NHL Preview: Preds Invade Windy City

Nashville Predators (17-9-6) at Chicago Blackhawks (18-14-3)

This promises to be an interesting game for the Predators. Prior to their last game against the Los Angeles Kings, Nashville had gone 8-0-2 in its last ten, one of the hottest 10-game stretches in franchise history. But the game against Los Angeles? It all fell apart.

The Preds lost 6-1 to the Kings on Saturday night, their worst loss of the season. The Kings jumped out to a 4-1 lead before coach Barry Trotz pulled starting netminder Anders Lindback and inserted fellow rookie Mark Dekanich. Nashville had an impressive run of play broken, but that wasn’t the only streak snapped on the evening — F Sergei Kostitsyn had his career-high eight-game point streak stopped.

Chicago, meanwhile, has put together a winning streak of its own. The Blackhawks beat Detroit 4-1 on Friday and posted a 3-2 victory over Los Angeles on Sunday thanks to goals from Jonathan Toews, Duncan Keith and Fernando Pisani. Toews added an assist to give him six goals and seven assists in the last nine games for Chicago, which has been without the services of noted scorers Patrick Kane and Marian Hossa. Toews has performed admirably in their absences.

This promises to be a heated affair between two long-standing Central Division rivals. Currently, Chicago trails Nashville by a point in the division, but both are still looking up at the Detroit Red Wings, who stand alone in first with a 20-8-4 record. The Central Division has been a real war of attrition this season, with every team playing remarkably well to start the year. Only seven points separate first from 5th (St. Louis is in the division basement with 37 points).

Some player notes for tonight’s contest:

— Chicago LW Viktor Stalberg (head) skated Dec. 19 for the first time since leaving the game Dec. 15 after getting boarded by the Avalanche’s Ryan O’Bryne.

— Nashville LW Steve Sullivan did not play in the third period of the Los Angeles game due to an injury, but he did score the Predators’ only goal. Sullivan has a four-game scoring streak. Coach Barry Trotz downplayed the possibility of Sullivan missing a game, so expect him to be in the lineup for tonight’s affair vs. Chicago.

— Preds G Pekka Rinne (left knee), injured in shootout at Columbus Dec. 1, is getting closer to returning to form. He made the trip to New Jersey but Mark Dekanich dressed as the back-up — it’s possible that Rinne could get his first start in almost three weeks against the ‘Hawks.