The Nashville Predators notched a shootout victory at Philadelphia this evening, their first win in the shootout this season after five defeats (one to Philadelphia back on November 30th). In an unconventional twist, Barry Trotz called on three defensemen in the seven-round bonus session, as Matt Cullen, Ryan Ellis & Roman Josi scored in the final three rounds to keep Nashville in it, and eventually win it.
Special teams proved critical in this game, as half of the goals tonight came via power play. Nashville took an early third-period lead thanks to a four-minute power play while the game was tied 2-2. Shea Weber blasted home the game-winner shortly thereafter, giving him a 3-point night (1 goal, 2 assists) and sending Flyers fans everywhere into a wistful melancholy, wondering what might have been if the Preds had failed to match Philly’s gargantuan offer sheet back in the summer of 2012.
Unfortunately, a Mike Fisher slashing call led to a power play goal for the Flyers later on, as Wayne Simmonds tied things back up with 1:24 to send the game to overtime.
Carter Hutton earned his second win in a row, making a Save of the Year candidate along the way, as seen above. Regardless how the rest of this season plays out for him, he’s earned himself a spot on the highlight reel for a looooooong time to come.
Next up, the 21-21-7 Predators come home to face Colorado on Saturday night, in what may be Devan Dubnyk’s debut as Nashville’s new starter.
Random Observations
- Barry Trotz had talked about the team’s need to generate more power plays, and that certainly helped the cause tonight.
- David Legwand fired six shots on net, a season high for him.
- Eric Nystrom’s goal was his first point in a month.
- It’s about time the Preds got a few goals in the shootout, as they were 1-for-19 heading into tonight./
Boxscore – Game Summary – Event Summary – Fancy Stats
Roll the video highlights…
Who was your Predator of the Game?
| Carter Hutton | 102 |
| Shea Weber | 85 |