A flurry of first period scoring by the Oilers doomed the Preds despite goals by Johansen, Forsberg.
The Nashville Predators opened their five game western road swing tonight against the Edmonton Oilers. The Preds were needing a bounce back performance after starting the season 3-5-1 and losing their last game against the Washington Capitals.
The Oilers may have started a little slow, but the team was riding the momentum of a four game winning streak coming into tonight's matchup. Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl led the team in points, and Edmonton's power play has been exceptional to start the season.
Head coach John Hynes adjusted the Predators forward lines again tonight, returning recent healthy scratch Kiefer Sherwood to the second line with Nino Niederreiter and Ryan Johansen. Eeli Tolvanen, another player who has been a healthy scratch in recent games, started on the fourth line with Michael McCarron and Cole Smith.
The goaltenders tonight were Juuse Saros and Jack Campbell.
Game Recap
The game started as well as Nashville could have hoped as Mattias Ekholm tapped a rebound past Campbell just :34 seconds into the game. The Oilers came back to tie the game four minutes later on a transition play resulting in a goal by Evander Kane at 4:14.
Kane and Draisaitl combined for a second Edmonton goal from the slot to give the Oilers the lead at 7:25. Immediately, a Predators turnover in the neutral zone and the quick transition play for Edmonton earned a third goal just :16 seconds later. The momentum shift was palpable, and John Hynes called a quick timeout to help Nashville regroup.
The situation became more dire for Nashville as Kiefer Sherwood headed to the penalty box for cross checking halfway through the opening period. The Oilers power play, second best in the league, went to work against Nashville's solid penalty kill. The Oilers got one shot on goal, but Nashville kept Edmonton from adding to their lead.
The penalty kill success seemed to settle Nashville a bit after the Oilers' quick three goals, but Edmonton ran the Predators ragged in the offensive zone and Nashville gave up a back side goal to Derek Ryan. The Oilers gave up one quick goal early in the first, but finished the period up 4-1.
The second period started with early chances for the Predators, but the attempts didn't find their way into the back of the net. Any momentum the Preds hoped to build in the second period was interrupted by an interference call on Alexandre Carrier which sent the Oilers back on the power play. Juuse Saros came up big, and the Preds managed to kill the penalty.
Kiefer Sherwood headed back to the box for tripping in an attempt to prevent a two on none. This time Connor McDavid made the Preds pay for the infraction, and the Oilers went up 5-1 at 7:26.
Nashville was given a chance on the man advantage and finally answered back with a power play goal of their own at 9:28 on a tip in by Ryan Johansen.
A questionable hit on Mattias Ekholm drew the ire of the Preds. The ensuing scrum resulted in a another power play opportunity for the Oilers as Michael McCarron took it a step too far and sat for two minutes in the penalty box. Nashville's kill prevailed, and the period ended with a score of 5-2.
The final period started with a flurry of offensive pressure from Nashville that finally paid off as Filip Forsberg drilled a shot past Campbell at 4:51 bring the Preds within two scores.
A board scrum between Ekholm and Nurse sent Ekholm to the penalty box for roughing. Leon Draisaitl, a frequent nemesis of the Preds, cashed in on the man advantage at 8:55.
An interference call gave the Preds a late chance on the power play, and the Preds went with the two man advantage by pulling Saros. Niederreiter quickly sent a slot shot past Campbell bringing the Preds back within two.
Nashville went empty net after Niederreiter's goal, but the Oilers recovered a loose puck, and Evander Kane earned a hat trick on the empty net goal. Frustration over a hit on Carrier and over the game boiled over into a late game melee.
McCarron committed a heartfelt crosscheck once the puck dropped giving the Oilers a late game power play, but mercifully the final buzzer sounded with a final score of 7-4.
Game Notes
1. Nashville got flummoxed early and couldn't find a way to interrupt the Oilers' momentum. After the early goal, Edmonton tipped the ice back in their favor and Nashville didn't have a response. That issue is partly due to execution, but mostly reflects a mental toughness challenge Nashville needs to overcome.
2. Right now Nashville has too many players not performing up to par. There were a lot of factors that went into this loss against the Oilers, including defensive lapses, but this was another game where the Preds didn't get top performances from top players.
3. While the Preds played better as the game wore on, this loss does nothing to reassure fans that this team can snap out of the mental fog and poor execution they've exhibited so far this season. The team's inability to put together a strong, sixty minute performance becomes even more concerning after tonight's game. What will it take for the Predators to turn this around? John Hynes and this team need to figure this out - and quickly.