Predators Lack Urgency and Effort, Get Shelled By the Flyers 6-3

The Nashville Predators need points. They wasted a great opportunity to pick up 2 points against the Philadelphia Flyers at Bridgestone Arena by playing a half-hearted game and dropping a critical contest by a 6-3 score.

Wayne Simmonds scored twice and the Flyers added goals by Matt Read, Brayden Schenn, and two goals by Claude Giroux, the last an empty netter.

Ryan Johansen, Calle Jarnkrok, and Shea Weber scored for the Predators.

Some observations:

• The Flyers first goal came as the result of a breakaway after a brutal non-call for interference on the Flyers. Michael Raffl skated into two Predators and took them out of the play, allowing Read to skate in an beat Rinne for the first goal of the game. How the officials don't make that call is beyond me, but it is an embarrassment to the League that a call gets blown so badly.
• Simmonds scored on a follow up of his breakaway. Rinne made the first stop, but Simmonds gathered his rebound and tucked it between Rinne's skate and the post. The play was set up when Shea Weber broke his stick and in the process of retrieving another one, Simmonds got behind him for the score.
• The Predators had ample opportunities on the power play, but could only capitalize once off a blast by Weber that he blew past Steve Mason. Other than that score, the Predators power play was inept. They had a 4 minute power play in the first period and generated only 2 shots. The power play is lacking a hard edge and a player that will go to the front of the net and create havoc. Instead, this unit is too content to float and toss the puck around the perimeter. It looks pretty, but is highly ineffective.
• I am going to call the experiment of constant line juggling by Head Coach Peter Laviolette a failure. The constant changes have disrupted chemistry and leaves the forwards looking uncertain and unsettled. I understand the need to mix up line. Occasionally. Not all the time. And the lack of chemistry and cohesiveness among the forwards is hurting this team.
• The Predators lack snarl. This team has no edge and a player that will be a shift disturber. There a re talented and dangerous forwards, but the Predators have players that more often than  not are not going to the hard areas and claiming that ice. This makes them very easy to defend and makes it more difficult to score goals in this time of the season where hard hockey is the norm.
• That said, I like the play of Miikka Salomaki. He is physical and hustles all over the ice. He is by far the most physical forward that the Predators have on their roster. 
• Rinne didn't have an exceptional game, but two breakaways and a perfect pass to Schenn alone at the side of the crease were difficult to stop. He didn't make some outstanding stops but he didn't get a lot of help in front of him either.
• Trailing going into the third period, it was almost inevitable that the Predators would absorb another loss. This team has only won 2 games this season when trailing going into the third period. They are now 2-15-3 when trailing after 2 periods, and that is awful.
• Filip Forsberg will be an elite player. Right now, however, he is on a dry spell and I get the feeling that he is trying to do too much with the puck on his stick. Skating into two or more defenders is usually a formula for turning over the puck, which he did on multiple occasions tonight.
• Forsberg, Mike Ribeiro, and Barrett Jackman were all -3 tonight. 

The Predators are going to need, I believe, 100 points to make the playoffs. With 30 games remaining and 56 points on their ledger, that means the team is going to have to go 22-8 to get to that point total.

The runway is getting short for this team.

Keep playing without a sense of urgency and desperation, and they will run out of runway very quickly.

My three stars:

1. Wayne Simmonds

2. Claude Giroux

3. Calle Jarnkrok

Predators End the Futility, Finish the Flyers in a Shootout

The Nashville Predators traveled to Philadelphia to take on the Flyers and were looking to build on a solid win from their previous game. For the Predators, consistency and a quick start were essential to capturing a road win against a hot Flyers team.

It was the Flyers that got the quick start as they tallied just 1:28 into the game as Brayden Schenn tapped in a puck laying at the side of the net. Predators netminder Carter Hutton had traffic in front on him and was fighting to find the puck when Schenn gathered in the loose puck and banged it home for the first goal of the game.

The Predators answered with a similar goal at 10:57 of the first period. Gabriel Bourque came off the wall and fired the puck toward the front of the net, where it met the skate of Eric Nystom, who was driving hard to the blue paint. The puck caromed off Nystrom's skate past Flyers goaltender Steve Mason to knot the game at 1.

The Predators took a 2-1 lead at 16:35 of the period. The Predators were on the power play when Mike Fisher threaded a pass through the slot to David Legwand, who buried the puck past a sprawling Mason.

The second period loosened up a bit and the game became an end to end contest.

