Predators Road Trip Ends With a Thud, Fall to the Flyers In OT

The Nashville Predators wrapped up a five game road trip with an afternoon matinee in the City of Brotherly Love to take on the Flyers. The road trip has been a disaster for the Predators, as they have dropped 3 of 4 games, being shut out in three of the games and being outscored 13-3.


The game started well for the Predators as Filip Forsberg scored on a wicked wrist shot from the slot to beat Michael Neuvirth just 1:19 into the game to give the Predators a 1-0 lead. That lead stood for less than 3 minutes as Michel Del Zotto beat Pekka Rinne to the top corner to tie the game.

Colin McDonald broke the tie in the third period as he beat Eric Nystrom to the front of the net and was able to slid a shot between Rinne and the post for a 2-1 lead.

This game looked as if it was going down the toilet until Mike Fisher won a puck battle in front of the net and banged the puck past Neuvirth to tie the game at 2 with just 20 seconds remaining in regulation.

In the overtime, the Predators were guilty of a specious too many men on the ice call, and the Flyers capitalize on the power play as Shayne Gostisbehere ripped a shot from the slot to beat Rinne to give the Flyers a 3-2 win.

Some observations:

• With Paul Gaustad being injured in the Buffalo game and Miikka Salomaki being placed on injured reserve, the Predators recalled Colton Sissons from Milwaukee.
• Welcome back, Filip Forsberg! Fosberg's first period tally was his first goal in 17 games and the Predators definitely need Prince Filip to start heating up. And wow, does Forsberg have a quick release. The puck was barely on his tape before it was in the back of the net. this was Forsberg's 3rd goal of the season.
• Part of the Ptredators woes on this road trip has been the Predators lack of effectiveness on the power play. They are 0-13 going into this game and 1 for their last 19 with the man advantage. This unit is going to have to improve their efficiency for this team to have success in this season.
• The injury bug is starting to bite the Predators as they lost Gabriel Bourque for the game after a first period injury. Bourque doesn't score a lot but logs some important minutes on the third line and on the penalty kill.
• The Flyers did a good job of disrupting the Predators breakouts and in the neutral zone. The Predators like to attack with speed, but the Flyers broke up passes and slowed the Predators attack. This is where the Predators need to get the puck deep and work hard to retrieve it, something they did inconsistently in this game and have done in previous games where they have struggled.
• Filip Forsberg looked as if he were the only Predator on the ice ready to play. The rest of the team was spotty in their play and lacked any jump. Maybe it is the end of a grueling road trip, but this team cannot come out without fire in their belly and expect to win many games.
• In this game, and throughout this road trip, the Predators gave up way too many odd man rushes. whether it is defensive breakdowns or poor puck management, the Predators need to clean up this aspect of our game. This puts too much pressure on Rinne to solve these problems and more often than not bites this team in the ass.
• Mike Fisher is not an elite, number one center. Age and injuries limit his ability to claim that status. But dang, he probably has as big of a heart as anyone on this team. His goal late in regulation was just a matter of will and heart and that is something that can't be coached. 
• I know this has been a tough rough trip, both physically and mentally, and it showed. The Predators just didn't seem to have the jump they normally would and lost the majority of puck battles and time of possession to the Flyers. Hopefully coming home for a few games will be a boost for this team.
• The Predators were out shot 6-1 in OT and never threatened the Flyers net. Again, a lack of urgency and hustle doomed them. 

This road trip will hopefully serve as a wake up call to this team. It takes attention to detail, playing with grit and jump, and bringing from the first to the last whistle to win games. If they do not, it will be ugly when they start to do battle in the Division.

My three stars:

1. Filip Forsberg

2. Michael Neuvirth

3. Shayne Gostisbehere

Stars Stomp the Predators 7-3

The Dallas Stars are a hungry team, fighting for a playoff spot.

The Nashville Predators are a team that is playing out the string, waiting for a long offseason.

Both teams played their part in their contest at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.

The Predators were absolutely embarrassed by the Stars 7-3 in a game where the Predators defense was a sieve and Pekka Rinne had a miserable night.

The Stars jumped on the Predators early, establishing a two goal lead in the first period on goals by Ryan Garbutt and Vernon Fiddler.

The Predators tried to answer early in the second period on a goal by Patric Hornqvist. They added to that tally as Michel Del Zotto scored from the blue line.

Unfortunately, the Predators gave up three more goals in the second period as Colton Sceviour, Alex Chiasson, and Trevor Daley tallied for the Stars.

