Luke Evangelista scores in return from IR, Brady Skjei records two points in loss.
The Nashville Predators lost their third straight game Friday, falling 4-3 to the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center.
The Predators battled back from down 2-0 early to take a 3-2 lead in the second period, but Buffalo scored two unanswered to come away with the win.
Brady Skjei led the Predators with two points (1 goal, 1 assist), and Justus Annunen made 23 saves for Nashville. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 29 saves for the Sabres, who have now won two in a row.
How the Predators lined up vs. Buffalo
Forsberg-Stamkos-Marchessault
Evangelista-O'Reilly-Nyquist
Novak-Svechkov-L'Heureux
Smith-McCarron-Sissons
Josi-Barron
Skjei-Blankenburg
Wilsby-Schenn
Annunen
Murray
Extra: Jankowski (inj.), Hinostroza
IR: Lauzon
Forward Luke Evangelista was activated off of injured reserve after missing the eight games with a lower-body injury.
Goaltender Juuse Saros did not dress for the game due to illness, so the Predators called up Matt Murray from the AHL's Milwaukee Admirals to back up Annunen in net. Defenseman Kevin Gravel was reassigned to Milwaukee to clear a space for Murray on the Predators' roster.
Game Summary
The Sabres jumped out to a quick start, beating Annunen on their first shot of the game. Rasmus Dahlin fired a shot from the blue line that was tipped in by Ryan McLeod to give Buffalo a 1-0 lead at the 2:25 mark. Jiri Kulich doubled the Sabres' lead at 8:41, capitalizing on a Predators a line change and sneaking down the right side to snap a shot past Annunen to make it 2-0.
In his return to the lineup, Evangelista got the Predators on the board just over two minutes later to bring them within one. Screening Luukkonen in front of the net after an offensive zone draw, Evangelista tipped a Justin Barron shot to make it 2-1.
Nashville scored the tying goal in unorthodox fashion when Skjei lobbed a shot from the blue line that went high over the middle of the ice. Luukkonen, screened in front by Michael McCarron, lost track of the puck as it fell behind him to tie the game at 2-2.
A high-event first period for both sides gave way to a middle frame that saw Nashville take control of the pace. Tommy Novak put the Predators in front at the 2:51 mark when he got a piece of Skjei's shot from the blue line. Nashville limited Buffalo's chances for the most part in the second period, but former Predators forward Jason Zucker was able to capitalize on a rare opportunity at the 13:36 mark with a deflection past Annunen to tie the score back up at 3-3.
The Predators caught a break early in the third period, when a high stick by Kulich against Cole Smith yielded a four-minute Nashville power play. Nashville failed to register a single shot on goal during 3:20 on the man advantage, however, and Skjei was called for interference to end the power play early.
Kulich broke the tie with his second goal of the game with just over two minutes remaining in regulation, receiving a cross-ice feed from Tage Thompson and burying a shot from the face-off circle for the 4-3 final.
Key Takeaways & Notes
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Up Next
The Predators wrap up their back-to-back set Saturday with a visit to the Pittsburgh Penguins. The puck drops at PPG Paints Arena at 6 p.m. CT, and the game will be broadcast regionally on FanDuel Sports Network South and on ESPN+ for out-of-market customers in the United States.
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