Power Play: Nashville wins fourth in a row, beats Winnipeg 3-1
Nashville, Tenn. -- Collecting their fourth win in a row, the Nashville Predators (37-12-6) benefited from two power play goals and a three-point night from captain Shea Weber to defeat the Winnipeg Jets (28-19-10) by a score of 3-1 in front of a near-capacity crowd at Bridgestone Arena.
Dodging a bullet
Already down Ryan Ellis and Mattias Ekholm, the Predators dodged a bullet with their hurting defensive corp. Shea Weber turned out to be a gametime decision against the Winnipeg Jets, and ended up starting the game in place of recently called-up defenseman Taylor Aronson from the Milwaukee Admirals.
Aronson's scratch wasn't announced until right before the Predators took the ice for the singing of the anthems and dropping the puck. Even so, Nashville has had quite a rough go for its blue line as of late. Losing Weber against the surging Jets would have been a tough blow.
"I think the guys have really stepped with the increased minutes," said Predators defenseman Seth Jones. "Bitetto has done an awesome job and my partner Volchenkov. So has Bartley. Everyone is kind of stepping in different roles and definitely getting three, four or five more minutes a game. I think we're playing great with solid defense right now."
Regardless of what the issues were leading to Aronson being called up to the team, it was business as usual once Weber was on the ice. He opened the scoring for Nashville on a power play goal midway through the first period with one of his patented slapshots.
Weber would finish the game with 26:12 time on ice, one goal, two assists and four shots on net.
"It's huge," said Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne. "Everybody knows his shot. One shot and boom it's one nothing. It goes without saying, he's a key player for us. Our captain. It was nice to have him out there for sure. It didn't really phase him. You couldn't tell anything is wrong. He was just himself."
The Mighty Filip Forsberg
It's been the worst kept secret all season that Filip Forsberg has turned out pretty well for the Predators after being traded from the Washington Capitals two seasons ago. In his rookie campaign with Nashville, the Swedish phenom had 48 points coming into the game against the Jets, needing one goal to set a new franchise record for goals scored by a rookie.
Collecting a power play goal in the second period plus an assist on Weber's opening marker, Forsberg broke that rookie franchise record and also became the first Predators player to reach 50 points on the season. His goal was a well-placed shot high above Pavelec. The accuracy Forsberg displays is far beyond anyone that's played for Nashville in quite some time.
"It was pretty open to be honest," said Forsberg. "[Josi] kind of pulled the whole [penalty kill] over to one side and just gave it to me. I had all the time in the world, basically, to pick my corner. I got a really good screen from their defenseman. It was a pretty easy goal to score."
Forsberg is on pace for nearly 75 points this season and scoring 0.91 points per game. That would be the most by a Nashville player since former Predators forward Paul Kariya notched 76 in the 2006-07 campaign.
Nashville has needed this level of offense for quite some time. With the offensive output coming from a 20 year old rookie, the Predators could be in store for a bright future here in the years to come.
"I can't complain about really anything," said Forsberg. "The team has been playing great all year. I'm just happy I've been able to contribute to that."
First to 80
It's time to say it: the Nashville Predators mean business. There's not going to be a dip in their performance. There's not a magical shoe waiting to drop for this team. They are here to stay and could be dangerous come time for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Against a team in the Jets, who had just pulled off a blockbuster trade one day prior, Nashville controlled the majority of play throughout the first two period before Winnipeg stormed back. Including killing off a lengthy two-man advantage halfway through the third period, the Predators still won decisively with strong goaltending, defense and timely goals.
"I don't know if it was a message so much as it was a really good hockey game," said Predators head coach Peter Laviolette. "We knew [Winnipeg] was going to play hard. They're in a position where they are fighting. They're trying to make the most of everything that is available to them. Those are good games for us to get into."
Nashville is the first team in the NHL to hit the 80 point mark. With 27 games remaining and needing just about a third of those to clinch a playoff spot, the Predators are seemingly in good shape for the time being.
Pekka Rinne -- Is there a limit to the number of times that Rinne can pull off one amazing save after another? Stopping 32 of 33 Winnipeg shots on the night, Rinne collected his 32nd win of the season for the league-leading Predators.
Filip Forsberg -- The rookie phenom was at it again, this time victimizing the Jets with his deadly skill. Scoring a power play goal and collecting an assist as well, Forsberg broke Nashville's rookie record for goals scored in a season and bumped his team lead in points to 50.
Shea Weber -- Could Weber have had his version of the famed Michael Jordan "flu game" tonight? Nearly a gametime decision after missing practice earlier in the day, Weber opened up the scoring with a power play goal and added two assists to have a three-point night.
