Toronto @ Nashville preview

Last Meeting ( Mar 19, 2019 ) Toronto 0, Nashville 3

The Toronto Maple Leafs lost five of their last six games (1-3-2) to fall out of wild-card position in the Eastern Conference. Presumably refreshed after the All-Star break, the Maple Leafs look to turn around their fortunes on Monday when they visit the Nashville Predators.

Toronto's Auston Matthews elected against participating in the All-Star Game as a means to rest an ailing wrist, however the 22-year-old is expected to return to the ice in Music City. "You want to compete out there and participate," said Matthews, who leads the team in goals (34) and points (57). "But in the grand scheme of things, the important games are the ones in the regular season." While the Maple Leafs' recent dip has them four points out of a playoff spot, the Predators have won just four of their last 11 games (4-6-1) to reside six points in back of Vegas for the final wild-card slot in the Western Conference. "We need to make a push (for the playoffs) here," Nashville captain Roman Josi told reporters. "We should come back really motivated, and I'm really excited. ... I'm excited, and I have a lot of confidence in our group that we're going to make a push."

TIME: 8 p.m. ET. TV: FS Tennessee, TVA, TSN4

ABOUT THE MAPLE LEAFS (25-17-7): William Nylander boosted his point streak to four games (three goals, two assists) after scoring a goal in his third consecutive contest in Toronto's 6-2 loss to Chicago on Jan. 18. The 23-year-old has flourished against Central Division representatives, collecting 11 points (seven goals, four assists) in 10 games. Mitch Marner has done quite nicely versus Western Conference foes with 18 points (four goals, 14 assists) in 16 contests, and has 29 points (nine goals, 20 assists) in his last 19 games overall.

ABOUT THE PREDATORS (22-18-7): Pekka Rinne has struggled with consistency following a sterling start to the season, however the former Vezina Trophy recipient couldn't have been on top of his game any more than his two previous meetings with the Maple Leafs. Rinne turned aside all 40 shots he faced to record a pair of shutouts against Toronto in 2018-19, improving to 5-4-2 with three blankings in 12 career encounters with the Maple Leafs. Filip Forsberg, who leads the team in goals (16), scored in Nashville's 3-0 victory over Toronto on March 19 to give him six tallies and nine points in 10 career meetings with the Maple Leafs.

OVERTIME

1. Josi has team-leading totals in assists (34) and points (48), with 15 and 22, respectively, coming in his past 16 games.

2. Toronto D Tyson Barrie has four assists in his last four contests.

3. Predators C Ryan Johansen has 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in 15 career games versus the Maple Leafs.

PREDICTION: Maple Leafs 3, Predators 2