NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Defenseman Roman Josi said the Nashville Predators are playing their best hockey of the season.

Saturday night's 7-2 romp of the slumping San Jose Sharks did nothing to disprove Josi's theory.

Colton Sissons and James Neal each scored twice for Nashville (38-25-11), while Pekka Rinne (30-16-8) made 26 saves after being honored prior to the game for playing his 500th NHL match last week in Washington.

Cody McLeod, P.K. Subban and Viktor Arvidsson also added goals for the Predators, while Craig Smith and Colin Wilson each tallied three assists. Josi and Ryan Johansen each tacked on two helpers as a total of 11 Nashville players hit the scoresheet.

"I think so, especially on this homestand," Josi said when asked about his team's quality of play. "We have a lot of guys playing well. Pekka is playing well. We're playing with a lot of confidence."

The Predators have won six of their last seven games and moved out of a third-place tie with St. Louis in the Central Division, thanks to the Blues' 3-2 overtime loss to Calgary. With eight games left in the regular season, Nashville has an outside chance to catch the struggling Minnesota Wild, who are seven points ahead of it, for second place and home-ice advantage in the first round.

As for San Jose (42-26-7), it is picking the worst time of the season to play its worst hockey. It suffered its sixth straight loss, all in regulation, and has been outscored 23-7 in that span.

"It's bad execution," said defenseman Brent Burns. "We've got to do a better job fighting through things than we are right now."

The Sharks fell behind 2-0 for the second straight night and spent the entire evening chasing the game, growing progressively more frustrated as the evening progressed. It peaked with Micheal Haley's intent to injure match penalty for punching Calle Jarnkrok at 12:56 of the third period after Jarnkrok boarded him.

San Jose coach Peter DeBoer endorsed Haley's actions.

"When you run someone from behind in a game like that, you probably deserve to get a punch in the mouth," DeBoer said.

Nashville coach Peter Laviolette took a different tack.

"This isn't the wild, wild West," he said. "If we start doing that, we're in trouble."

There was nothing but trouble for the Sharks, beginning with Sissons' first goal at 4:14 of the first period after a fierce forecheck gave him a point-blank backhand chance that he deposited behind Martin Jones (32-20-6).

McLeod made it 2-0 at 15:19 by tapping home the rebound of Josi's shot that banged off the crossbar. Josi set up the goal by skating around Burns, the probable Norris Trophy winner, as though he were a pylon near the left faceoff circle.

After Patrick Marleau pulled the Sharks within 2-1 at 4:24 of the second period with his 26th goal on the power play, Neal responded 24 seconds later with a man-advantage marker. Subban made it 4-1 at 14:39 with a slapper from the right boards.

Justin Braun pulled San Jose within 4-2 at 16:19 on a wrister through traffic from the left wing, but the Sharks couldn't generate any kind of push in the third period.

Sissons tipped Smith's slapper by Jones at 5:27 for a 5-2 advantage. Neal scored with Haley in the locker room after his match penalty at 17:01, and Arvidsson finished the game off with a shorthanded goal at 19:22, his 28th of the season.

NOTES: San Jose D Marc-Edouard Vlasic was scratched with an undisclosed injury that he suffered Friday night in a 6-1 loss at Dallas. ... Nashville C Mike Fisher (lower-body injury) missed his second straight game. ... The Sharks also scratched Cs Chris Tierney and Melker Karlsson. ... Predators' scratches besides Fisher were D Anthony Bitetto, RW PA Parenteau, D Brad Hunt and LW Harry Zolnierczyk.