The Preds headed into the game looking to rebound from a rough loss against Vancouver on Tuesday.
Things didn’t quite get started on time, as the pre-game show had messed up the ice. The poor start continued as a puck pinballed off two players, off Juuse Saros’s back, and into the net just 1:31 in. The Preds struggled to respond, and a couple of minutes later Filip Forsberg tripped Sean Couturier. Saros and the penalty killers were up to the task, but the Preds weren’t able to build much momentum.
A brief offensive flurry for the Preds around halfway through the period didn’t go anywhere, and Philadelphia pushed back. That drew a better response from Nashville, with Michael McCarron and his linemates making Flyers goalie Samuel Ersson work for a few saves.
The Preds got a power-play opportunity of their own late in the period, and Saros immediately had to make a great save on Scott Laughton. Nashville didn’t manage to get set up for most of their time with the skater advantage, and weren’t successful once they finally did. The period ended with no real further chances for either team.
Ryan McDonagh started the second period off by taking a penalty, but Cole Smith got the Preds on the board with a beautifully-placed shorthanded goal at 1:05 of the second. The Preds were able to kill the rest of the penalty and kept some momentum and energy as they returned to 5v5 play. Unfortunately, McDonagh took another penalty less than two minutes after getting out of the box from the last one, and this time Couturier scored.
Phil Tomasino promptly got it back, on the next shift, tying the game 2-2 at 5:24. They continued to press, eventually drawing a penalty. Roman Josi appeared to score on the power play, with Saros heading to the bench on a delayed second penalty to give the Preds a two-skater advantage, but the goal was waved off as being played with a high stick.
Couturier headed to the box for tripping, and the Preds were unable to score on either the 5-on-3 or the ensuing 5-on-4. Travis Konecny had a strong shorthanded chance near the end of the special teams time, and Ryan O’Reilly almost extended it with a play that barely managed to be offside instead of a too-many-men call.
Instead, shortly after the teams returned to even strength, Yakov Trenin checked Morgan Frost headfirst into the glass and was assessed–after an extended review of what was initially called as a minor penalty for an illegal check to the head–a major penalty and game misconduct for boarding. Frost stayed down for a long time and had to be helped off the ice. Luke Evangelista served the major for Nashville.
Frost was back on the ice late in the power play, which was good to see. The Preds worked diligently killing the penalty, until they got a reprieve with just under a minute and a half left in the boarding major as Cam Atkinson slashed Smith’s stick in half. Owen Tippett got a shorthanded chance in late in the Preds’ abbreviated power play, but Saros had the save.
Marc Staal finished the period off by taking a penalty against Kiefer Sherwood with 16 seconds to go, but the Preds were unable to score either before or after intermission. The Preds continued to press as the third period unfolded, but Saros had to make a massive save on an Atkinson breakaway. Philadelphia found some pushback, and play went back and forth as the period continued.
There were some hostilities–a late hit against Tommy Novak, and a retaliatory hit from McCarron–as the third period wound down. Before things could unravel further, Colton Sissons made a great pass to set up Tomasino for a goal that gave the Preds their first lead of the night at 15:59. They buckled down to hold on to the lead, and managed, with Gustav Nyquist scoring a buzzer-beating empty-netter.
Ryan O’Reilly left the final shift in discomfort, so that’ll be something to keep an eye on.