NHL Game Preview - Nashville at Vancouver

Tue Nov 12, 2019 10:00 PM EST

The Vancouver Canucks have scored five or more goals seven times already this season.

But over their past four games they've totaled just five in going 0-3-1.

They'll try to get their offense going when they play host to the Nashville Predators on Tuesday night in a matchup of teams who are suddenly struggling.

"Sometimes you score, sometimes you don't," Canucks coach Travis Green said after Sunday's 2-1 loss to New Jersey, Vancouver's first at home this season (4-1-2). "We're in a little rut right now. I know the last (few) games we haven't scored. Our games look very similar. Analytically we haven't tailed off in a lot of areas.

"When you are scoring you think you've got all the answers and you don't. There's not a magic recipe for scoring or you'd never get into a rut where you don't score."

The Canucks, who have won just once since an 8-1-1 run, allowed goals 22 seconds apart in the first period and got their only tally by Brock Boeser on the power play.

"I feel like we're trailing a lot this year and I feel like we're always pushing to the end and there's no quit in this team," said veteran forward J.T. Miller, who is in his first season with the Canucks. "It's a matter of getting a puck to go in because it's so hard to come back in this league. Everybody defends so well it's kind of like playoff hockey in the third when you're down a goal.

"It's really hard, but we've been really consistent whether we're up or down."

The Predators also are coming off a 2-1 defeat, losing Saturday at San Jose in a game that went to the seventh round of a shootout. It was Nashville's fourth loss in five games (1-2-2) after winning four straight.

The Predators were able to take some positives from the loss, especially considering they allowed a franchise-record nine goals in a 9-4 defeat two nights earlier at Colorado.

"Obviously we didn't show up that game and we knew we were going to be better (Saturday) and we were, but at the same time (we) should've won the game," said Filip Forsberg, who scored Nashville's lone goal against the Sharks and extended his points streak to four games (three goals, two assists). "It was a better effort ... we had chances and should have capitalized."

Predators goaltender Juuse Saros made 31 saves before stopping San Jose's first six shootout attempts.

"He was really good," Predators coach Peter Laviolette said of Saros. "I think the guys played hard in front of him, it was just a grinding game and defensively I thought we did a pretty good job of trying to take care of them in the offensive zone. But there's obviously going to be some opportunities that come with a team that's got talent like that."

This will be the first meeting between the Predators and Canucks this season. They'll play again Nov. 21 in Nashville.

-- Field Level Media