The Flyers nearly tied the game as a dump in was misplayed behind the net by Hutton. The puck bounced off his stick on to the tape of Michael Raffl, who had an open net into which to shoot the puck. David Legwand tripped Raffl on the backcheck, which affected his shot, but Hutton dove out from behind the net and made a remarkable glove save to keep the Flyers off the board.

Hutton would give up the tying goal with just 3.6 seconds left in the period as Andrej Meszaros took a drop pass from Wayne Simmonds and whipped a shot over the shoulder stick side.

This was the kind of goal that could deflate a team, so it would be interesting to see how the Predators responded in the third period.

The Flyers Niklas Grossman was called for a double minor for high sticking Patric Hornqvist, and on the ensuing power play Shea Weber, much to the chagrin of Philly fans who lust after the stud defenseman, gunned a slap shot from the blue line to give the Predators a 3-2 lead at 5:10.

The Predators would continue on the power play and Craig Smith had a glorious chance on a breakaway that was stopped by Mason.

The Predators tempted fate by taking a late penalty as Mike Fisher was called for slashing and the Flyers made the Predators pay. Wayne Simmonds was parked in front of the net and he was able to re-direct a shot past Hutton at 18:36. On the play, Mason was pulled and it was a 6 on 4 advantage for the Flyers.

That late goal caused the game to go to overtime, where the Predators had not had much success this season. The Predators were 1-7 in OT sessions this season.

Neither team could score in the overtime, although the Flyers Matt Read rang a shot off the post that nearly trickled into the net before Carter Hutton smothered the puck.

It's deja vu all over again, as the teams were heading to a shootout, just like in their first meeting in Nashville.

For the first time this season, the Predators won a shootout.

The futility in the skills competition was finally over!

The shootout went seven rounds with Matt Cullen, Ryan Ellis, and Roman Josi scoring the game winner.

Some observations:

• Carter Hutton played a solid game and came up with some very good saves. He was able to track the puck well through traffic and gave up few rebounds. Hutton has had two good outings, and hopefully he can build on this and get his mojo going.

• In the shootout, the Predators surprisingly went to Seth Jones as the third shooter. He missed the net on his shot.

• The Predators power play was efficient scoring on 2 of 4 opportunities including one goal on a 4 minute double minor. The power play units have been moving the puck better of late, forcing the defense to move more and opening up shooting lanes.

• The Predators continue to put pucks on the net. They out shot the flyers 37-30 and this is what this team has to do to have an opportunity to win games.

• With the win, the Predators get back to .500 at 21-21-7, good for 49 points and 6 points out of the final playoff spot.

• New acquisition Devan Dubnyk was on the bench as the back up goalie.

The Predators continue to fight and claw to try to get back into the playoff race.

Essential for this team to do that will be to build consistency and avoid the losing streaks that have derailed momentum during this season.

These past two wins are a good place to start doing just that.

My three stars:

1. Roman Josi

2. Shea Weber

3. Wayne Simmonds

Predators Fall to the Flyers in a SO

The Nashville Predators fell to the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 in a shootout at Bridgestone Arena. The game was tied at 2 at the end of overtime.

The Flyers Vinnie Lecavalier scored the only shootout goal in the first round.

The Flyers opened the scoring at 16:49 of the first period as Claude Giroux cruised down the slot and roofed a shot over the shoulder of Predators goaltender Marek Mazanec.

The Predators answered back at 17:49 of the first period as Mike Fisher used two Flyers as a screen and fired a shot from the face off circle that beat Steve Mason.

After a scoreless second period, the Predators took a 2-1 lead at 5:05 of the third period as Colin Wilson beat Mason five hole with a backhand off the rush.

That score stood until 13:06 of the third when Sean Couturier was left alone by the Predators defense at the top of the crease and he lifted a shot over Mazanec to tie the game.

In the overtime, the Predators out shot the Flyers 3-1, and Colin Wilson banged a puck off the post, but the could not neat Mason.

Some observations:

• The young and mix and match defense corps did a commendable job. There were some breakdowns but generally the blueliners played well. Seth Jones steadied his game and he played a monstrous 30:43, second only to roman Josi's incredible 32:26.

• The Predators will be without the services of Shea Weber for the next few games. Weber took a puck to the face and suffered an eye injury. According to head Coach Barry Trotz, Weber is "very lucky" and the injury could have been much worse. The Predators were also without Kevin Klein, out with a lower body injury.

• The Predators called up Joe Piskula from Milwaukee, and he logged 10:27 tonight.

