NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Was it an eerie revenge story for Nashville? In an ending very reminiscent of their Jan. 20th meeting against the same team, the Predators (45-21-8) edged the Canadiens (46-20-8) after Filip Forsberg's marker gave the Predators a 3-2 overtime victory.
SLAP SHOTS
Fast-Paced Contest Early
On a night where the goaltending battle between the two clubs was the bigger story, both Montreal and Nashville elected to shoot first and ask questions later. Throwing a combined 26 shots at net over the first period, the Predators came out with a 1-0 lead over the Canadiens.
The game had been touted as a fine matchup between Carey Price and Pekka Rinne. Through twenty minutes of action, it didn't disappoint. Both goaltenders had their fair share of work with amazing sequences of stops on both ends of the ice.
"I think they both made some unreal saves with their backs against the plates a couple of times," said Predators defenseman Mattias Ekholm. "They're probably the two best goalies in the league and they showed it tonight again."
Although Price allowed the only goal of the period, nobody could fault him for doing so. At nearly the midway point through the period, Ekholm sliced through two Canadiens defenders, was tripped up on the play and scored a goal from his knees to give Nashville that all-important first goal.
"I didn't see it coming," said Ekholm. "The bounce came at me in the neutral zone. The middle was open so I was just waiting for our guys to get out of the zone. I got in and the rest was pretty much a blackout. I don't even know. I flipped it up, got down on my knees and then somehow it ended up in the net. It was a nice feeling for sure."
Montreal had not allowed a goal in nearly a week's time. Ekholm's goal not only broke Price's shutout streak, but gave Nashville a first period lead for the first time in over a month.
"It's huge to get the first [goal], especially against a team like that," said Predators defenseman Roman Josi. "The last couple of games -- a lot of games actually -- we didn't get the first one, so it's huge for us to get the first one and play with a lead. It just makes the game a little easier if you have the lead right away."
Reversal Of Fortunes
As good as the first period was for the Predators, it went completely against their favor in the middle stanza. Nashville came out with the same energy it had to open the game, yet Montreal weathered the early storm and put the Predators to work.
The Canadiens forced Nashville back into its own zone for the majority of the second, seeing an early goal off a Predators miscue by Montreal forward Brendan Gallagher knot the game at one only 2:28 into the period.
Nearly 10 minutes later, another Nashville mistake in its own zone would give the Canadiens their only lead of the game.
Battling behind the net, Shea Weber attempted to chip the puck to Josi, but instead found an awaiting P.A. Parenteau. In the blink of an eye, Parenteau sent it to a wide open David Desharnais, who -- while on Rinne's doorstep -- sent a screamer to the back of the net.
Nashville knew it wasn't going to be easy goings against one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference, but allowing two goals and losing the lead in a span of twenty minutes probably wasn't part of their master game plan.
"We knew it was going to be a tough game," said Predators head coach Peter Laviolette. "[The Canadiens] have had an excellent year and played well tonight. Our guys are confident we can be successful even when we are down one in the third."
Heavyweight Finish
This game had one-goal finish written all over it.
In a lesson never to doubt a heavyweight matchup between two of the leagues best teams, Nashville burned its only timeout in the early minutes of the third period when it seemed apparent that the Predators still couldn't catch the speed and tenacity of the Canadiens.
With just under eight minutes gone in the final 20 minutes, Nashville found the equalizer it needed in a strange shot from Ryan Ellis that bounced over the shoulder of Price.
"You just have to give the puck a chance to go in," said Josi. "[Ellis] threw it there and we got a lucky bounce. We didn't get much of those during the slump, but if you work hard you're going to get those bounces."
In the end, both teams would need that extra frame to decide the victor.
What was most intriguing was how the game ended. Forsberg drew a tripping call 1:09 into the extra frame on the player who scored the overtime game-winner the last go-around between these two teams: P.K. Subban.
As Subban watched from the box, Nashville setup the revenge tally as Forsberg drove the puck to the back of the net to give the Predators their first winning streak in a month.
"It obviously came down to overtime and a power play," said Ellis. "It was nice to see us capitalize on that power play opportunity. It was a great play and a great finish by Filip. We knew it was a big game. They're right up there with us. We're just fighting for our spot and so are they."
THREE STARS
Filip Forsberg -- It was only fitting for Forsberg to get the game-winner. After being tripped up on a possible breakaway opportunity in overtime, Forsberg finished off one of his best nights on the ice in a month with a power play marker past Price.
Pekka Rinne -- Against a well-oiled Canadiens team, Rinne stopped chance after chance from their high-powered lineup. His 27 saves on 29 shots were good enough to give Nashville the win in overtime.
Carey Price -- There's no question that Price is one of the two best goaltenders in the entire league. Against arguably the other half of that two tonight, Price stopped plenty of quality Nashville chances finishing with 28 saves on 31 shots and the overtime loss.