Eric Nystrom made it 5-3 shortly after the third period started. The Stars then scored two goals 9 seconds apart as Valeri Nichuskin and Cody Eakin abused the Predators defense.

Mercifully, the clock ran out before the Stars could abuse the Predators any further.

Some observations:

• Hard to find anything positive about this game, but I did like the hustle and fire of Patric Hornqvist. he competed and battled all game, one of the few Predators that did in this contest.

• Calle Jarnkrok picked up an assist, his fifth point in five games.

• Rinne was under a lot of pressure all game long, but he looked bad on several of the Stars goals. Yes, the Stars got some goals off deflections on which Rinne had no chance, but there were several goals that were stoppable and Rinne did not make the save. For this team to have a chance to win a game, he has to be on top of his game, and he certainly was not tonight.

• The Predators defense was non-existent tonight, often looking like Keystone Cops running around on the ice. Hard to figure out the reason for the consistent breakdowns.

This is the first game in a while where the Predators appeared to have little heart and push back.

Hopefully, this will the last time they look this way.

My three stars:

1. Alex Goligoski

2. Ryan Garbutt

3. Colton Sceviour

Predators Feeling Blue: Drop 4th Straight to St. Louis

Remember when the Nashville Predators used to have their way with the St. Louis Blues?

Go back several seasons and a game against the Blues was almost a guaranteed win for the Predators.

Over that span of time, the Blues have drafted well and developed their offensive talent, and that talent has developed into one of the elite teams in the NHL.

By contrast, the Predators have devolved into a bunch of grinders that give a good effort but have a woeful lack of skill.

That yawning gap in talent was on display at the Bridgestone Arena as the Blues beat the Predators for the 4th straight time by a score of 2-1. that score belies the fact that the blues were the clearly dominant team and controlled play for much of the game.

Ian Cole opened the scoring at 4:03 of the first period as he fired a shot off a face off win through traffic that beat a screened Pekka Rinne to give the Blues a 1-0 lead.

The Predators answered at 10:28 of the first as Patric Hornqvist threw a shot to the front of the net from the goal line that was re-directed by Nick Spaling over the shoulder of Ryan Miller to tie the game at 1.

That was it for the Predators as they rarely challenged Miller.

The blues scored the game winner as Magnus Paarjarvi took a pass from roman Polak and skated past Ryan Ellis and beat Rinne to the far side post at 15:27 of the second period.

The Predators could rarely muster any offense and struggled just getting the puck through the neutral zone and establishing any offensive flow.

This was an ugly loss as it clearly exposed the talent gap between the Predators and a team that was consistently below them in the standings just a few years ago.

The troubling aspect of this game is that it clearly shows that this talent gap will not quickly or easily be closed by the Predators.

Some observations:

• The Predators have now lost 6 of their last 7 games. This team is not bound for the playoffs, and the lack of talent is going to haunt this team and their fans for several years.

• Patric Hornqvists assist was his 100th of his career.

• The Predators do not have a forward that can cosnsitently carry the puck into the offensive zone against a talented defense. The Predators had to almost exclusively resort to a dump and chase game, and they lost most of those puck battles all night.

• Puck support by the Predators was awful. Often, when the Predators got the puck in the zone, the Blues out numbered the puck carrier and forced turnovers. The Predators had 10 giveaways to 4 by the Blues.

• How ineffective were the Predators forwards? The Predators had 21 shots on goal, and 13 of those came from defensemen.

• Newly acquired Patrick Eaves was in the lineup, playing on the fourth line with Paul Gaustad and Rich Clune. Eaves had 6:59 of ice time and was a -1 for the night.

• This was the Predators first game without David Legwand. Those that know me or read this blog know that he has not been a favorite of mine. My problem with Legwand was simply that I believe that he did not play with heart and was grossly overpaid for what he brought to the ice. That is simply my opinion, and I don't expect all of you (any of you) to agree with me. It is telling to me that the management of the team could not answer the question of whether or not the Predators would be a better team without Legwand. And there is the enigma: Legwand was a talented player that never played to his potential or his talent level. Time will tell if this team is better or not without him. I think his absence will not affect this team adversely.

• Rinne was called upon to make some  huge saves once again to keep an opponent off the board. He also stopped Alex Steen on a penalty shot.

• The woeful Predators offense has scored just one goal in each of their last three games.

• I do not like the defensive pairing of Michael Del Zotto and Ryan Ellis. You have two puck moving defensemen that do not play a physical game. The larger and more physical forwards of the Blues pushed around Ellis in particular all night. I thought the pairing of MDZ and Seth Jones that had been used in previous games was a more effective tandem.