• Patric Hornqvist returned to the lineup after missing two games. Hornqvist picked up an assist in 22:24 of ice time.

• The compete level of the Predators was much better than in their previous game. Their speed advantage against the Flyers was obvious and they used it to their advantage to create scoring chances. The Predators out shot the Flyers 36-24, and Mason made some good saves to prevent the Predators from scoring.

• That said, the Predators power play was abysmal. Entry into the zone was a struggle and their was little movement and flow once in the zone. The power play appears to have taken a big step backwards the past several games, and this has to improve for this team to have success. Tonight, the power play was 0-5.

The Predators did some good things in this game, just not enough to notch the win. The team can get back to their winning ways if they continue to bring this kind of effort and finish their chances.

My three stars:

1. Vinnie Lecavalier

2. Colin Wilsom

3. Sean Couturier

Predators Bury the Blue Jackets 5-2

The Nashville Predators were looking to win two games in a row for the first time in over a month, and the Columbus Blue Jackets were just what the Predators needed to do just that.

The Predators buried the Blue Jackets with a first period goal scoring spree en route to a 5-2 victory.

The Predators scored 4 goals in a 3:04 stretch of the first period, the fastest 4 goals in franchise history.

Taylor Beck got the scoring started as he rifled a shot from the face off circle over the shoulder of Columbus netminder Sergei Bobrovsky for his first NHL goal. His tally came at 7:11 of the first period.

Shea Weber stretched the lead to 2-0 at 8:21 of the period on the power play. Bobby Butler worked hard to get control of the puck, made a move toward the net, and slipped a beautiful pass to Weber on the off side. Weber blasted home the shot for his 6th goal of the season.

The Jackets made it 2-1 as R.J. Umberger crashed into Pekka Rinne in the blue paint and the puck trickled through Rinne's pads after the collision and into the net. The play was reviewed, but inexplicably no goaltender interference was called.

Rather than let the Jackets build momentum, David Legwand responded to make it 3-0 at 9:46 of the first as he beat Bobrovsky from the slot.

The Predators made it 4-1 at 10:15 of the first period as Matt Halischuk whistled a shot over the shoulder of Bobrovsky off a rush into the Columbus zone.

Bobrovsky had given up 4 goals on 11 shots by the Predators, and his night was done. Steve Mason came in to replace Bobrovsky and finished the game in net for the Jackets.

Just 12 seconds after the 4th Predators goal, Rich Clune was called for interference, and because the play resulted in an injury to a Jackets player, he was given a 5 minute penalty and a game misconduct.

The 5 minute power play was a prime opportunity for the Jackets to get back into the game. The Predators had killed off the just over 3 minutes of Clune's penalty when Mike Fisher stole the puck and drove the net. He crashed into Mason and was given a 2 minute penalty for goaltender interference.

Now the Predators had to kill off nearly 2 minutes of 5 on 3 power play time.

And they did so in grand fashion.

The Predators gave the Jackets just two shots with the two man advantage.

Game, set, and match.

Artem Anisimov tallied at 14:53 of the second period, as his shot hit the stick of Mike Fisher and caromed over the shoulder of Rinne to make it 4-2.

The third period saw the Jackets have a decided advantage in zone time, as they controlled the puck and kept the Predators bottled up in their own end for lengthy stretches. The Predators did a good job of limiting quality scoring chances for the Jackets, however.

Roman Josi scored an empty net goal at 19:36 for the final margin.

Some observations:

Welcome Back, Big Guy

Hal Gill was back in the line up, and his presence was welcome, especially on the penalty kill. Gill was strong and his effort during the Jackets 5 on 3 was exceptional. Gill is a steady presence on the blue line and his return gives the coaching staff some flexibility with the D corp and getting the best blue liners on the ice for the match ups with the opponent.

Welcome Back, Predator Hockey

In the first period, the Predators forecheck was relentless and helped to create offensive opportunities. It was refreshing to see the Predators firing the puck at the net, and some good things- such as 4 goals- happened because they pulled the trigger. The defense did a good job of limiting quality scoring opportunities by the Jackets. And Pekka Rinne was solid in net. This is the type of game that the Predators are capable of playing, and tonight, they played a solid game in all phases.

Home, Sweet Home

With the win, the Predators home record is now 8-2-4. By contrast, their road record is 5-11-2. With the schedule heavily slanted to home games for the remainder of the season, the Predators have to continue to use home ice to their advantage.

