The Nashville Predators continued their three-game road trip as they made a stop in the Windy City on Thursday night to take on the Chicago Blackhawks. The Preds have struggled against Chicago this season and looked to take advantage of the momentum on the road.
The first period played extremely fast with both sides having optimal chances, but neither team was able to take advantage and get on the scoreboard. The second period was an exchange of goals from both teams. Chicago scored first with Brent Seabrook (12) scoring at 5:27 to give the Blackhawks a 1-0 lead. Nashville would quickly respond when the streaking Viktor Arvidsson (7) tied up the game at 9:08. This was Arvidsson’s second goal in three games.
The game came down to the third period. With less than two minutes remaining in the period, Chicago was caught out of position. Mike Fisher sent a pass to Calle Jarnkrok and he beat Corey Crawford to give Nashville the 2-1 lead at 18:09. The Blackhawks pulled Crawford and another young player, Miikka Salomaki, scored the empty net goal for Nashville. The Preds would go to the Windy City and come out with a 3-1 victory.
Keys to Watch
Troubles at Home
The Nashville Predators will make it back home today to take on the St. Louis Blues. Nashville has played exceptionally well in the last 10 games with a record of 6-1-3. The Preds will look to transferred recent road success at home. Nashville has not played well as of recent at Bridgestone Arena, outside of the Boston win on February 18th, and will look to extend that recent success in front of the hometown fans.
Overcoming Adversity
The Nashville Predators have struggled against the St. Louis Blues this season. On February 2nd, the Preds lost a heart-breaking affair in a 1-0 loss. Pekka Rinne was phenomenal but the Preds couldn’t muster any offense. On December 29th, the Nashville Predators lost in overtime to the Blues 4-3 and the outcome was no different on December 17th in a 2-1 decision. The Predators will look to get over the hump in this matinee Central Division clash.
Let’s Not Jinx It!
We all have observed the recent play of Pekka Rinne. Since the rough outing against the Tampa Bay Lightning on February 12th where he gave up four goals, Rinne has only given up four goals total. This recent road trip, especially in Chicago, the 6’5″ Kempele, Finland native has been the player the Preds needed him to be all season. He has played well, but let’s not put the cart before the horse. He has played exceptional but this needs to continue to give Nashville the opportunity to succeed moving towards the playoffs. The Predators will go only as far as Rinne takes them.
The Preds will look to get a win against their division rival this afternoon. Be sure to catch all of the action on Fox Sports-Tennessee or you can listen live on 102.5 The Game. Puck drops at 2:00 pm!
