, 3-0-1 in its last four games, went 3 for 6 on the power play. Darcy Kuemper stopped 23 shots and set a franchise record by allowing two goals or less in 12 consecutive games. Jakob Chychrun added his first goal of the season, and Carl Soderberg also scored. Dante Fabbro and Nick Bonino scored for the Predators, who have lost two of three. The Predators were without leading goal scorer Filip Forsberg, who came in with five on the season. Forsberg took a shoulder blow to his head in the Predators' 5-2 win at Vegas on Tuesday and was a game-time decision with a lower body injury. Arizona lost defenseman Jordan Oesterle 17 seconds into the game when a shot was deflected off the back of his head. Oesterle was down on the ice for a few moments before being helped to his feet and to the bench. The Coyotes didn't seem affected. Dvorak sent a shot from a difficult side angle high into the net past Juuse Saros at 6:06. Kessel, a 13-year veteran acquired in a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins in the offseason, finished off a power play give-and-go with Clayton Keller, scoring at 10:34 of the first. Kessel scored again on a power play for a three-goal lead, with Keller assisting at 5:03 of the third. Nick Schmaltz and Derek Stepan also had two assists. The Predators made it 2-1 at 3:13 of the second with Fabbro's goal. Ryan Ellis assisted on both Predators goals, giving him a team-high eight assists. Saros blocked a breakaway attempt from the Coyotes' Derek Stepan at 9:13 of the second. Saros finished with 27 saves. Chychrun, on another power play, scored on a left-handed wrist shot at 14:27. The Predators managed only three shots in the first period. They are 1-1-6 in their last eight games in Arizona. Bonino scored late in the third, then Soderberg put the game out of reach with an empty-net goal at the 17:10 mark. NOTES: The Coyotes celebrated Noche De Los Yotes, a tribute to Hispanic heritage, on Thursday night. Earlier in the day, the team announced the formation of the franchise's first ever Latino advisory board, which is headed by majority owner Alex Meruelo. Meruelo has said he intends to build more fan interest in the Coyotes within the Phoenix area's large Hispanic population. ... The Coyotes played 59 minutes, 43 seconds of the game with five defensemen after Oesterle's injury. They were already without their top defenseman, Niklas Hjalmarsson, who is on injured reserve with a cracked fibula and could miss several months. ... F Michael Grabner played in his 600th career NHL game. ... Nashville's streak of five straight games with a power-play goal came to an end. UP NEXTNashville: Hosts Florida on Saturday night. Arizona: Hosts Ottawa on Saturday afternoon.---More NHL: https://apnews.com/tag/NHL and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Time: 10:00 PM EDT Venue: Gila River Arena, Phoenix, Ariz., 85305 / Darcy Kuemper could become the first goalie in franchise history to allow two goals or fewer in 12 straight appearances when the Arizona Coyotes host the Nashville Predators on Thursday night in Glendale, Ariz. Kuemper made 38 saves on Tuesday to help the Coyotes to a 4-2 win at the Winnipeg Jets. He has stopped 127 of 133 shots over four games this season for a .955 save percentage. Nikolai Khabibulin holds the team record of 11 straight games allowing two goals or fewer. He established that streak early in the 1998-99 season. Kuemper's streak doesn't include any appearances against Nashville. However, he's 4-2-1 against the Predators in his career with a 2.44 goals-against average and .920 save percentage. He last faced them on Nov. 15 and made a career-high 44 saves in the 2-1 win. The Predators played four games at home before embarking on their first road trip. They rallied from a three-goal deficit at the start of the third period on Saturday at the Los Angeles Kings, but then gave up three goals in the final minute in the 7-4 loss. They were more consistent in a 5-2 win at the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday night." We're learning and figuring it out and realizing what it takes to win on the road," Predators coach Peter Laviolette told reporters after the win in Las Vegas. The Predators could be without one of their top offensive players, as center Filip Forsberg departed against Vegas with just over nine minutes left after sustaining a lower-body injury and he did not return. Forsberg did not participate in an optional practice Wednesday in Arizona, and Laviolette told reporters that he will be a game-time decision against the Coyotes. Forsberg scored a goal in the second period against the Jets to give the Predators a 4-2 lead and tied Marek Zidlicky for the longest point streak to start a season in franchise history. Forsberg has eight points (five goals, three assists) in the first six games. Zidlicky had seven points (two goals, five assists) in the first six games of the 2003-04 season. Forsberg has scored from 26 to 33 goals in each of the past five seasons." Filip's been one of the constants for us for a few years," Laviolette said. The Predators had waived forward Daniel Carr earlier Tuesday and planned to send him back to Milwaukee of the American Hockey League, but he remained with Nashville following Forsberg's injury. The Coyotes, meanwhile, have been receiving outstanding offensive play from forwards Nick Schmaltz and Christian Dvorak. Schmaltz has scored a goal in each of the past three games and has five points overall in that span. He was traded to the Coyotes from the Chicago Blackhawks last November, but then went down with a knee injury in January, which ended his season." I'm just getting to scoring areas and using my shot a little bit more than I usually do," Schmaltz told reporters after the win against Winnipeg. "Sometimes, they go in stretches, so just stick with it. You're not going to score every game so just play the same way, and make sure I'm shooting the puck when I get a chance." Dvorak had two goals in a 4-2 win against the Jets on Tuesday night." They've got some chemistry right now," Arizona coach Rick Tocchet said of Schmaltz and Dvorak.--Field Level Media
Looking for More Picks?
You can browse all the individual handicapper picks below.
Nashville Predators
Arizona Coyotes
Pick Center
NHL
FINAL (10/17/2019)
ProfessorsPicks
