Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Pekka Rinne Near Perfect in Games after a Night Off

The Nashville Predators will host the Phoenix Coyotes tonight at Bridgestone Arena (7 p.m. CST, FS-TN) but it could be tough sledding for the visiting team.

Predators' goaltender, Pekka Rinne (10-8-4, 2.57, .921) has been one of the the workhorses of the NHL this season. He is tied for the league lead in games started (23) and second only to the Coyotes' Mike Smith (13-6-3, 2.26, .921) in saves (660 to 644).

On Saturday night, Anders Lindback (2-2-0, 2.52, .903) started in net for the Predators in their 3-2 loss to Buffalo and gave Rinne a rare night off, only the third one of this season.

Looking back to the start of the 2010-11 season, Rinne has been "im-Pekkable" after a non-injury evening off. He has gone 6-1-0 and has allowed only nine goals on 217 shots in the seven starts for a .958 save percentage. He has not given up more than two goals in a game during the stretch.

His only loss after a game off was in Calgary on November 29 when he stopped all but one shot in a tough 1-0 loss to the Flames.

I'm not one to advocate gambling but if you were going to bet on the NHL, tonight may be the time to think that the Predators, and Pekka Rinne, may come out on top. Many folks don't understand NHL betting but this could be a good time to get a quick primer and put a couple of Dr. Peppers on the line.

For other Predator previews, check out Ryan Porth, Amanda DiPaolo, Robby StanleyPaul McCannPredatorial, The Tennessean, and Predators.com.

Smashville 24/7 has an audio preview from Ryan Suter.

For the Phoenix side of the game, go to Arizona Vibe, Five for Howling, Arizona Republic, and the Coyotes Aggregator.

For POTG ticket pricing go here and use the special offer code "preds" here to get the best prices for the match with the Coyotes and all remaining Predator home games.

More Later...

Buddy Oakes for PredsOntheGlass

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