Nashville @ Dallas preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 14, 2019 ) Dallas 4, Nashville 1

The Winter Classic moves to the Lone Star State for the first time as the Nashville Predators visit the Dallas Stars in the 12th edition of the New Year’s Day event Wednesday afternoon at the famed Cotton Bowl. Both franchises will be making their first appearance in an NHL outdoor game, but several players have experienced the atmosphere with other teams as they get ready for a key Central Division matchup.

“The big thing is you’ve got to prepare for anything you can,” Nashville center Matt Duchene, who has played in two outdoor games, told NHL.com. “You have to prepare for good ice, bad ice, a good hockey game, kind of a weird game - you don’t really know what’s going to be thrown at you, so you just try to adapt and not get rattled by that.” The Predators have dropped their last two games - both to Pittsburgh - after a 4-0-1 stretch and are losers of four straight against Dallas, including a 4-1 setback at home on Dec. 14. The Stars, who hold down third place in the Central with a six-point bulge on Nashville, won both games since the Christmas break and have six players who have played in NHL outdoor contests. “It feels a little different maybe when you’re at the stadium and you’re getting ready in a sense,” Stars forward Blake Comeau told the Dallas Morning News. “But you get on the ice, honestly, it just feels like any other game. When I played in Denver, it was just a really fun experience.”

TIME: 2 p.m. ET. TV: NBC, Sportsnet, TVA

ABOUT THE PREDATORS (18-14-6): Nashville continues to struggle in its own end, ranking 26th in the league in goals against per game (3.29), as veteran goalie and likely Wednesday starter Pekka Rinne owns an uncharacteristic .894 save percentage. Roman Josi leads a potent offense with 39 points, including 13 during his current seven-game point streak, while forward Filip Forsberg has tied the All Star defenseman with 14 goals after scoring twice in the past four contests. Left wing Viktor Arvidsson, who missed almost a month with a lower-body injury, has scored in three of four games since his return to the lineup.

ABOUT THE STARS (22-14-4): Center Tyler Seguin was named to the All-Star Game Monday after recording five goals and four assists over the last eight contests to push his team-leading total to 32 points. Right wing Alexander Radulov, a former Predator, is second on the team with 26 points after scoring three times and setting up eight others with a plus-7 rating during his eight-game point streak while fellow Russian Denis Gurianov has registered at least a point in five straight outings. Goalie Ben Bishop (13-9-3, .926 SP) turned aside 41 shots in Saturday’s 3-2 shootout victory over Colorado to snap a four-game losing streak.

OVERTIME

1. Dallas D John Klingberg has collected six of his 14 assists in the last five contests.

2. Nashville F Craig Smith has scored five of his seven goals in the past six games.

3. The road team is 8-2-1 in the Winter Classic, including Boston’s win over Chicago at Notre Dame Stadium last season.

PREDICTION: Stars 4, Predators 3