No Let Downs

The Predators out shot the Blue Jackets 13-4 in the first period. In the final 40 minutes, the Jackets out shot the Predators 19-11. The Jackets started to control play in the second period, out shooting the Predators 9-4 and then 10-7 in the third. As mentioned, the Jackets spent a lot of time in the offensive zone in the third period. The Predators cannot step off the gas with a lead. Good teams will make them pay for that, and their success in upcoming games will depend on a full 60 minute effort.

Everyone Contributes

Taylor Beck had a goal and an assist. Marty Erat, Gabriel Bourque, and Bobby Butler each had two assists. Matt Halischuk, David Legwand, Shea Weber, and Roman Josi had goals. This is the kind of effort that this team has to bring every night, and contributions have to come from all lines. This is the formula for the Predators to succeed, and it has to be consistent from game to game.

Kudos to Bobby Butler, who had a strong game. His assist on Weber's goal was a thing of beauty. He was strong on the puck and battled in the hard areas.

Final thoughts

The Predators are now 13-13-6 and have 32 points. They sit just outside of the 8th spot for the playoffs. Getting into the playoffs will be a battle over the final 16 games. I still believe they will need to win 13 of their remaining 16 games to get in the dance.

The hill is steep and the task is going to be difficult. But it can be done.

Tonight, the team saw what it will take to get it done.

Now, they have to bring this effort every game.

My three stars:

1. Taylor Beck

2. Bobby Butler

3. Marty Erat

Predators Crush Columbus 4-1

There are things that are certain in this life: the sun comes up in the East; taxes; and the Nashville Predators beating the Columbus Blue Jackets.

That trend continued tonight at the Bridgestone Arena as the Predators defeated the Jackets 4-1. This was the last meeting this season for the two teams, and Nashville took the season series with a 5-0-1 record en route to capturing 11 of the 12 points on the line in this series.

Since the 2006-7 season, the Predators are 31-5-3 against the Jackets.

Pekka Rinne got the start for the Predators, while the Jackets went with Steve Mason.

The first period was absolutely dominated by the Predators, as they out shot the Jackets by a 12-3 margin on the way to a 1-0 lead after 20 minutes. If not for some good saves by Mason, the score would have been much worse.

The Predators score in the first came as Marty Erat deftly stole the puck from Fedor Tyutin and slipped it to Mike Fisher in the low slot. Fisher popped a quick wrist shot that beat Mason stick side for the goal.

In the second period, the Jackets reversed the momentum and dominated the Predators during the first ten minutes. They peppered Rinne with shots, and finally broke through at 6:14 of the period as Rick Nash converted a Mike Fisher turnover to beat the defense back. Nash beat Rinne stick side with a nice backhand that slid between Rinne's stick and the post to tie the game at 1.

As the period wore on, the Predators started skating again and getting shots in on Mason. They created some good scoring chances, but could not get one past the Columbus netminder, and this game had the feel of another nail biter with a team the Predators should handle fairly easily.

That tension that the Predator fans were feeling would be allayed late in the period. Just 1:20 seconds after the Predators were called for too many men on the ice, Columbus would be guilty of the same infraction. The Predators went on the power play, and Shea Weber fired a blast from the blue line. Mason kicked out the rebound with his pad directly to Fisher, and he potted the goal into the net past an out of position Mason to give the Predators a 2-1 lead at 19:31 of the second period.

The Predators were out shot in the period by a 16-12 margin, but they had survived the push from Columbus and started to control play as the period wound down.

The Predators stretched the lead to 3-1 as Matt Halsichuk got the puck on his stick in traffic in the low slot. Halsichuk fired a quick wrist shot that beat Mason stick side at 7:37 of the third period

The power play clicked once again as Ryan Suter, who was back after missing three games with an upper body injury, let a shot go from the blue line that was re-directed by Patric Hornqvist. Hornqvist was camped at the top of the blue paint, and his deflection easily beat Mason at 16:51 to make it 4-1 Predators.

The Predators thwarted any late push from the Jackets, and as the final horn sounded, the Predators possessed 62 points and their 11th victory in the last 13 games.

Good-bye, Columbus.

It was important for the Predators to take care of business against the Jackets. This was a game the Predators should have won, and more importantly, lets them keep pace with their Central Division opponents who have been playing outstanding hockey.

The Predators are on the road tomorrow night in Chicago, their last game before the All Star break, and this is another important tilt against a team that is just ahead of the Predators in the standings. It will be important for the Predators to play a full 60 minute game and be sound in all phases of the game.

Another challenge, and another opportunity.

