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Entering the season, expectations for the Nashville Predators and Chicago Blackhawks were at opposite ends of the spectrum.

Nashville had high hopes after big offseason moves and was considered by many to be a sure-fire playoff team. Chicago was expected to be among the bottom teams as it continued to rebuild.

But with less than six weeks to go in the season, the Predators find themselves in the Blackhawks’ company as the Central Division foes wrap up their season series in Chicago on Saturday night.

Nashville leads the series 2-1, winning 3-2 at Chicago on Oct. 25 and 3-2 in a shootout in Nashville on Jan. 16, and losing 6-2 at Chicago on Feb. 7.

The Predators enter the contest ranked 30th in the NHL standings, five points ahead of the Blackhawks. Scoring has been an issue, with just 164 goals to Nashville’s credit (31st) through 62 games.

“I don’t think we expected to be here where we are,” Predators general manager Barry Trotz said after the NHL trade deadline on Friday. “The plan is in pen and it always has been, but the path is in pencil. The path hasn’t changed, but how we’re going to get there has, because we’re in a selling mode rather than a buying mode. It’s a lot more fun being in the buying mode, and today was difficult.”

Nashville, which is coming off a 5-3 win against the Seattle Kraken on Thursday, has won more than three games in a row only once this season, posting five straight victories from Jan. 14-23. A win Saturday would give the Predators at least three in a row for the first time since that stretch and just the third time this season.

“One thing that I’m a big believer in, and I don’t stray from it, I’m a big believer in culture wins,” Trotz said. “This is a good test for our culture. We haven’t had the season that we wanted, and we’ve been way too inconsistent. I want to see us start forming an identity that we can carry forward next year.”

The Blackhawks, meanwhile, will look to continue to build on a solid stretch of late, going 3-0-1 over their past four games. It’s the first time this season they’ve earned points in as many consecutive games.

Most recently, Chicago recovered after blowing a 3-1 lead to take a 4-3 overtime victory against the Utah Hockey Club on Friday, thanks to Connor Bedard’s game-winning tally at 3:10 of the extra period.

“Of course it’s nice to produce,” said Bedard, who also had an assist to give him 51 points (17 goals, 34 assists), 10 shy of his total from his rookie campaign last season. “I’m an offensive guy, and obviously points aren’t everything, but you can see a couple go your way. It feels good.”

The goal was Bedard’s first since Feb. 7, snapping an eight-game drought.

“This was the longest [drought] of his really young career so far, and I thought he handled it really well,” Blackhawks interim coach Anders Sorensen said. “He didn’t get frustrated and stuck with what he believes works, which he’s been doing. And today he got rewarded for it.”

The power play has been a rare bright spot for Chicago this season. The team ranks seventh in the league with a 26.2 success rate.

–Field Level Media