A tired Predators team held on with excellent goaltending by Kevin Lankinen and goals from a confident Cody Glass and Yakov Trenin.
Tonight the Nashville Predators welcomed the Columbus Blue Jackets to Bridgestone Arena for their second game of a back to back. Last night the Preds pulled out a 2-1 win over the Calgary Flames and looked to continue earning important points to keep themselves in early playoff conversations.
The 13-28-2 Blue Jackets also played last night against the New York Rangers, a game Columbus dropped 3-1. Tonight Predators fans recognized two former Preds now in Columbus jerseys - Matthieu Olivier and Erik Gudbranson. Patrik Laine and Johnny Gaudreau entered the game leading Columbus in goals, and Daniil Tarasov got the start in net.
After last night's success, the Predators kept much of tonight's lineup the same with the exception of starting Kevin Lankinen in net tonight in place of Juuse Saros.
Game Recap
Both teams needed the first few minutes of the opening period to get the blood flowing and find their legs after playing in back to backs. Columbus caught the first break as Tommy Novak headed to the box at 7:19 for a tripping call, and the Blue Jackets went on the power play. Nashville's penalty kill played aggressively, and Novak exited the box two minutes later with no damage done.
Columbus gifted the man advantage to Nashville just a few minutes later as Andrew Peeke was called for a trip. The Preds weren't able to capitalize on the power play chance against a team that has struggled to kill penalties. The teams exchanged possession as the period wound down, but neither group could find the back of the net. The first period ended with no score and Nashville with the slight edge in shots on goal 13-9.
The Blue Jackets evened up the shots on net early in the second period, but Kevin Lankinen handled the puck easily. The Predators finally found their offensive groove at 5:42 as Cody Glass got the puck past Tarasov with a shot from the circle.
Nashville earned their second power play chance at 6:19 as Kirill Marchenko committed a high stick. The best early chance on the power play belonged to the Blue Jackets with a shorthanded chance that Lankinen managed to corral. The Preds struggled to get set up and didn't record a shot on goal for the two minutes.
Again, the teams exchanged power play chances as Matt Duchene headed to the box at 10:59 for a hooking call. The Blue Jackets pressured Lankinen with multiple chances but couldn't score before time on the man advantage expired.
Nashville's time in the offensive zone paid off as Roman Josi passed the puck to a waiting Yakov Trenin for Trenin's sixth goal of the season at 16:55. The period ended with Nashville up 2-0 after forty minutes.
The third period opened with two quick, impressive back to back saves by Lankinen. Filip Forsberg took his turn in the sin bin for a hook. Columbus spent the entire first minute of their power play opportunity peppering Lankinen with shots, but it wasn't until the seconds after Forsberg's infraction that Gustav Nyquist got the puck past Lankinen to get The Blue Jackets on the board.
Yet again, the teams exchanged power plays as Tim Berni headed to the Blue Jackets penalty box for a trip at 11:15. The Predators' struggle continued on the man advantage, and they couldn't generate pressure on Tarasov in the two minutes.
Kevin Lankinen had perhaps his biggest save of the game with just 3:21 remaining in the game as he smothered a rebound chance before the Blue Jackets could tie the game. Nashville kept the puck in front of Tarasov as time wound down and Nashville held on for a close 2-1 win.
Game Notes
1. The Predators are still looking for one extra cute pass. Net front traffic and pucks on net have been a recipe for success for the Preds offensively, but lately they are falling back into looking for one more pass to set up a too perfect play.
2. Cody Glass is flourishing with Forsberg and Duchene. This is Glass's second game to play with those two, and he is reaping the benefits of playing with great line mates and with confidence.
3. Nashville needs to take a closer look at what isn't working on the power play. The Preds not only didn't score on the power play, they didn't generate much offensive pressure with their opportunities. The team needs the offense that the power play provides if they want to win against more offensively minded opponents down the road.