Game preview: The Wild starts a four-game road swing against Western Conference foes. The Predators, 3-5-2 in their past 10 games, are in 11th place in the West, one point behind the ninth-place Wild and 10th-place Anaheim.

Players to watch: Wild RW Martin Havlat's 35 career points vs. Nashville are his most against any NHL team. He has 21 points in the past 23 games. C Kyle Brodziak set a season high in goals with his 15th against Colorado on Tuesday. Brodziak has 20 points in the last 23 games. LW Pierre-Marc Bouchard has 10 points in his past 10 games. G Jose Theodore is 1-1-0 with a 3.25 GAA and a .898 save percentage vs. Nashville this season. G Niklas Backstrom made 28 saves in a 4-1 loss to Nashville on Dec. 31. Nashville RW Patric Hornqvist, C David Legwand, RW Joel Ward and D Shea Weber all have three points vs. the Wild this season. G Pekka Rinne is 2-1-0 with a 2.15 GAA and a .914 save percentage vs. the Wild.

Numbers: The Wild will be looking to match the franchise record of 19 road wins in a season vs. Nashville. The Wild power play has scored in three consecutive games. The Wild is 27-2-4 when it scores the first goal, and is 15-3-5 in its past 23 one-goal games.

Injuries: Wild C Mikko Koivu (broken finger) and D Cam Barker (upper body) are out; W Cal Clutterbuck (upper body) and D Clayton Stoner (lower body) are questionable. Nashville C Matthew Lombardi (concussion), C Cal O'Reilly (broken leg), D Francis Bouillon (concussion), C Marcel Goc (shoulder) and LW Steve Sullivan (groin) are out.

KENT YOUNGBLOOD