The Predators have officially hit the most daunting part of their postseason. With a 5-3 loss to the Coyotes in Sunday night's Game 2, Nashville is venturing into do-or-die territory; a loss in Game 3 would put the Predators down 3-0, a hole only two teams in NHL history have dug out of.
The Predators harped on all the positives after Game 1. They outshot the Coyotes heavily and carried the play in the third period and overtime. In Game 2, they were thoroughly outplayed. The Coyotes outshot their opponent for the first time this postseason, and their players were a combined plus-20, which means Nashville's players were a combined minus-20.
Before the series, Predators coach Barry Trotz seemed to like the fact that his squad would start this round on the road. But on Sunday, they were beaten by a team that played harder, better and stronger defensively.
Nashville now heads home for two games, both of which are huge since even a split would give the Coyotes a 3-1 leading heading back to Phoenix. Home-ice advantage has meant little at times in this year's playoffs, but the Predators will need it and everything else they've got to get back in this series.
NOTES, QUOTES
-- Left wing Colin Wilson made his 2012 playoff debut in Game 2 after having been a healthy scratch for all six of the Predators' previous playoff games. Wilson played 9:04 and had one shot on goal. Because he entered the lineup, left wing Craig Smith exited.
"They told me to play a down-low game," Wilson said. "I wasn't messing around with it from the blue line -- I was trying to get pucks in."
-- Goalie Pekka Rinne has sterling career numbers against the Coyotes, but his numbers this season haven't been very good. Including the playoffs, Rinne has allowed three or more goals in five of the six contests he has played against Phoenix this season.
"I have to be better, no question, but also we have to be better as a team," Rinne said. "It always goes hand in hand. We've scored enough goals to win hockey games, just giving up too many right now."
-- The special-teams battle has been one area in which the Predators have excelled. After a 2-for-2 performance on the power play in Game 2, they have already scored more goals with the man advantage in this series than they did in the entire series against the Detroit Red Wings.
But during 5-on-5 action, Nashville has been outscored 8-3 overall, and that's where the issues lie.
"We're not committed enough. We're committed on offense and not on defense," defenseman Shea Weber said. "We have to change that and be a lot better."
QUOTE TO NOTE
"They're playing well, they're executing and playing the kind of game we want to play and playing with the speed and getting pucks to the net and getting those rebounds and just executing." -- Predators goalie Pekka Rinne on the Coyotes.
ROSTER REPORT
-- RW Alexander Radulov is having a tough series. He was a minus-2 while playing 15:17 in Game 2, although he did notch an assist for his first point of the series.
-- D Ryan Suter notched his first goal of the playoffs Sunday night on a slap shot from the top of the left circle on the power play. Suter also had his first multi-point game of these playoffs, adding an assist when his shot from the point on an earlier power play was tipped in.
-- RW Patric Hornqvist notched his first goal of the postseason. Hornqvist led the Predators during the regular season with 27 goals.
