Senators vs Predators: Prediction, Team News and Ottawa’s Goalie Question

Ottawa has won two of three and the two wins were both Linus Ullmark’s. The one defeat came with Samuel Ersson in net and Ullmark listed day to day.

Senators vs Predators is a game about who starts. Ullmark is stopping .949 of what he faces; Ottawa without him looks like a different team.

How to watch

Sportsnet One and TVAS-D have it in Canada. Regional coverage can differ from the national listing, and our how to watch the NHL in Canada page has the full picture.

Senators vs Predators odds

No Canadian price had posted by 8 October. Our NHL odds page carries them as they appear, and the projected starters are on our NHL starting goalies page.

The whole game sits on Ottawa’s crease

Ullmark is 2-0-0 at a .949 save percentage. He’s day to day, and we covered the detail in our Linus Ullmark injury update.

Ersson started in Detroit on Tuesday and stopped 31 of 35 in a 5-3 defeat. He isn’t the problem, but the gap between a .949 and a .886 decides games like this one.

Tim Stützle has six points in three games. Drake Batherson and Michael Amadio have three apiece, and William Eklund, who arrived from San Jose, has two.

Jake Sanderson is day to day too. Fifty-four points from defence last season, and Ottawa is already without Artem Zub.

How they compare

Thirteen points apart last season, and Ottawa conceded 23 fewer goals.

Nashville is winning with players in their thirties

Steven Stamkos has three goals at 36. Roman Josi has three points from defence and Ryan O’Reilly is still in the top six at 35.

Nils Höglander has three goals since arriving from Vancouver, which is the sort of return Nashville needed from a player who cost a third-round pick.

Juuse Saros has started all three at .907 and has no cover. Justus Annunen, who had the better rates last season, is on injured reserve.

Filip Forsberg has three assists and no goals yet. Forty goals last season says that corrects itself.

Nashville won both meetings last season

Nashville won 4-1 in Ottawa in October and 5-3 at home in January. Ottawa scored four across the two.

Team news

Ullmark and Sanderson are both morning-skate calls. League-wide availability is on our NHL injury report.

Players to watch

Linus Ullmark. If he plays, the Senators are favourites. If he doesn’t, this is close.

Tim Stützle. Six points in three and the first name on Ottawa’s sheet since Brady Tkachuk left for Florida.

Steven Stamkos. Three goals at 36, which nobody should still be surprised by.

Juuse Saros. Three starts, no backup available, and a .907 that’s holding Nashville together.

Score prediction

Nashville Predators 2-3 Ottawa Senators. Ottawa at home with Ullmark is the better team by a clear margin. Nashville’s two wins in this series last season and Saros’s form are why the margin stays at one.

Senators vs Predators prediction

Ottawa finished thirteen points above Nashville last season and has the better forward group now that Stützle is carrying it. At home, with Ullmark, the Senators win this most nights.

The two things working against that are real. Nashville took both meetings last season, and Ottawa’s goaltender is a question until the morning skate.

Sanderson’s absence would compound it. Ottawa’s blue line is already short of Zub.

Our lean: Ottawa, and the under if the total sits at 6 or higher. Neither meeting last season reached nine goals and both clubs are averaging under four. Where each sits is on our NHL power rankings.

19+ (18+ in AB, MB and QC). Odds are approximate at the time of writing and changeconstantly. Availability varies by province. Please play responsibly. ConnexOntario: 1-866-531-2600 for Ontario residents; see your province’s helpline for resources elsewhere.