ST. LOUIS (Interstat) — The Nashville Predators will look to continue their recent surge and exact more Central Division pain on the struggling St. Louis Blues when the teams meet Monday at Enterprise Center. The matchup is a quick rematch of Nashville’s 7-2 rout of St. Louis on Dec. 11, a game in which Predators forward Steven Stamkos scored four goals on nine shots. Stamkos enters on a hot streak, with eight goals in his last seven games, and will be the focal point for a Nashville offense that has won three of its last four. “We’re building some confidence and playing the right way,” Stamkos said after Thursday’s win. “We have to carry that momentum on the road.” The Predators (12-18-0) have climbed out of the Western Conference cellar with a 5-2-0 record in their last seven contests. Goaltender Joel Hofer, who was pulled after allowing six goals on seven shots in that Dec. 11 loss to Nashville, rebounded with a 27-save performance in a 3-2 win over Chicago on Friday. St. Louis (12-21-0) has lost eight of its last ten and remains near the bottom of the conference standings. “We have to be a lot harder to play against, especially in our own building,” Blues coach Drew Bannister said. “We didn’t compete nearly hard enough against them last week. That has to change.” The Blues will need to contain a Nashville power play that went 3 for 5 in the last meeting. St. Louis defenseman Logan Mailloux, who scored in Friday’s win, will be tasked with helping shore up a penalty kill that ranks among the league’s worst. For Nashville, captain Roman Josi, who had two assists in the previous game against St. Louis, continues to drive play from the blue line. The Predators will need secondary scoring beyond Stamkos, however, as they open a three-game road trip. Both teams are dealing with significant injuries. The Blues are without top-line forward Pavel Buchnevich (upper body), while Nashville is missing two-way center Ryan O’Reilly (lower body). The game marks the start of a critical home stretch for St. Louis, which plays seven of its next nine at Enterprise Center. Nashville continues a stretch of 13 games against Central Division opponents, where it has recently found success. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. CST.