want to get the first goal of the game to have some of the momentum on their side and take the home crowd out of the game. The Blues need to be aware of when and where Viktor Arvidsson and Filip Forsberg are on the ice since those two can produce points.

On Tuesday night, Nashville will be in Winnipeg with another two huge points on the line. The Predators will want to play with discipline since the Jets power play is ranked third in the League. The Preds need to be very good while at even strength since the Jets special teams are ranked in the top 10. Nashville should get the first goal to take the home crowd out of the game. The Predators will need the goaltending to be very good and make saves. The Preds need to be aware of when and where Patrik Laine and Blake Wheeler are on the ice because they are two of the top scorers on the Jets.

The Jets need to be aware of the Nashville defensive corp since they like to join the play in the offensive zone and will use the stretch pass to get ahead of the defender. Winnipeg should keep an eye on P.K. Subban and Roman Josi since those two defensemen are the leading the defensive group in points. The Jets want to have a lead entering the third period since they only have points in four of the 17 games they've trailed going into the final period of the game. Winnipeg should try to win the special teams battle since both teams are pretty good playing at even strength. The Jets will absolutely need to get a good game from the goaltender since the Preds will get their chances.

On Thursday night, the Preds will take on Connor McDavid and the struggling Oilers. Nashville will want to take advantage of a weak penalty kill of the Oilers (56.8%) at home. The Predators need to avoid mistakes and turnovers that can lead to odd man rushes and scoring chances. The Preds will want to be good in the neutral zone to slow down the speed of the Oilers. Nashville should try to have the lead entering the final period of the game. The Predators need to be aware of when McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are on the ice because they can use their speed to produce points.

Edmonton needs to figure out a way to get some secondary scoring because Draisaitl and McDavid have been doing most of the damage offensively this year. The Oilers will want to get their special teams on track, or at least stay out of the penalty box so they don't have to kill any penalties. Edmonton needs to get the first goal of the game and build off that momentum. The Oilers should try to use their speed to create some havoc through the neutral zone and in offensive zone. Edmonton will need a big game from the goaltender, who will need to have a big game.

Nashville finishes out their week on Friday night against the Vancouver Canucks. The Preds will want to play a discipline game because the Canucks power play is surprisingly good, like top 10 in the League good. The Predators should attack, get some offensive zone pressure and some scoring chances. Nashville should take advantage of a weak penalty kill of the Canucks and not play down to their opponent.

Vancouver needs to have a good start to the game, and establish the forecheck. The Canucks should try to win the even strength play since the penalty kill is not great. Vancouver wants to be discipline since the Predators have a really good power play. The Canucks need to play a good defensive game and make sure that the gap is not too big. Vancouver should keep an eye on Kevin Fiala and Ryan Johansen since they can put up some points.

Sabres Slashes: Weekly Preview 12/31/17-1/6/18

The Buffalo Sabres will look to gain some valuable points in the standings this week as they take on some tough teams.

On Monday, they will play the New York Rangers in the annual NHL Winter Classic outdoor game. They will then face the Minnesota Wild and Winnipeg Jets on back-to-back nights to end their week.

The Sabres need to find a way to slow down Mats Zuccarello and Mika Zibanejad since they are the two top point getters on the Rangers. Buffalo will want to limit their mistakes and not turn over the puck especially through the neutral zone and while breaking out of their own zone. The Sabres should make sure that they have plenty of traffic in front of the net to make it difficult for the goaltender to see the puck. Buffalo wants to make sure that they are better at even strength hockey, and they can do that by getting a good forecheck game established early and by making the smart play instead of just making a play to make a play. The Sabres need to play with discipline even though the Rangers power play is only in the middle of the pack in the NHL. If Buffalo takes too many penalties then it could come back and haunt them during the game.

The Rangers need to get off to a better start in this game since they've been outscored 33-30 in first periods of games. New York should be aware of when Jack Michael and Kyle Okposo are on the ice since they both can produce and put the puck in the net. The Rags want to get the first goal of the game and keep building on the momentum of that first goal. New York has a mediocre power play, but that doesn't mean that they shouldn't take advantage of the power play opportunities when they are there. The Rangers need to not play down to their opponent, get plenty of pucks towards the opposition's net and limit the mistakes when playing at even strength.

Buffalo will travel to Minnesota to take on the Wild on Thursday night. The Sabres will need to make sure that they are aware of where and when Jason Zucker and Eric Staal are on the ice since they are the leading scorers for the Wild. Buffalo wants to get the first goal of the game and take the home crowd out of the game. The Sabres are going to need to play a good defense oriented game since the Wild are pretty good on home ice. Buffalo needs to win the battle at even strength since the Wild have a really good penalty kill. The Sabres need to get some good goaltending in this game and saves need to be made.

The Wild want to make sure that they have the lead entering the final period of the game since they only have one come from behind win. Minnesota should attack and force turnovers since the Sabres are a team that will cough the puck up. The Wild need to make sure that they are competing and not just expecting to win the game because they are playing one of the worst teams in the NHL. Minnesota definitely will want to be better in the third period since they have been outscore 54-45 in the final periods of games so far this year.

The Sabres will finish out their week by visiting the Winnipeg Jets. Buffalo will need to get the power play going since they have been horrific on the power play so far this year. The Sabres want to get the first goal of the game and keep attacking, don't sit back. Buffalo will want to play a solid road game by limiting their mistakes, getting good goaltending, forcing turnovers and staying focused throughout the game. The Sabres will want to get off to a good start and establish the tone very early in this game. Buffalo needs to keep an eye on Blake Wheeler and Patrik Laine since both players can get on the board.

The Jets are going to want to make sure that they have the lead entering the final period of the game since they have one come from behind win when trailing after two periods. Winnipeg will need to be good while playing at even strength and not let the Sabres take it to them. The Jets will need to use their speed to get through the neutral zone and make the Sabres defenders back into the own zone and not let them stand up at the blue line. Winnipeg needs to get off to a good start and keep the home crowd in the game. The Jets will need to be aware of Jack Eichel and Evander Kane when they are on the ice because they have been two of the bright spots on the Sabres this year.