The Nashville Predators will try to win three in a row for the first time in over six weeks when they host the Edmonton Oilers in Monday's tilt at Bridgestone Arena.
Nashville has slogged through the shortened season so far, posting a mediocre 13-13-6 record after 32 games. Still, the Predators, who have made the postseason in three straight and seven of the last eight seasons, are only one point out of a playoff spot in the Western Conference.
The Predators' offense has displayed signs of life recently, as Nashville scored five goals in consecutive games to begin a four-game homestand with a 2-0 record.
Nashville recorded a 5-3 win over Calgary on Thursday and defeated Columbus by a 5-2 count on Saturday, ending the Blue Jackets' club-record 12-game point streak.
Taylor Beck had a goal and an assist to lead the way in the Predators' win against Columbus. Shea Weber, David Legwand, Matt Halischuk and Roman Josi each had a goal for the Predators, who are tied for 24th in the NHL in goals per game (2.44).
"We forechecked well, we had a lot of detail to our game, we had a lot of jump, and we kept them in their end pretty well," Preds head coach Barry Trotz said.
Pekka Rinne made 21 stops in the victory, improving his record to 12-10-5 this season. The win also pushed Nashville's home record to 8-2-4.
Nashville is locked in a three-way tie for ninth place in the West with San Jose and Columbus. The Sharks play Monday in Anaheim, while the Blue Jackets are idle.
The Oilers, meanwhile, have lost two straight and three of their last four games and are in danger of missing the postseason for a seventh straight year. Edmonton is currently sitting 13th in the West, four points out of a playoff spot.
Edmonton went 1-1-2 on its recent four-game homestand and was dealt a 3-0 loss by St. Louis in Saturday's finale. Jaroslav Halak posted his third shutout of the season, stopping 19 shots for the Blues.
Nikolai Khabibulin allowed three goals on 25 shots for Edmonton, which has been shut out in three of its last eight games.
"We're going to have to leave that behind us, that wasn't the effort we needed. We really seemed out of sync and they came in here and you've got to give them credit. They took it to us and we didn't play nearly the style and type of hockey that we have lately that's made us successful," Oilers center Shawn Horcoff said.
The Oilers carry a two-game road winning streak into Monday's game, but the club is still only 6-7-3 as the away team this season.
Edmonton has played the last two games without forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, who has been battling flu-like symptoms. The first overall pick of the 2011 NHL draft is with the team in Nashville and is questionable for Monday.
The Oilers and Preds have split a pair of meetings this season, with each team winning a game on home ice. Edmonton has claimed two of three and four of the last six encounters in this series overall and Nashville has lost three of five matchups on home ice.
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