Predators Capture the Season Series Over the Ducks With 3-2 Win

Some games, a team steals a win. That is just what the Nashville Predators did to the Anaheim Ducks at Bridgestone Arena.

The Predators rode goals from Shea Weber, James Neal, and Mikka Salomaki to a 3-2 victory over the Ducks.

Rikard Rakell and Mike Santorelli tallied for the Ducks.

Weber staked the Predators to a 1-0 lead with the Predators on the man advantage. His blast from the point blew past Frederik Anderssen to give the Predators a 1-0 lead in the first period.

The Ducks tied it on Rakell's goal to tie the game at 10:47 of the first period as he beat Pekka Rinne on a wrap around to the far post..

James Neal broke the tie with his 9th goal of the season at 13:13 of the first period. Neal's goal came off a harmless flip from center ice that skipped in front of Anderssen and squirted between his pads.

Mikka Salomaki extended the lead to 3-1 as he tipped a shot from Mattias Ekholm between the pads of Anderssen.

That was it offensively for the Predators as the Ducks took over the game. Pekka Rinne made some outstanding saves, including stopping Carl Hagelin on a break away as well as the follow up shot from Hagelin.

The Ducks dominated possession in the third period and Mike Santorelli finally broke through, poking a puck into the net off a goal mouth scramble at 5:33 of the third period to make it 3-2.

The Predators managed to hang on behind the stellar play of Rinne to capture a hard fought- and very ugly- win by that one goal margin.

Some observations:

• Rinne was outstanding tonight. he did a great job of tracking the puck through traffic, and there was a LOT of traffic in front of Rinne tonight. His save on the Hagelin break away was a thing of beauty and he thwarted the follow up by Hagelin as well. He also stopped Andrew Cogliano on a break away just a few moments later. The team rode the broad shoulders of Rinne to this win because the skaters in front of him were back on their heels for most of the night. This game was vintage Rinne. He had the aura of invincibility and it frustrated the Ducks all night. He made a season high 38 saves tonight.
• This is the first game of the season where the Predators were totally dominated. The Ducks time of possession very lopsided in their favor and they kept the Predators back in their defensive zone from midway through the second period to the end of the game. The Ducks out shot the Predators 40-21 for the game. Their dominance started in the second period when they out shot the Predators 19-9 and in the third by an 11-4 margin. The Predators did not record their first shot on net in the third period until there was just 6:33 remaining.
• The Predators did chase Anderssen, who gave up 3 goals on 10 shots, including the Steve Bernier-esque soft goal from center ice (Bernier is the Toronto goalie that gave up a similar goal last night). Anton Khudobin, who played last night in Carolina, finished the game.
• The Ducks have the number one penalty kill in the NHL. Weber's goal on the Predators first power play was a missile that Anderssen never saw but must have heard as it whistled past him into the net.
• However, the Ducks penalty kill took over after that power play goal. They stymied the Predators power play, often stealing the puck at the Predators blue line and creating some good scoring chances. The Predators were 1 for 7 on the power play and looked very ineffective against the Ducks penalty killers.
• On the other side, though, the Predators penalty killers were stellar. The Ducks wer 0-8 on the man advantage.
• The Predators took a lot of sloppy penalties, giving the Ducks too many chances in this games. Two tripping penalties, two roughing penalties, and unsportsmanlike conduct, and an interference penalty left the Predators a man down too often in this game.
• Last season, James Neal had a total of 20 penalties. With 2 penalties tonight, Neal now has been called for 12 penalties so far this season. 
• I really like the younger players- Salomaki and Watson in particular- being trusted in the penalty kill situation. They are logging some hard minutes and have earned the trust of the coaching staff with their play. This is critical for the this team in a long season to have these young players eating up some hard minutes.
• Roman Josi picked up an assist on Weber's goal and that is his 100th assist in his career. he is the 6th Predators defenseman in history to record 100 assists.
• The Predators went 3-1-1 on this 5 game home stand. It is so important to defend home ice, and the Predators have been making it tough for opponents to come into Bridgestone Arena.
• The Ducks, as they are prone to do, decidied early on they wanted it to be a physical contest. Indeed, they thought they could goon it up and intimidate the Predators. In the first period, Kevin Bieksa decided to drop the gloves with Mike Fisher. Once the officials broke up the fight, Bieksa was minus a tooth and we saw no more running around from Bieksa for the rest of the game.You can see the fight, including a nice slow motion of Bieksa losing a chicklet here

This was not a pretty win, but it was a win, and they don't grade them on style points (thankfully).

Now the Predators embark on a tough roadie, with 6 games in 9 nights, including two sets of back to backs

They will have to play with the heart and mettle they have shwon recently.

My three stars:

1. Pekka Rinne

2. Mikka Salomaki

3. Shea Weber

Predators Blow 2 Leads and 2 points, Fall In Shootout to the Canucks

The Nashville Predators had a prime opportunity to extend their Central Division lead to 5 points by taking care of business against the Vancouver Canucks at the Bridgestone Arena.