With the playoffs out of the picture, the Predators now have to focus on improving their game and building for next season. It is encouraging to see that this group is still competing.

It would be even more encouraging to see this team begin to produce consistent scoring.

My three stars:

1. Magnus Paarjarvi

2. Pekka Rinne

3. Ian Cole

Jets Shoot down the Predators 3-1

The Nashville Predators faced the Winnipeg Jets in a game that they needed to win to remain relevant in the playoff chase. The Predators gave it a good shot, in fact 40 of them, but could only get one past Jets netminder Ondrej Pavalec in a 3-1 loss at Bridgestone Arena.

The Predators used their power play unit to capture a win in their previous game, going 3 for 4 with the man advantage.

Tonight, the power play was 0-6 as the jets used their number one ranked road penalty kill to throttle the Predators.

And that points out the major weakness of this team.

They are not good enough to consistently score at even strength.

Now there is no doubt Pavalec played an outstanding game, but often the Predators had quality scoring chances they could not finish.

And that is the story of their season.

The Jets scored first when the defensive coverage lost Olli Jokinen and he skated in on predators goaltender Carter Hutton and roofed a shot over his shoulder to make it 1-0 at 5:02 of the second period.

The Jets made it 2-0 as Andrew Ladd re-directed a Zach Bogosian shot through traffic past Hutton at 18:18 of the second period.

Simon Moser made it 2-1 at 9:11 of the third period as he re-directed a shot from Mickael Del Zotto  and (finally!) past Pavalec and gave the Predators some life.

That flicker of hope was snuffed out as Blake Wheeler beat Shea Weber down the boards and put a shot on net that Hutton kicked out. Devin Setoguchi snapped a shot past Hutton to make it 3-1 at 16:08.

The Predators could not get any pucks past Pavalec even with the extra attacker for the final 1:40 of the game, and a must win game became a crippling loss.

Some observations:

• Moser's goal was his first in the NHL. I like his hustle and his play, and hopefully this will be the first of many goals for him.

• Roman Josi seems to grow in confidence and his play improves every game. Josi is one of the better puck handlers- if not the best- on the team. he makes good decisions with the puck and is a confident and smooth skater. He also plays a ton of minutes, usually against the top forward line of the opposition. Tonight, he had 27:44 TOI.

• Michael Del Zotto picked up the primary assist on the goal by Moser. I like MDZ's game and I think as he continues to settle in with the team, he will prove to be a valuable addition.

• David Legwand just looks disinterested to me. He is not strong on the puck and their is not a bit of offensive creativity or jam in his game.

• The Predators put 40 shots on Pavalec and he made some outstanding saves. The fact is though, that the Predators have to finish some of those chances, and as long as they continue to struggle at even strength their chances of sneaking into the playoffs is virtually non-existent.

This was a game the Predators had to win to make of ground on a team that is just in front of them in the standings. The opportunity was lost, and possibly the post season.

The effort and hustle by the team was good, but the lack of finish doomed them.

Now they have to respond and bring this effort on Tuesday against the Penguins.

And finish their chances.

My three stars:

1. Ondrej Pavalec

2. Andrew Ladd

3. Simon Moser

Predators Cap An Incredible Comeback Win With Weber's Goal

Shea Weber was a game time decision for the Predators game against the New Jersey Devils at the Bridgestone Arena.

The Predators are glad he played.

Weber scored the first goal of the game and the overtime winner as the Predators defeated the Devils 3-2.

And it was an improbable win.

Weber opened the scoring for the Predators as he blasted a slap shot past Cory Schneider that beat the scrambling Devils netminder through the five hole at 6:45 of the first period.

The Devils came back with two goals in the second period, both of which were goals Carter Hutton would like to have back.

Patrick Elias fired a shot that appeared to be going wide of the net. Hutton tried to snare it with his glove, but it popped out and dribbled over the goal line to tie the game at 13:00 of the second.

The Devils took a  2-1 lead when Jaromir Jagr tallied his 17th goal of the season. Jagr beat Hutton with a wrist shot that got between Hutton and the post at 18:59 of the second period.

The Devils spent the third period aggressively forechecking the Predators and disrupting any offensive flow that the Predators tried to establish.

With the clock ticking down and Hutton pulled for an extra attacker, the Predators got the puck into the zone and Roman Josi fired a shot that Schneider kicked out to the stick of David Legwand. With Schneider out of position, David Legwand buried the puck into the open net with just 10.8 seconds remaining to tie the game.

