Nashville's problem is easier to describe and harder to fix. The Predators are 2-2-2 and have lost 2 straight. Ottawa beat them 3-2, and then Vegas, playing the 2nd night of a back-to-back, came into Bridgestone and won 5-2. That game was 3-2 after 2 periods, and Vegas won the 3rd 2-0. Nashville was tied or within a goal going into the final 20 minutes of both games and scored 0 in either 3rd period. At home they've scored 2 goals in each game: a 2-1 win over Dallas and the Vegas loss.
The blue line has been shuffled. Nashville sent a 2027 2nd-round pick to Montreal on October 9 for defenseman Jayden Struble, who debuted October 10. William Trudeau went on injured reserve with an upper-body injury and is considered week-to-week. Mavrik Bourque also left the 5-2 win in Montreal with an upper-body injury after 8:15 of ice time. Both of those are worth checking again before Thursday, because 2 lost forwards or defensemen matter a lot to a team that already isn't scoring much at home.
The matchup comes down to which Sharks team shows up. Against Florida and Los Angeles they won the kind of 4-3 and 5-4 games where both teams trade chances. In Dallas they were the team that got shut out. Nashville hasn't been able to finish games and needs one where it pulls away in the 3rd. This is game 2 of a 3-game homestand against a club coming off a late Tuesday night and a long flight, so the Predators won't get a much better chance to fix that 3rd-period problem.