My three stars:

1. Mike Fisher

2. Pekka Rinne

3. Patric Hornqvist

Predators Blow Past the Jackets 3-0

The Nashville Predators looked to continue their mastery over the Columbus Blue Jackets as the Central Division foes met at Nationwide Arena. The last two games between these teams required some late game magic by the Predators to secure a victory, and the Predators were hoping to avoid finding themselves in such a situation again.

The Predators had Pekka Rinne in net, while the Jackets opened with Steve Mason.

The Predators welcomed Jerred Smithson back to the line up after missing several games with a knee injury, but were still without Ryan Suter, who was out with an upper body injury.

The game opened like a typical Predators and Jackets game, with both teams up and down the ice. All that effort by both teams yielded no shots, though, until after 6 minutes had passed in the first period.

As the first period wore on, the Jackets started to assert themselves and control the puck in the Predators zone. . Their effort was rewarded with some quality scoring chances that Rinne had to turn away. On the other end of the ice, the Predators offense never seriously threatened Mason. In the first period, the Jackets out shot the Predators 13-7.

The Predators were going to have to get their legs moving and get shots on net in the second period. Letting the BJ's hang around, and more importantly, create good scoring chances, was not the way for the Predators to win this game.

The second period saw the Predators move their feet better and begin to create some chances. Their work paid off on a 2 on 1 break that saw Sergei Kostitsyn carry the puck in and draw the defense to him. He slid the puck to Marty Erat, who buried a wrist shot from inside the face off circle to make it 1-0 at 11:08 of the second period.

The Predators went on the power play with Derek Dorsett in the box for goaltender interference, and the transgression was costly for the BJ's. Marty Erat got the puck to Mike Fisher at the side of the net through traffic and Fisher had an easy tap in to make it 2-0 at 13:11.

The second period ended with the Predators playing a much better 20 minutes of hockey and a 2-0 lead. They out shot the BJ's 10-7.

This period was a blueprint for the Predators success against a desperate team like the BJ's: get the puck deep, forecheck aggressively, and get shots on net. Oh yeah, play solid defense and limit the Jackets chances.

It was up to the Predators to execute this game plan in the final 20 minutes, because everyone knew the BJ's would have a push in the third period. For the Predators, there was the hope they would not any late game magic to secure a win.

The Jackets had their expected push to start the third period. They kept the Predators back on their heels, and aided by a questionable hooking call on Francis Buillon, bombarded the Predators net to challenge the lead. Pekka Rinne made some huge stops to keep the Jackets off the board, but the Predators were going to need to create some offensive pressure to counter the effort they faced.

Let me re-phrase that: Pekka Rinne made some amazing saves to keep the Jackets off the board. Sprawling, athletic saves that frustrated the BJ's.

To get an idea of how the Predators were being dominated in the third period- and how good Rinne was- they were out shot 17-2 through the first 11 minutes. They Predators offense was non-existent to this point in the third, and if this had been any other team than the BJ's, the Predators would have been in considerable trouble.

Late in the period, Sergei Kostitsyn was called for slashing, and the Jackets pulled Mason for the extra attacker. Off a face off, the puck was near the boards at the face off circle when Shea Weber cleared the puck down the ice and into the empty net to give the Predators a 3-0 lead and the game.

It feels good to win the game, but the Predators were horrid in the third period. The Predators were out shot 18-8, and they spent that period letting the BJ's dictate the play and attack the net at will. Did the Predators play down to their opponent? Or did they relax with the lead and expect Rinne play his usual outstanding game?

Either way, the Predators were lucky to survive the third period, and playing like they did in that period will more often than not result in a loss.

To be sure, this was a much needed win, and it's good to bank the 2 points. There were some positives that the Predators can draw upon as they head toward their game with Chicago. The fact is that this team cannot revert back to playing 20 minutes of hockey and expect to win most games.

Kudos to Rinne for a strong game and his 24th career shutout.

The win gives the Predators 58 points, good for 6th place in the West and 3 ahead of Los Angeles, which plays later tonight.

With the Blackhawks coming to town, the Predators will have to play a full 60 minutes of hockey.

Or they will be blown away.

My three stars:

1. Pekka Rinne

2. Marty Erat

3. Mike Fisher

Predators Clobber Columbus 4-1, Clinch Playoff Spot

The start of the Nashville Predators game with the Columbus Blue Jackets was delayed 15 minutes because of a balky pane of glass. That delay just postponed the inevitable as the Predators won their 17th straight game on home ice over the Blue Jackets by a score of 4-1 and in the process clinched a playoff berth.

