The Nashville Predators are suddenly having trouble scoring goals. The Chicago Blackhawks are experiencing frightful difficulties preventing opponents from scoring goals.Something has to give Saturday night when the Central Division rivals meet at Bridgestone Arena Womens Shane Doan Jersey , each looking to reverse recent losing trends.Nashville (17-8-1) is 1-2-0 on a five-game homestand, including a puzzling 3-0 loss to Arizona on Thursday that saw it get blanked by Adin Hill, he of six NHL starts. The Predators turned in a genuine smeller, drawing 24 penalty minutes, losing 33 of 61 faceoffs and failing to convert on their two power play chances.Article continues below ...“They were faster than us,” Nashville coach Peter Laviolette said. “They wanted it more. We didn’t have enough guys with their hands on the rope pulling it our way.”The Predators aren’t getting enough production from key players. Kevin Fiala has scored three goals all season and was demoted to the fourth line for a few games. Ryan Ellis has managed one goal. Craig Smith has only two goals in his last 17 games.Even the top line is struggling. Center Ryan Johansen has just three points in his last eight games, and left winger Filip Forsberg has only eight points in his last 15. That helps explain why Nashville is 4-5-1 in its last 10 games with just 27 goals.“It’s frustrating getting held off the scoreboard in our own rink against a new goaltender like they had,” forward Colton Sissons said. “It’s pretty disappointing. We’re just in a little bit of a funk here. We’re not feeling ourselves and not playing a game that’s winning hockey right now. Back to the drawing board, and we have to move on.”Based on the last five games, the Predators may have a perfect foil to correct their issues. Chicago (9-12-5) has lost 13 of its last 16 games, the results getting no better since it canned three-time Stanley Cup-winning coach Joel Quenneville on Nov. 6.The Blackhawks are 3-6-2 under interim coach Jeremy Colliton, including a 6-5 loss Thursday night in Winnipeg that highlighted their defensive problems. They have ceded 26 goals in their last five games Anders Bjork Jersey , coughing up eight in a Tuesday night loss to Vegas.“I thought defensive zone coverage was much better,” Colliton said after the loss in Winnipeg. “But now we had trouble off the rush. We’ve got to put it together. It’s tough to win until we sort it out. There needs to be some urgency there. If there hasn’t been already, it’s been long enough now.”Slow starts doomed the Blackhawks against the Jets, who scored in the first two minutes of each period. The Blackhawks led and played like a team caught in the transition between the end of a glorious era and the beginning of an uncertain one.“There’s no quit in this team, but we’ve got to get better,” Blackhawks forward Marcus Kruger said. “We can’t get behind every game. We have to stay in the game and build the game from there and make it harder on our opponents.” CALGARY, Alberta — Erik Karlsson made a huge impact upon his return to the lineup for the San Jose Sharks on Saturday.The 28-year-old defenseman from Landsbro, Sweden, would like nothing more than to carry his momentum into New Year’s Eve when his Sharks (21-12-7) take on the Calgary Flames (23-12-4) in a battle of the top two teams in the Pacific Division at the Scotiabank Saddledome.“We have a tough stretch coming up here the next few games,” said Karlsson after tallying a goal and three assists to help lead the Sharks to a 7-4 road victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday. “We’re going to have to play at the top of our level to be able to compete with the teams that we’re playing.Article continues below ...“Now, we’ve just got to go into Calgary and have the mentality that we’re going to win that game, too Bobby Orr Jersey , and play to the best of our ability and clean some things up from (Saturday) and take the good things with us.”Karlsson sat out San Jose’s previous two games as a result of being suspended for an illegal check to the head of Los Angeles Kings forward Austin Wagner in the second period of a 3-2 overtime loss at home on Dec. 22.“It’s nice to be back,” said Karlsson, who has put up three goals and 27 assists in 30 games with the Sharks this season after playing his first nine NHL campaigns with the Ottawa Senators. “It’s never fun to be out of the lineup, especially for the reason that I was out for. Sometimes it’s good to watch the games from afar, too. You figure a few things out. I was excited to get back (in the lineup) and I did everything I can to stay in it.”San Jose coach Peter DeBoer was also happy to have Karlsson back on the blue line for the Sharks.“You can see his impact on the game, on our team, on the players around him,” DeBoer said. “You take him for granted a little bit. When he’s out, you realize the hole there is there. Every week he’s getting more comfortable here.”Meanwhile, the Flames will be looking to bounce back following a 3-2 overtime setback at home to the surging Vancouver Canucks on Saturday, two days following a 4-1 road win over the Winnipeg Jets.“I thought we faded a little bit as the game went along, didn’t have the same jump http://www.officialbruinsproonline.com/ … and-jersey , but we skated much better here tonight than we did in Winnipeg and I expect us to skate a lot better Monday, too,” Calgary coach Bill Peters said following the OT loss to the Canucks.Despite the loss, the Flames still sit tied atop the Western Conference standings at 50 points with the Jets (24-12-2), who have a game in hand.“We’ve played a lot of good hockey this year, but there’s a long way to go and as a group we feel like we’ve let it slip over the last few games,” Calgary captain Mark Giordano told the team website. “We’ve got to get back to details, be a lot sharper on the defensive side of things and we’ll be fine.“We’ve put ourselves in good position. Now, we either let the pack make up ground and catch us over the next 20 or we ramp up, take off and solidify what we’ve worked for to get to this point. We’re looking to solidify — to take off.”