Despite having a tough season, the Nashville Predators might be in a better mental state than the struggling New York Rangers.
The Predators have the chance to avoid a fourth straight home loss by handing the Rangers their third consecutive defeat on Tuesday night.
As of Monday, Nashville had the fewest points (22) in the NHL. Even though they were stuck in a 1-6-3 slump, the Predators are still finding positive aspects of their game to move forward with hopes of a turnaround.
On Saturday, Nashville fell behind 3-0 at Colorado, but third-period goals from Steven Stamkos and Luke Evangelista brought them back into the game. However, the Avalanche scored two empty-net goals to win 5-2.
“In a year that it’s been tough to find some of those moral victories, with the way things (went Saturday, it’s) certainly one of those,” Stamkos, who has three points in three games, told the Predators’ website.
“And we’ve just got to build on that. It’s frustrating when you start to play the game the right way, the way that we want to, and you don’t necessarily see the results. That’s the old saying, ‘You just stick with it.’”
Maybe a game against the struggling Rangers will help Nashville, which is stuck in an 0-1-2 home slump.
The New York Rangers, the reigning Presidents’ Trophy winner, started the season strong with a 12-4-1 record and 61 goals scored. However, they’ve scored only 31 goals and lost 10 of their last 13 games.
On Sunday, the Rangers fell behind 3-0 at St. Louis but made a comeback with third-period goals from Brett Berard and Will Cuylle. However, they lost 3-2, which added to the team’s frustration.
“I don’t even know how to describe the feeling right now,” Rangers defenseman Adam Fox told the New York Post. “It’s definitely not good.
“We talk; we talk as a group and say to just try and be engaged. It definitely wears on you when you’re in kind of a streak like this.”
The Rangers have scored only seven goals in their last four games, three of which were decided by a single goal. Leading scorer Artemi Panarin (36 points) may miss a second consecutive game with an upper-body injury. It’s also unclear if winger Kaapo Kakko, who has just one point in his last six games, will return after being a healthy scratch on Sunday.
“We’ve just got to keep fighting, keep battling,” Cuylle, who has four goals and eight assists in 14 road games this season, told NHL.com.
After Jonathan Quick (2.47 goals-against average) made 21 saves at St. Louis, Igor Shesterkin (3.08 GAA) could be back in goal for New York.
Nashville’s Juuse Saros has a 3.40 goals-against average during his current 0-5-3 stretch. However, backup Justus Annunen was excellent, making 35 saves during the Predators’ 4-1 win at Dallas on Thursday.
It’s uncertain if injured Nashville captain and defenseman Roman Josi (lower body) will miss a third straight game.
Stamkos has 41 points (19 goals, 22 assists) in 42 career games against New York. The Rangers’ Mika Zibanejad has only one point in his last six road games.