This was not an inconsequential game for the Predators, because if they had lost this game and the game tomorrow night at St. Louis, and Dallas won out, the Predators would be on the outside looking in when the playoffs rolled around. Would the Predators have the focus and the drive to do what was necessary against a team that always played them tough?

The answer was a resounding "yes".

Pekka Rinne got the start as expected and was stellar in net. Columbus outshot the Predators by a wide margin, 45-25. Yes, many of these shots were from the perimeter, but Rinne was called upon to make several solid saves. He was spectacular at the start of the second period, a period that saw the BJ's outshoot the Predators 22-7. Early in the second, Rinne made several amazing saves to hold Columbus off the board.

The Predators opened the scoring at 6:00 of the first period when Mike Fisher made a strong drive through the Jackets defense. He split two defenders on the rush, drew the defense to him and Columbus netminder Steve Mason to the post. He slid the puck to Patric Hornqvist driving into the low slot and Hornqvist had an easy tap in for the Predators first goal and the only goal of the period.

Rinne's strong play held the Jackets off the board and the Predators rallied around the Finnish wall.

Matt Halsichuk scored at 1:48 of the second with a nice move that got Mason moving from side to side. Halischuk slipped the shot from the slot under the pad of Mason to stretch the lead to 2-0. Halischuk continues to play well in both zones and has earned the confidence of the coaches with his play. It is nice to see him rewarded with his 4th goal of the season.

The Predators stretched the lead to 3-0 just 54 seconds later as Patric Hornqvist intercepted a lazy clear by the Jackets defenese and rifled a backhander over the shoulder of Mason.This was Hornqvist's 21st goal of the season, and his play continues to be full tilt every night. I have been impressed with the effort he brings to the ice every night.

Derek Brassard finally solved Rinne with a wicked slap shot at 18:38 of the second period. This goal was a result of a failed clear by the Predators defense, and cost Rinne his shutout.

The Predators regained the 3 goal lead at 12:25 of the third period as Sergei Kostitsyn notched his 23rd goal of the year off a pass from Patric Hornqvist. The pass caromed off the leg of Kostitsyn past Mason, and after a video review, it was deemed a good goal.

Game, set, and match.

Early on, when the Predators jumped out to the 3-0 lead, you could look at the faces of the BJ's and just see the "oh no, here we go again" expression. The fact that the BJ's haven't won in Nashville since April 2006 is in their heads. They look as if they expect something bad to happen when they step on the ice in Nashville.

It does.

Sure, the Jackets were without Rick Nash and Kris Russell, but the Predators are dealing with a myriad of injuries as well. This game was a matter of "want to". Who wanted to do what was necessary to win the game? Who had the better compete level? Who would do what it would take to win the game?

In all phases, that was the Predators.

With the win, the Predators record is 44-26-11, good for 99 points and 4th in the West. With a win tomorrow in St. Louis, the Predators could finish the year in 4th place and secure home ice advantage.

More importantly, the Predators have clinched a spot in the playoffs. Now it is time to get the first round monkey off their backs.

There is a lot more hockey to be played, boys. It's now time to bring a new level of effort for the playoffs.

Time to clobber some more opponents.

My three stars:

1. Pekka Rinne

2. Patric Hornqvist

3. Matt Halischuk

Nashville Blown Away by the BJ's

Points in the Western Conference race are precious. Every game becomes a must win game with the standings jammed with teams competing for playoff positioning. Unfortunately, the Nashville Predators don't seem to grasp the necessity of winning games right now, as they stunk in a  4-0  loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets.

The two teams engaged in a tight checking scoreless affair for two periods as Pekka Rinne and Steve Mason were solid in their respective nets. It would all fall apart for the Predators in the third period, however.

Rick Nash opened the scoring in the third period at 1:11 when he drove past Kevin Klein and poked the puck past Rinne to give the Jackets a 1-0 lead. The way the Predators were playing, one had the sick feeling that this goal would be enough.

It was.

The BJ's would make it 2-0 at 4:29 as Rinne had a mis-communication with his defenseman, Alexander Sulzer. Both went behind the Nashville net to play the puck with Nahville a man down. Neither played the puck and it bounced out the other side to Matt Calvert who stuffed the puck home into an empty net.

The BJ's would make it 3-0 as Antoine Vermette was left alone in front of the Nashville net and he had all day to jam a puck past Rinne.

Rick Nash scored at 19:10 on the power play to make it 4-0.

