The Preds got out to a great start early, with Roman Josi going end to end to score his 20th of the year just 31 seconds into the game. As with their last few games, the question was whether the Preds would be able to keep it up. This time, they managed it–barely.
The Blues got a power play moments after Josi’s goal, as Colton Sissons took a hooking penalty, but Nashville was able to kill it off. The Blues continued to press, though, and Brandon Saad tied the game 1-1 at 7:27, off a beautiful passing play. While Lawrence Feloney and Andrew Brunette debated a challenge, the Preds ultimately opted not to risk it, and play resumed.
Jason Zucker was almost able to get it right back on a smart breakaway, but fumbled the puck at the last minute. Nashville continued to attack, with multiple players peppering Jordan Binnington with shots, before the Blues countered. At 14:38, Ryan O’Reilly and his former teammate Torey Krug took coincidental slashing minors.
Again the Blues continued to press 4-on-4, crashing the net and keeping Juuse Saros very busy tracking the play, and kept doing it once O’Reilly and Krug were released. Jake Neighbours rang iron with under a minute to go, with Saros entirely out of position to make the save; thank goodness for the goalpost. The Preds escaped to intermission with the score still tied.
Thirty seconds into the second period, Filip Forsberg drew a slashing penalty and then scored on the ensuing power play, as Saad sat in the sin bin. Just over a minute after Saad’s penalty, and considerably less after Forsberg’s goal, Kiefer Sherwood got caught cross-checking Krug and the Blues got another power play of their own.
O’Reilly and Spencer Stastney combined for a shorthanded two-on-one, but sadly Binnington was able to make the save. The Preds got back in time to help manage the penalty kill, and then went back on the offensive. Jordan Kyrou had a fantastic counterattack on the breakaway that forced Saros to make an even better save, and the Blues swarmed back in to take advantage of the opportunity Kyrou had created.
Another long sequence from St. Louis broken by brief counterstrikes from Nashville culminated in an Alex Carrier high-sticking penalty and another power play for the Blues. The Preds’ penalty kill got some good work in, including another shorthanded odd-man rush involving a defender, and made it out the other side of the penalty with no change in score.
However, they almost immediately took another penalty, as a falling Kyrou got his head crushed between the boards and Luke Schenn. While Kyrou–who fortunately seemed all right–left the ice with a trainer for mandatory evaluation, the refs reviewed the potential major and determined that it was nothing worse than a two-minute minor.
Saros had to make some more high-frequency, high-danger saves, and the Preds had to block an awful lot of shots, but Nashville escaped the penalty kill unscathed and got a power play of their own as Alexey Toropchenko took what looked like a frustration penalty in response. After a valiant attempt by the Preds, following up on second and third chances, Anthony Beauvillier scored his first in gold with 29 seconds left in the period.
The third period began with some better play from the Preds, in that it didn’t begin with the Blues immediately building four houses and then a hotel in their defensive zone. Michael McCarron extended the Preds’ lead to 4-1 at 4:09 when he pounced on a turnover. The Blues again counterattacked, but not for long this time, as Nashville swarmed back in and the game then opened back up.
Unfortunately, a great Binnington save on a three-on-one was followed up by a smart Neighbours breakaway, making it 4-2 Preds at 6:21 of the third. That invigorated the Blues, but a pair of penalties–as Thomas took a whack at Saros and Jeremy Lauzon took exception–shifted the game again.
With 11:45 remaining, and the game still four-on-four, the Blues pulled Binnington for the extra skater. A Blues player headbutted the puck into the net, but, because it was deliberate, it didn’t count. With 26 seconds left in the 4-on-4, Pavel Buchnevich took a tripping penalty and Binnington returned to the net. Forsberg missed a fantastic chance on the power play, and the Blues came in shorthanded.
Nashville got the rest of their power play killed off, and crawled their way back into the offensive zone as the Blues staff tried to figure out when to pull Binnington again. Josi had a great wraparound chance, but Binnington sadly had the save; moments later, Kiefer Sherwood fought off three Blues players singlehanded to give the Preds a few more seconds for a change.
The Preds continued to swarm, finally closing in and maintaining sustained possession, doing their best to run out the clock without getting a whistle. With a bit under five minutes left, though, the Blues finally made it out of their defensive zone, and the TV timeout came with 4:27 remaining when the puck oh-so-mysteriously went into the netting in the Preds’ end.
Binnington headed off to the bench, and the Blues’ top unit hit the ice. Lauzon took a tripping penalty with 2:30 to go, and the Blues got the advantage of another TV timeout to regroup and plan. Kyrou scored one almost right away, getting the Blues within one with 2:15 still remaining in regulation. The Preds didn’t give up, though. Ryan McDonagh stole the puck, Forsberg tapped it into the empty net at 18:16 to tie Matt Duchene’s franchise record for goals in a season, and Binnington returned to the net.
Forsberg then took a high-sticking penalty, and with 1:09 remaining Binnington headed back out for another Blues power play. Mark Jankowski got a second empty-netter, with 36 seconds left, to let everyone unclench. Binnington once again returned to the net, and the clock ran out on an incredibly narrow win.