Predators Hold Off Elimination, Blast the Blackhawks 5-2

With their backs against the wall, the Nashville Predators were attempting to do something that had never been done in their playoff history.

Stave off elimination on their home ice.

The Predators met the Chicago Blackhawks in a do or die game 5 at Bridgestone Arena with the Hawks leading the series 3-1.

Goals by Brad Richards and Filip Forsberg left the teams knotted at 1 at the end of the first period.

After a scoreless second period, the Predators attacked the Hawks and got them back on their heels in the third period. James Neal beat Scott Darling on a wraparound. Colin Wilson scored a beauty on the power play over the shoulder of Darling. Just 22 seconds later, Filip Forsberg beat Darling to make it 4-1.

Kris Versteeg cut the Predators lead to 4-2 with a goal at 14:42, and Predators fans couldn't rest easy just yet.

The game was settled when Filip Forsberg tallied an empty netter for the hat trick to seal a 5-2 win for the good guys.


Some observations:

• Good to see Mike Fisher back in the line up. The Preds desperatley need his leadership and play on the ice.
• I love Pekka Rinne and his compete level and the way he plays the game. He made some great saves in the first period, but he has to stop that goal he gave up. The Predators need him to shut everything down and that was one he couldn't give up.
• The fact that Filip Forsberg isn't even a finalist for the Calder Trophy is criminal. Forsberg showed with his sweet goal why he should not only have been a finalist but should have won the award. Oh yeah, he went on to score two more goals for the hat trick.
• NBC reported that Shea Weber has a torn ACL. No confirmation about the injury from the team.
• If the Predators had played this attacking style of hockey over the last 20 games... Wow, they just keep coming at the net. I like it, and I hope they carry this style of play over to a full 82 games next season.
• James Neal has played the last two games like the team hoped he would. He has been strong on the puck, active, and dynamic in the offensive zone. His wrap around goal was pure hustle and desire to get to the net. This is what the Predators have to have from Neal if they are going to win games.
• Colin Wilson! Wilson has come alive in the playoffs and tallied his 5th goal of the series with a beautiful power play goal over the shoulder of Scott Darling. 4 of Wilson's 5 goals in this series have come on the power play.
• Welcome back, Mike Fisher. A nice goal just 22 seconds after Colin Wilson had scored, Fisher gives the crowd a treat with his Frosty goal. You cannot underestimate the impact of Fisher on this team. He is a leader on and off the ice, and his tough, gritty style of play inspires his teammates.
• Viktor Stalberg continues to play a strong game. Neal's goal was a direst result of Stalberg's work on the forecheck, forcing a turnover that Neal was able to bury. This is the kind of play that that Stalberg has to bring every night, and the Predators have benefited from his effort.
• For the first time in the history of the team, the Predators held off elimination on their home ice.

Predators fans had to wonder about the emotional state of this team after a couple of tough losses in this series.

Wonder no more.

This team showed heart and fight all night long. They didn't quit. They battled from start to finish to stay alive in the series.

This is just one game, but you can only play one game at a time.

Now they have to play one more game.

Just like this one.

And bring it back to the Bridge for a game 7.

My three stars:

1. Filip Forsberg

2. James Neal

3. Pekka Rinne

Predators Stink Up the Joint in a 5-4 Loss to Toronto

There are losses and then there are losses. Tonight, the Nashville Predators stunk up a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs with their worst period of hockey in the history of the franchise, giving up four- count 'em FOUR- power play goals to blow a game in a 5-4 loss.

The Predators jumped all over the Maple Leafs in the first period, going up 3-0 on goals by J.P. Dumont, Jordin Tootoo, and Marty Erat. The Predators dominated the majority of the period, forcing turnovers and making the Leafs pay. Dumont's goal came from great puck movement as he had an open net to shoot the puck into. Tootoo got on board with a great hustle goal by driving to the net. Marty Erat was the beneficiary of a turnover that he buried. Toronto netminder J. S. Giguere was under siege for most of the period and the Predators looked as if they were going to dominate the night.

The Predators continued their annoying habit of giving up a goal late in a period as Luke Schenn cut the lead to 3-1 with a goal at 19:30 of the first.

The Predators would take the first of SIX penalties in the second period as Francis Buillon was in the box for holding. The Predators PK would make Toronto pay as Marcel Goc poked the puck away at the blue line and beat Giguere on the break away to make it 4-1 Predators.

It was at this point that the Predators would completely fall apart and begin a parade to the penalty box with a  slew of penalties, the result of undisciplined play.

Toronto would score on four of the next five power plays, and what should have been a commanding lead for the Predators disintegrated into a 5-4 deficit. Without a doubt, this was a disgusting and disappointing display of hockey by a team that usually plays with much better discipline.

Giguere was injured in the third period, and Jonas Gustavsson would come into the game to finish it out for the Leafs. The Predators generated several chances, but could not solve The Monster. When the final horn sounded, the Predators limped off the ice with an utterly embarrassing loss on the books.

These are the types of games that this team cannot afford to give away. The Maple Leafs are a sorry team, having lost nine games in a row. The Predators made them look like a playoff team with their play tonight. These are the kinds of losses that are haunting.

This game points to the lack of mental toughness of the Predators. I can't argue with any of the penalty calls. We were undisciplined. The penalty kill, always a prime indicator of the toughness of any team, looked inept and lost. Any time you have a team down 3-0 and 4-1, you should put your skate on their throat and not let them up. The Predators were, unfortunately, soft, letting the Leafs claw back into this game.

This is unacceptable and embarrassing.

An 82 game season is a physical grind. It is also a mental grind. It requires a team to be mentally strong and tough. I have my doubts about the Predators mental toughness.

It is time for this team to get tough mentally. The mental aspect is as important as the physical aspect of the game. Mental toughness often decides the outcome of a contest.

Coach Trotz talks about the resiliency of this team. That is a good characteristic to have, and this resiliency is now going to be tested. Coming back from a loss like this is difficult. It will be interesting to see how mentally tough this team will be, to see if they can put their game back together.

Here is a thought: play tough for sixty minutes and put teams away. Don't let them back into the game. Don't get embarrassed like you did tonight against a lesser opponent.

Then you won't have to test that resiliency so much.

My three stars of the night:

1. Kris Versteeg

2. Clarke McArthur

3. Marcel Goc