The Predator offense was invisible in this game, and that is extremely disappointing and unacceptable. The Predators did not do the tough things to win this game. They lost board battles all night; they did not put any traffic in front of Mason; and there was a general lack of toughness, both physical and mental.

In a word, the Predators did not have the desire to win this game. It showed in the third, in crunch time. This is a sign of mental toughness- or lack thereof. This team has shown the annoying habit of fading in crunch time.

Keep it up, and you will be on the outside looking in come playoff time.

It's time for this team to get some snarl, to play smart but with an edge. Right now, this team seems too content to sit back and absorb the punches from their opponent. The Predators have to be in attack mode to be successful.

There was no attack tonight.

And you were embarrassed and embarrassing.

You now have 22 games left. You are going to have to win, by my estimate, 15 of these games to make the playoffs.

It's time to understand how important these games are now. It's time to play with some edge and some desperation. It's time to stop making inferior opponents look great.

My three stars:

1. Rick Nash

2. Steve Mason

3. Matt Calvert

Big Brother Predators Bop Little Brother Blue Jackets 4-1

If you have ever had a little brother, you know how annoying they can be. They get in your stuff, they are a constant source of irritation, and occasionally, they can get the better of their big brother. Once big brother has had enough, they usually bop them rather forcefully and they are once again put in their place.

Tonight at the Bridgestone Arena, the little brother Blue Jackets were irritating for a period, taking a 1-0 lead over the Predators going into intermission. The BJ's scored on the first shot of the game, as R.J. Umberger tipped in a shot from the point by Marc Methot. The Predators defense was caught flat footed and left Umberger alone in front of the net, and he was able to re-direct the shot past Nashville's Pekka Rinne just 37 seconds into the contest.

After the first intermission, big brother woke up and started to exert their will over the BJ's. I would suspect that Head Parent  Coach Barry Trotz had a few choice words for his charges when he took them to their room. Whatever was said, it worked, as the Predators started to dominate the contest.

Shea Weber tied the game with a blast from the point with Nick Spaling and Jerred Smithson screening in front of Jackets goaltender Steve Mason. Mason never saw the shot until it hit the back of the net at 2:59 of the second.

The Predators continued to put pressure on the BJ's in the offensive zone, and their effort was rewarded at 6:09 of the second as Nick Spaling was able to find a puck at the side of the crease and knock home a rebound of a Weber shot from the point. Mason was able to make the initial save, but could not control the rebound. Taking a page from Patric Hornqvist's book, Spaling fought into the hard area at the net and was able to slap home the rebound past an out of position Mason.

Hornqvist was not going to let Spaling have all the fun at the net, as he lifted a puck over the shoulder of Mason while being knocked to the ice. Hornqvist's goal came on the power play at 16:50 of the second with Fedor Tytutin in the box for holding. This goal showed the strength of Hornqvist, as he was being hit and knocked to the ice. He still had the strength and ability to lift the puck and find the back of the net.

With a 3-1 lead going into the third period, everyone knew that the pesky little brother Jackets would come out pressing, and it was going to be important for the Predators to answer. They thwarted several BJ scoring chances with some strong goaltending from Rinne and solid defense in front of him. The Predators rarely gave up a secondary scoring chance and did a good job of slowing the BJ rush through the neutral zone.

The Predators iced the win as Colin Wilson ripped a shot from just inside the face off circle. The shot beat Mason, and it  hit the crossbar and appeared to go in. The officials did not rule it a goal, but Sergei Kostitsyn was crashing the net and tapped the puck into an open crease while it was lying on the ice in the blue paint at 5:53 of the period.

The Predators spent the remainder of the game throttling the BJ's offensive effort and notched their second win in three contests against little brother Columbus.

For the contest, Rinne stopped 19 of 20 shots.

This victory kept Columbus winless in Nashville since April of 2006.

This win was not without a price, however. The Predators lost Cal O'Reilly mid-way of the third period with a broken fibula. Once again, the injury bug has bitten the Predators hard.

After a first period that found the Predators on their heels for the most, they came out and played solid, Predator hockey for the next two periods. They shot the puck and challenged Mason, and when he has to move side to side and track pucks through traffic, he is average. Tonight, the Predators offense made him look average.

More importantly, the Predators aggressive forecheck and solid defense in the neutral zone and in the defensive zone limited the Jackets offense. The Jackets top line of Rick Nash ( 1 SOG), Derick Brassard (1 SOG), and Antoine Vermette (3 SOG), were limited to 5 shots on goal and were held in check all night by the Predators. This is the key to any Predators win, moreso against the Jackets.