The Canucks had played a hard game against the St. Louis Blues the night before, while the Predators had the day off.

The Predators pissed away a point, however, blowing leads twice in the game before losing in a shootout 5-4.

I frankly am pretty disgusted. If you want the box score, you can get it here.

Some observations:

• This team continues to amaze me at their lack of killer instinct. After a dominant first period that saw the Predators go to the locker room with a 2 goal lead, they were terrible in the second period. The Canucks first goal never should have happened as Pekka Rinne was beaten five hole on an easily stoppable shot. And to give up a shorthanded goal after a brutal Seth Jones turnover at the start of the third is inexcusable. When you have a team, a tired team, down you don't let them back into the game. This is a matter of will over skill, and the Predators lack of intensity and will is disturbing. The playoffs are all about will and grit, and this team seems to be coming up short in that area.
• That said, it seems that this team isn't comfortable playing with a lead but will battle like hell to get back into a game. I appreciate the compete level when they are behind, but when you have leads, don't get behind. Protect those leads and amp up your intensity level. Instead, the Predators seem to sit back and let Rinne stop shots (think the Ducks game earlier this month). And when Rinne struggles, like he did tonight, this team is in trouble.
• Rinne was not sharp tonight. Both of the second period goals were goals that Rinne usually eats up. This team leans so heavily on Rinne, and when his game is off, they struggle mightily.
• The power play continues to baffle me. We score a power play goal from Cody Franson and then the man advantage unit goes cold. This killed the team when they had a 5 minute power play late in the third and one minute into overtime. Five minutes of power play time and we managed 4 shots. This unit continues to worry me and I still feel that this will be a serious problem in the playoffs. One aspect of this unit that puzzles me is the continued inconsistency of getting traffic in front of the opposing goaltender. The Preds tried using Taylor Beck and Gabriel Bourque on the power play to do that but there were long stretches where they weren't on the ice. Bombing shots from the point toward an unscreened netminder is rarely going to get you a goal, but this seems to be the only strategy for this unit.
• Vancouver played a chippy game and Kevin Bieksa was a classless piece of crap, yapping at an injured Paul Gaustad. Bieksa was given a game misconduct for his classless antics.
• Mike Fisher had a 3 point night with a goal and two assists. Fisher now has 19 goals on the season. If you had told me that the team would get that kind of production from Fish after rupturing his Achilles tendon in the offseason, I would have seriously doubted you. I am impressed with the effort Fisher brings to the ice every night. Some other players need to follow suit.
• Seth Jones is...an adventure. He will make an outstanding play and will next shift make a brutal play. His turnover at the Predators blue line while on the power play set up Alex Burrows shorthanded goal. Consistency is definitely an issue for Seth.
• Shea Weber missed his third game with a lower body injury.
• Roman Josi continues to impress. His level of play has been solid all season and he has elevated his game of late. Josi had 8 points (4G-4A) in his last 9 games. he had 30:16 of ice time tonight.
• The Predators were 6-7-2 in March. This trend has to get back on an upswing before the playoffs.

I continue to believe this team has the potential to go far in the playoffs. But if they cannot hold leads and up their intensity level for 60 minutes, the time in the playoffs could be short.

My three stars:

1. Eddie Lack

2. Mike Fisher

3. Alex Burrows

Canucks Slip Past the Predators 1-0

The Nashville Predators faced off against the Vancouver Canucks at the Bridgestone Arena in their first meeting of the year, and the Canucks won the goaltending duel by a 1-0 margin.

The winning goal was scored by Dale Weise at 9:14 of the third period as Maxim Lapierre carried the puck low in the Predators zone as the Predators were making a line change. Lapierre fired a shot that Nashville netminder Pekka Rinne kicked out with his right pad. The Predators defense was not in position because of the change and Wiese was all alone to bang in the rebound.

Roberto Luongo was stellar in goal, especially in the first period as the Predators fired 13 shots on net. Throughout the game, both Luongo and Rinne came up with big saves.

The Predators opened the game with good jump, dominating the Canucks in the first period with 13 shots and good defense. Vancouver did not record its first shot on net until 12:27 of the first, and its second at 3:37.

That  changed in the second and third periods, as the Vancouver defense stepped up and Nashville could only record 5 shots in each period. Nashville had a power play late in the game and pulled Rinne for the extra attacker, but could not get a shot on net.

Some observations:

• Rinne was tested in the second and third period and came up with some great saves, most notably on Jannik Hansen, who had a point blank shot from the low slot. Rinne had no chance on the goal by Wiese as the Predators line change behind the play left Weise alone in the slot.

• The fourth line of Nick Splaing, Rich Clune, and Matt Halischuk was strong and played with good jump. They created several scoring opportunities and presented problems for the Canucks with the match up.

• After the strong start, the Predators offensive effort faded fast, and this is disappointing. Gabriel Bouque , David Legwand, and Nick Spaling did not record a shot on net. The Predators have to have players that get shots on net, and more importantly, they have to have players that can finish. This was the story of the game for the Predators offensively in that they could not finish their chances.

