Free NHL Picks Today: Arizona Coyotes vs Nashville Predators 2/26/23

The Arizona Coyotes (20-29-9) welcome the Nashville Predators (28-22-6) at Mullett Arena on Sunday. Nashville is coming off a high-scoring 6-2 win over the Sharks on Thursday. The Predators committed six penalties in the game, though they held San Jose without a power play goal.

Mikael Granlund and Nino Niederreiter both scored twice for the Predators. Juuse Saros had 22 saves in the win.Arizona fell 6-3 to the Flames on Wednesday.

Clayton Keller, Nick Schmaltz, and Matias Maccelli scored one apiece for the Coyotes. Keller added an assist to lead the team in scoring. Karel Vejmelka saved only 45 of 51 shots against (.882%) in the loss.

HEAD TO HEAD

The teams have split their two meetings this season, the most recent of which was a 4-2 victory for the Coyotes on February 13. Four players had two points for Arizona. Colton Sissons and Roman Josi were on the scoresheet for Nashville. Vejmelka got the win, saving 29 of 31 shots (.935%).

FACING OFF

Nashville is averaging 2.86 goals per game for the season, 25th in the NHL, and they are taking on a Coyotes team that is allowing 3.48 goals a game (23rd). Meanwhile, Arizona has found the net 2.67 times a game on average, 28th in the league, and the Predators are allowing opponents to score 3.00 goals per game (14th).

Arizona averages fewer shots/game (25.6) than any other team in the league, though the team’s 10.6% shooting percentage ranks 10th. With an average of 30.7 attempts, Nashville ranks 20th.

Don’t be surprised to see multiple power play opportunities for the Predators, as the Coyotes have been penalized 4.52 times a game, fifth-most in the NHL, for an average of 10.84 minutes (seventh-highest).

The visitors are averaging 4.20 penalties (10th) and 10.32 penalty minutes a game (9th). The Coyotes’ 19.54% power play percentage ranks 24th in the league, while the Predators are 26th with a conversion rate of 17.78%. In terms of defending power plays, Nashville has the league’s 14th-ranked PK% at 80.21%, while Arizona is 26th at 75.34%.

TOP PERFORMERS:

With 51 points this season, Josi is the top skater for the Predators. He has 15 goals and 36 assists in 56 games. In the net, Saros (21-16-5) is Nashville’s top goaltender. He has a 2.84 GAA and a .916% save percentage.

Keller leads the Coyotes in scoring with 55 points. He has 24 goals and 31 assists. Connor Ingram (5-11-4) has the best goals against average for Arizona at 3.16.

He has a save percentage of .912%. Vejmelka (15-18-5) has played the most games in net for the Coyotes this season. He has a 3.38 GAA and a .903% save percentage.