Behind Enemy Lines: Nashville Predators Look for Revenge over Coyotes

In their first meeting of the 2022-23 season, the Nashville Predators will take on the Arizona Coyotes on Monday night from Bridgestone Arena.

The Predators have managed to get points in six of their last eight games as they’re climbing back into the middle of a jammed up Central Division, while the Coyotes have slumped into last place and currently riding a three-game losing streak.

Despite being in last place, the Coyotes haven’t been quite as bad as many expected them to be. They’re 6-9-1 and just five points behind the Predators with two fewer games played.

Painful Memories for the Nashville Predators against the Coyotes

The last time these two faced each other was at the tail end of last season when the Nashville Predators were battling for playoff seeding. The Coyotes played the spoiler role in dramatic fashion after falling behind 4-0 in the first period and storming back to win 5-4 in regulation.

Juuse Saros had already suffered his season-ending injury, and Connor Ingram was thrown into the fire.

All eyes for Predators fans are on who the Coyotes will start in net.It has been confirmed by Daily Faceoff and Max Herz that Ingram will indeed get the start against his former team.

Ingram’s start with the Coyotes has been difficult to say the least. He ranks 65th among NHL goaltenders in Goals Saved Above Expected with a minus 4.7, according to Money Puck.

The Coyotes struggle badly to put pucks past the opposing goaltender as they’re 30th in scoring at 2.56 goals per game. The Predators aren’t much better at 2.67 per game, good for 28th.

We know Ingram will be fired up to play against his former team. Don’t count him out to turn in a stellar performance despite his early season struggles.

Sizing up the Coyotes

We could be in store for a low-scoring affair between these two teams if Juuse Saros can stay on his recent hot streak. One thing to be mindful about for the Predators is the Coyotes boast a top-10 ranked power play and above average at power play chances per game.

The Predators need to keep this at a 5v5 game and you have to like their chances of holding the Coyotes to under three goals.

The Coyotes leading scorer and most dangerous player is by far Clayton Keller. He has 18 points, with seven of those coming via the power play. He is capable of burning the Predators defensive core if they have any breakdowns in the neutral zone.

The problem the Coyotes face, predictably so, is they’re very inexperienced and lack reliable depth. A team like the Predators who is much more balanced and deep with veteran talent should be able to overtake the Coyotes as the game wears on.

The Coyotes are getting a big boost to their lineup with forward Nick Schmaltz coming back for his first action since the season-opener. He should add an extra scoring weapon to a Coyotes team that needs it.

Schmaltz was a 59-point scorer for the Coyotes last season and has been with the team since 2019.

Expect this to be another close game for the Nashville Predators to deal with. They’re not in a place to take any team lightly, but this is two points you have to have. It’s a winnable game and you have the better players if everyone avoids self-inflicted mistakes.

They’ll drop the puck from Bridgestone Arena between the Arizona Coyotes and Nashville Predators at 8 PM ET. You can catch the action regionally on Bally Sports and nationally through the ESPN+ streaming network.