Evander Kane Returns to the San Jose Sharks Versus the Nashville Predators

The San Jose Sharks are looking to bounce back from a 4 –  2 loss against the Florida Panthers. However steadying the ship is easier said than done with a match-up against the Nashville Predators

Team Teal will be getting a much-needed boost against the Nashville Predators with the emotional return of Evander Kane from a 7 game break. The San Jose Sharks have been able to generate offense without the winger, but noticeably lacked intensity at times.

Kane’s ability to drive play and transition the puck cannot be duplicated by any of the other San Jose Sharks, so having him slot back in next to Hertl on that pseudo-top line makes this roster that much more explosive.

One striking absence from the San Jose Sharks line-up is Joonas Donskoi. The Finnish forward is a healthy scratch tonight (on his bobble head night…). This move was most likely for motivational purposes. This is a strategy that is not foreign to Pete DeBoer and his coaching staff.

Team Teal’s official Twitter account posted the projected roster configurations entering tonight’s match-up versus the Nashville Predators at the SAP Center.

Unlike the Sharks, Nashville has struggled over the past calendar month. According to naturalstattrick the Predators have controlled possession and many of the shot share metrics. However they’ve struggled mightily with converting on any of the dangerous scoring chances they have generated.

The Nashville Predators are plagued with an extremely below average shooting percentage at 6.60. With the regular season winding down they are running out of time to figure out their shooting woes. Perhaps a game against a potential Western Conference finals opponent will jump-start this sporadic Nashville club.

The San Jose Sharks can clinch a playoff berth tonight if things go in their favor. Director of media relations Ben Guerrero lays out all the possible scenarios that could play out for Team Teal this evening.

Expect both of these teams to be ready for this one. The previous games in this season series have been ridiculously entertaining so it’s difficult to expect anything less from these two Stanley Cup contenders.

Puck drop for tonight’s game is at 7:30 PM PT live at the SAP Center. The game is televised on NBCSCA and the audio is streamed via the San Jose Sharks official app courtesy of 98.5 KFOX.

The game will also be streamed along with plenty of other NHL games all season long on ESPN+. If you don’t like it, cancel anytime! ESPN+ will stream more than 180 NHL games—an average of seven games a week—throughout the 2018–19 season, including the exclusive nightly highlight show In The Crease. Click here to sign up today!