The Predators will now embark on a west coast swing, and it is going to be essential that they bring this kind of effort every night. This is a team that is built for the grind of the regular season, built for the wars that are the Western Conference contests.

Skate like this, shoot the puck and crash the net, and play solid defense, and you will continue to play the role of big brother.

My three stars:

1. Shea Weber

2. Nick Spaling

3. Pekka Rinne

Predators Beat Blue Jackets 4-3 in a Shootout

The Nashville Predators journeyed to the Nationwide Arena once again for a divisional tilt with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Unlike their first foray into enemy territory, the Predators effort in this contest was decidedly better than the first meeting with the Jackets. The Predators took the game to a shootout, defeating the Blue Jackets 4-3 behind Pekka Rinne's outstanding goaltending.

The Predators decided that they were going to crash the net and challenge Jackets netminder Steve Mason, something that they did not do in the first meeting. The Predators shot the puck and crashed the net and generally created havoc in front of Mason, making him scramble to make saves and making his life difficult.

Nashville scored first at 17:02 of the first period when Colin Wilson was the beneficiary of a beautiful saucer pass from Cal O'Reilly from behind the net. Wilson was crashing the crease and lifted a shot over the shoulder of Mason to give the Predators a 1-0 lead.

Anoine Vermette tied the game at 7:11 when the Predators lost defensive zone coverage and allowed Vermette to break in alone on the backside of the coverage. Marty Erat and Shea Weber lost the coverage, and Rinne was rightfully livid with his defense after the score.

Nashville would regain the lead at 16:29 of the second period as Marty Erat found Sergei Kostitsyn braking to the net. He got the pass to SK74 in traffic, and he was able to control the puck and lift it over Mason's shoulder.

Nashville would give up the equalizer at 2:01 of the third period as Kris Russell would get his first goal of the season. That goal would energize the Blue Jackets as their forecheck picked up and created turnovers and put the Predators back on their heels.

The Jackets pressure would pay off as Rick Nash walked in on net and put a shot in on Rinne, who made a great toe save. The puck was caromed off the skate of Colin Wilson, who missed the clear at the side of the net. Antoine Vermette, following the play, tapped the puck into the open net to give the Jackets their first lead of the night.

It was disappointing to once again see the Predators fail to hold a lead in the third period. Having played the previous night, there was concern about how much gas Nashville would have in the tank. More importantly, would this team have the mental toughness to mount a comeback against a tough divisional opponent?

That question was answered at 11:38 of the period as the Predators were crowding the crease and Kevin Klein unleashed a rocket that went low along the ice. Mason never saw the shot until it went into the back of the net. Tie game, question resoundingly answered.

The game remained scoreless for the rest of the third period and the overtime session, but it was not for lack of effort as both Rinne and Mason made some big saves.

Once again, the Predators were going to a shootout, their sixth of the season.

Columbus elected to have Nashville shoot first, and Mason got a piece of Cal O'Reilly's shot. Rinne answered by stopping Jakub Voracek.

Nashville's second shooter, Steve Sullivan absolutely undressed Mason, faking to his backhand and causing Mason to slide completely out of the net. Sully drew the puck back and slid it into the net with a gentle forehand shove.

Rinne stoned Rick Nash and Mason stopped Marty Erat.

With the game on the line, Rinne faced his nemesis tonight, Antoine Vermette. Rinne ate up his shot, and the Predators had the all important second point.

After a four game losing streak, the Predators have now won two in a row.

The tenor of this game was decidedly different than the first contest. Nashville skated better and the forwards were not going to be denied the dirty areas in front of the crease. Two of their three goals came from shots in the hard area, with players paying the price to establish position and challenge Mason.

Kudos to Pekka Rinne. This win was squarely on his shoulders, as he made some outstanding saves. Rinne is a beast in net and is playing with confidence. His game is on, and it gives the Predators an opportunity for victory every night. The three goals that were allowed were goals for which I do not fault Rinne.

The win feels good, but there are still holes in the Predators game that have to be plugged. There are still lapses in the defensive coverage that one would not expect with the D that Nashville puts on the ice. There are still times that the offense disappears.

The win is positive. The mistakes have to be corrected. Take the positives and build on them. You played a very good team tonight and you did what it took to win the game.

Play Predator hockey, and you will see the wins add up.

My three stars:

1. Pekka Rinne

2. Antoine Vermette

3. Steve Sullivan