Two teams still on the outskirts of the Western Conference playoff picture will collide when the Nashville Predators host the San Jose Sharks on Monday night.
The Predators (38-32-10, 86 points) trail the Los Angeles Kings by one point for the second wild card in the West with two games remaining. The Kings have played one fewer game, but should they finish tied, the Predators would hold the first tiebreaker of regulation wins (currently 28-21).
The Sharks (37-34-8, 82 points) are still alive in the wild-card race, but just barely. They would need to win their final three games and get a lot of help.
San Jose saw its playoff hopes damaged by a six-game losing streak (0-5-1) in March. It rebounded with four straight wins but has lost three straight (0-2-1).
On Saturday, the Predators kept pace with a 2-1 home win against the Minnesota Wild. Steven Stamkos scored his 40th goal of the season and had an assist. Matthew Wood also scored, and Justus Annunen made 21 saves.
The Predators are 4-1-1 in their past six games as they continue their push.
“It’s fun playing these meaningful games,” Stamkos said. “It sucks we let it kind of slip out of our control, but all we can focus on now is the next two. We’re fortunate they’re at home.”
Nashville hosts Anaheim in its season finale Thursday.
Stamkos reached the 40-goal mark for the second time in three seasons and the eighth time in his 18-year career.
“Obviously, the goal-scoring is what you’re seeing, but everything else, he’s such an amazing leader on our team,” Predators captain Roman Josi said. “It’s just so cool to have a guy like him on the team where you know in big games he’s taking charge.”
Josi returned after missing one game because of an upper-body injury. He played 27:10 and had three shots on goal.
Meanwhile, San Jose led Vancouver late in the third period Saturday, but the Canucks tied it with three minutes remaining and won it in a shootout, 4-3.
Igor Chernyshov scored twice for the Sharks, and Yaroslav Askarov made 38 saves.
“Just some of our details, I would say, is the biggest thing,” Sharks coach Ryan Warsofsky said, “Details in our D zone … In previous games, there were some other issues.”
Macklin Celebrini had two assists to reach 110 points (42 goals, 68 assists). He recorded his 29th multi-point game of the season, the fourth-most in a single season in San Jose franchise history.
Regardless of how the season ends, the Sharks will have turned things around after finishing 20-50-12 a year ago.
“Nobody expected us to be in this position we’re in, except all of us,” Celebrini said.
The Sharks finish with games at Chicago on Wednesday and Winnipeg on Thursday.
All three of the games in these teams’ season series have come since March 24. Filip Forsberg had a goal and two assists to help the Predators to a 6-3 home win that night. On April 4, the Predators lost a 3-0 lead at San Jose. However, Ryan O’Reilly broke the tie in the third, and Nashville prevailed 6-3. Forsberg scored twice.
