April 17th, St. Louis Blues @ Nashville Predators, 5 PM CT
It doesn’t matter if it’s October or April, when the Predators and the Blues get together it’s a big deal. But it’s obviously amplified for this April 17 showdown at Bridgestone Arena.
By this time we’ll be in the final two weeks of the regular season, and the Predators will either be fading completely out of the playoff picture to get themselves back in, or narrowly holding on like they are now.
The Blues have been hard to figure out over the last month. Since their thrilling 7-4 win over the Predators on March 12, the Blues have been very average. They went through a stretch of losing five of six, but have rebounded by now winning three of their last four including an impressive win over the Flames.
The Predators are now really need to handle the Blues in this matchup to keep pace in the division. The Blues have built themselves a four-point lead over the Predators for third place.
The season series favors the Blues 2-1, with the Predators needing overtime in their lone win all the way back in mid-November. The Blues have had no problem piling up the offense in the three matchups, posting 15 goals.
If you want to be taken serious in this playoff race down the final stretch, you have to step up against teams like the Blues in your division. I have this one circled as always.