Those eight games will be pivotal in the Predators’ hunt for a playoff spot. On the other hand, they’ll take on the Ottawa Senators and Philadelphia Flyers twice each while playing the Arizona Coyotes, Chicago Blackhawks, Sabres, and Sharks one more time this season. Every point will matter, and both the Predators and their division rivals will look to avoid losing any three-point games, making each matchup as intense as a playoff game. Nine games come against Central Division opponents, seven of which are against the four teams ahead of them in the standings. To finish the season, Nashville will face the Colorado Avalanche once and the Calgary Flames twice while taking on Eastern Conference powerhouses, the Tampa Bay Lightning, Toronto Maple Leafs, Florida Panthers, and Pittsburgh Penguins. In their updated standings, only the Oilers have a tougher schedule in the Western Conference, while the Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Washington Capitals have the toughest schedule ahead. Predators’ Face 6th-Toughest Schedule in the NHLĪccording to, a website that determines which games are against quality opponents compared to teams lower in the standings, the Predators have the sixth-toughest schedule in the league. As the saying goes, there is no such thing as an easy game in the NHL. With 27 games remaining, the road ahead will be tough, especially when you factor in the quality of competition. If the performance against the Sharks was any indication of what’s to come, the battle for playoff positioning will be one of the more exciting storylines this season, and even then, it may not be enough. Related: Kings Under Unexpected Pressure at 2022 Trade Deadline As the schedule reaches its final quarter, the Predators’ next few weeks will be a daunting task to make the playoffs. On a positive note, only one point separates them from third place in the Central Division, now occupied by the Minnesota Wild. They are now in the second wild-card position, but only two points ahead of the Edmonton Oilers and three ahead of the Anaheim Ducks. Consecutive wins will be critical to the team, as they find themselves in a tight race for one of the two wild-card spots in the Western Conference.

Recognition on a national basis is the highest tribute of public opinion of the Barn Swallow that I have written about and illustrated to earn your recognition and positive evaluation of what has been a normal, common phenomenon that attracts your unexpected attention and understanding.If the Nashville Predators are going to make the playoffs this year, they’re going to need more victories like their 8-0 win over the San Jose Sharks on March 5. Today, the Swallow is depicted on postage stamps in many old-world countries and has been the national bird in Austria since 1969. In medieval culture, the Swallow was believed to be descended from the eternal spirit of nightingales. In nautical literature, ancient mariners painted the arms with tattoos of Swallows as a positive omen of safe return after thousands of miles around the world.

The nests survive the passage of time by standing as welcome shelters for their continued return, using the homing instinct like this homecoming phenomena inspired the writing of the popular love song you most remember: “When the swallows come back to Capistrano, that’s the day I pray you’ll come back to me.”

Over the years, the construction has been known to be repaired again and again over a long tenure. Under one of the overhead structures, they usually build a cup-shaped nest out of grass and loose feathers, using their own mixture of mud pellets to cement it to the overhead. The coming of Swallows to our shores have always been a natural sign of the arrival of the spring season. In the fall, all the Swallows migrate to the southern hemisphere.Īs in my illustration, it also ranks as the best, eye-catching flying predation as it swoops and dives, skimming across the water to catch and eat in one graceful motion of predatory flight.Īcross the shoreline of Buzzards Bay, the Barn Swallow favors finding a nesting home under manmade buildings and overpasses, especially under the roofs of horse and cow barns. It ranks in public opinion as one of the most essential, bottom-line benefactors for a healthy environment of insect control. It is very common everywhere across the continents of Europe, Asia and Africa, and it patrols the biggest part of the northern hemisphere. The Barn Swallow is one of the most active insect and mosquito predators, fortunately well distributed around most of the natural world.

Predators schedule 2015