• The Canucks were going to make defensive adjustments, and they were very effective in the second and third period. However, the Predators lost  a lot of puck battles and as a result, the Canucks had a lot of offensive zone time. The Predators have to be stronger on the puck and more determined to win these puck battles to establish their offense. 

• The Canucks lost defenseman Kevin Bieksa, who took two shifts in the second period and then went to the Canucks locker room. He left the game with a lower body injury.

The Predators played a tight game with the Canucks, who lead the Pacific Division are are 3rd in the West. That is a positive.

The Predators will look at this game as one that got away. Finish a couple of those chances and the Predators have a victory. Keep the offensive pressure up and the outcome may have been different.

Coulda, woulda, shoulda.

Disappointing yes. But there is no time to dwell on this as the Predators meet the Red Wings tomorrow night.

Finish your chances and the outcome will be different boys.

My three stars:

1. Roberto Luongo

2. Dale Weise

3. Pekka Rinne

Predators Cap Comeback Against the Canucks With 2-1 Double OT Win

After their first game no-show against the Vancouver Canucks, Nashville Predators Head Coach Barry Trotz said that his team would find out a lot about themselves in game 2 of their series.

So what did the Predators find out?

They are a team that is not flashy, but is all heart and grit as they fought to a 2-1 double overtime win against the Canucks at Rogers Centre. They showed the world what Predator nation has known all along: there is no quit in this team.

After standing around for most of game one and watching the Canucks dictate the pace of play, the Predators opened this game with lots of jump and took the battle to the Canucks. The Predators skated well and their forecheck was disruptive. They controlled the neutral zone, slowing the Canucks potent offensive attack. Most importantly, the Predators used their speed and attacking style to generate offensive chances.

Those offensive opportunities were thwarted by the Canucks Vezina candidate, Roberto Luongo. Bobby Lu was called upon to make several good stops, including some goal mouth scrambles that saw the Predators create some good scoring chances.

At the other end of the ice, Pekka Rinne did not have to work as hard as Luongo, but had to make some quality saves nevertheless. Rinne opened game 2 just as he had played in game one, with another solid effort in the net. For the period, the Predators outshot the Canucks 12-6, but despite good offensive effort had now gone 4 periods without netting a goal.

That trend would continue into the second period, as the Predators would outshoot the Canucks 9-4 but could not find the back of the net. Again, they created some good scoring chances, but could not solve Luongo.

Although the Canucks only had 4 shots on goal, one of them found the back of the net, and it was a shorthanded goal while the Predators were on the power play. Sergei Kostitsyn turned the puck over coming out of the Predators zone. Ryan Kessler picked up the puck and got it to Alex Burrows. Burrows took a shot that was blocked by Shea Weber, but got his rebound and put the puck past Rinne to give the Canucks a 1-0 lead at 2:00.

In the third period, the Predators kept up the attack, peppering Luongo with 15 shots to just 5 for the Canucks in the period. Despite the good pressure, it appeared as if this game would be another disappointing 1-0 loss as the Predators appeared unable to get anything past Luongo.

Until Ryan Suter altered the course of the game. He threw a shot at the front of the net from a bad angle behind the goal line. The shot hit Luongo skate and skittered over the goal line at 18:53 of the third. An improbable shot had an improbable result, and the Predators had tied the game to the shock of the Canucks and their raucous fans.

In the first overtime, the Canucks out shot the Predators 11-7, and Pekka Rinne was called upon to make some big saves to keep the Canucks off the board. Rinne absolutely robbed Kevin Bieksa on a breakaway attempt. He made several solid saves to keep the Predators hopes alive, and had another spectacular game in net.

Scoreless through the first overtime, the Predators were heading into the second OT period with a sense of confidence that they could take this game. The Canucks, however, were intent on exerting their will and were starting to take control of the contest, outshooting the Predators 7-3. Once again, Rinne made some big stops to hold the Canucks scoreless.

Oh yes, that third shot for the Predators. Ryan Suter picked up the puck in the neutral zone and got it to Nick Spaling. Spals drove down the left wing while Jerred Smithson drove to the front of the net. Spaling slid the puck to Matt Halischuk, who roofed a one-timer over the glove of Luongo for the game winner at 14:51 of the second OT period.

As unbelievable as it was to those in attendance at the Rogers Centre, as gut wrenching as it was to the Canucks, the Predators had evened their series at one.

The little team that could, did.

Big time.

The adjectives are often overused: resilient; gritty; heart; character. Yet they are adjectives that fit this team perfectly. A team that shows heart and doesn't have any quit in them.

A team that shouldn't be here, according to the pundits. A team that on paper isn't as good as the Canucks.

Never for a moment doubt the heart that beats inside the Predator sweater. A heart that doesn't quit and won't back down. Heart personified by a player like Marty Erat, who lost 4 teeth and suffered a cheap head shot in the opening series and came back. Who took a Shea Weber slapshot to the head in this game. And came back.

Call it heart, guts, or character.

This is what powers this team. A belief in themselves and what they will bring to the ice.

And this is what has brought them an improbable win and an opportunity to seize control of this series.