In the overtime period, Michael Ryder had a breakaway just 80 seconds in, and Hutton came up big, stopping Ryder's backhand attempt.

The Predators rushed the puck into the offensive zone, and Colin Wilson made a drop pass to Weber. Weber launched a rocket over the glove of Schneider to give the Predators a come from behind win.

Some observations:

• Weber's 15 goals leads all NHL defensemen. His ability to work to the open ice and bury shots is critical for the Predators success. Nashville is 11-1-2 when Weber scores.

• Hutton allowed two brutal goals, but rather than hang his head, he continued to battle, His save on Ryder's breakaway was a thing of beauty. Hutton was generally solid, but he is prone to the soft goal, and tonight, it almost cost the team. I appreciate the fact that while he is not the most talented netminder in the NHL, he competes every night. Hutton is 6-1 in his last seven starts at home.

• Nashville is 19-2-5 when they score the first goal of the season.

• Nashville won for just the2nd time this season when trailing after two periods. This game tonight should help build the confidence of this young team, letting them believe that they are not out of a game when trailing going into the final frame.

• I like the pairing of Seth Jones and Michael Del Zotto. This is a mobile pair that can move the puck and Del Zotto has shown that he is not afraid to deliver a big hit, as he did tonight. If this pair can continue to gel, the Predators will have a solid second pairing.

• Despite the aggressive forecheck of the Devils, the Predators out shot them 33-26. This effort in the face of pressure from a talented team is a good sign of the effort of this team.

• The Predators are 3-1-1 in their last five games.

• Roman Josi has 10 points (3G-7A) in his last nine games.

The Predators need to continue with this kind of effort and pile up points before the Olympic break. The Predators currently sit 5th in the Central Division and are 5 points out of the last wild card slot.

The challenge is there.

Now we will see if the team can meet it.

My three stars:

1. Shea Weber

2. David Legwand

3. Patrick Elias

Predators Rally Past Vancouver for 2-1 Win

The Nashville Predators began a western Canada road trip with a stop in Vancouver to take on the Canucks. The Predators came into the game having won three of their last four games and were looking to build on that momentum.

Michael Del Zotto, acquired the day before from the New York Rangers for Kevin Klein, made his debut with the Predators.

Carter Hutton was in net for the Predators, and he has been playing well of late. The Predators were going to need another strong outing from Hutton against the talented Canucks squad.

And Hutton came up big in a scoreless first period. He stopped all 13 shots he faced, making some solid saves. The Canucks were aided in that first period by 6 minutes of power play time. Hutton and the penalty killers did a good job of keeping the Canucks off the board.

Taking those penalties is not a formula for beating the Canucks, and the Predators were going to have to be more disciplined in the second period.

The only score in the second period came when Chris Higgins tipped a Dale Weiss shot that was going wide of the net over the shoulder of Hutton.

As for the Predators, they had not really challenged Roberto Luongo through the first two periods. The offensive urgency and effort were going to have to improve in the third period.

The Predators got that response at 3:28 of the third period as Craig Smith beat Luongo short side with a snap shot to tie the game at 1. This was Smith's 16th goal of the season.

The Predators took a 2-1 lead on the power play as Seth Jones fired a shot from the blue line that was re-directed by Nick Spaling in front of Luongo Luongo. Spaling's goal came at 12:38 of the period.

The Predators defense was able to make that goal stand up, and they captured the 2-1 win.


Some observations:

• Scott Nichol, Predators Director of Player Development, was behind the bench replacing Coach Lane Lambert, who stayed in Nashville to be with his wife, who is undergoing chemotherapy treatment. All of the fans of the Predators certainly send our best to her.

• Del Zotto looked good for having made a cross country flight and joining the team today. he had good jump, a nice shot from the point, and showed that he can move the puck.

• Nice response by the Predators in the third period. After a rather lifeless first two periods, the Predators took over in the third period. They got their feet moving and created some quality scoring chances by shooting the puck and getting to the net.

• Hutton was very good again. He stopped 35 of 36 shots and did a good job of controlling rebounds and was tracking the puck well. Early in the year, it appeared that Hutton was scrambling a bit in net. Now, he looks to be more poised and fluid, and his game has benefitted.

• The Canucks were without Head Coach John Tortorella, who missed his second game behind the bench as he serves his 15 day suspension.

• The Predators won for only the 6th time this season when the opponent scores first.

The Predators continue tomorrow night in Calgary and are looking to keep the momentum going.

They will have to do so to get back into the playoff hunt.

My three stars:

1. Carter Hutton

2. Nick Spaling

3. Craig Smith