The Pittsburgh Penguins have cooled off after a hot start. The Nashville Predators have struggled to even get warm.
Both squads hope a trip overseas will provide a spark when they square off in Friday’s opener of a two-game set in Stockholm, Sweden, for the 2025 NHL Global Series.
The Penguins surprised many as they skated to a 7-2-1 start through the first 10 games of the season, with six of those wins coming in their first eight games. They are 2-3-2 in the seven games since, most recently falling 3-2 to the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday.
“Number one, we need to win games. We need points,” Pittsburgh coach Dan Muse said. “… This is a trip where it’s a great opportunity for the team to be together, to go on a trip like this, go over to Sweden, but at the end, we need points.
“The last couple of games, I think we’re doing a lot of things that are trending in a good direction and consistency. We need to make sure that that’s there all the time.”
The trip is a homecoming for two Penguins, though only one will get to suit up. Injured winger Rickard Rakell, who is out long-term after having surgery on his hand two weeks ago, hails from Sollentuna, about 15 minutes north of Stockholm, and has been serving as the tour guide for his teammates on the trip.
Defenseman Erik Karlsson is from Landsbro, Sweden. He returns to his home country with 12 points (one goal, 11 assists) in 17 games and is playing some of his best hockey since being traded to Pittsburgh before the 2023-24 season.
“I think we came into this year (and) everybody was motivated to be better and have a good year for themselves,” Karlsson said. “We had a good training camp. I think the coaching staff has done a good job of getting everybody prepared.”
Predators winger Filip Forsberg is excited for the opportunity to play in his home country. The 31-year-old, from Leksand, will have his wife and young son in attendance as well as numerous family and friends.
“It’s going to be really cool to have them there and together with Swedish family, Swedish friends and all the teammates,” he said.
Nashville enters Friday’s contest on a five-game losing streak (0-3-2) after a 6-3 loss to the New York Rangers on Monday, and has just one win in its past nine games.
“We have to think about, OK, this could be something that could lead to a run that gets us back in the mix,” Predators forward Steven Stamkos said. “That’s really all we’re thinking about, is just trying to accumulate as many points as we can. I think we have to think of it that way, that this can be something. … We have to dig in a little bit and try to get some momentum here.”
Inconsistencies in their game have plagued the Predators thus far; sometimes they’re unable to score, other times they struggle without the puck. Sometimes it’s a struggling power play, other times it’s a leaky penalty kill.
“We’re not in the spot where we want to be,” Forsberg said.
The teams will wrap up the series on Sunday.
–Field Level Media
