NASHVILLE — The Nashville (4-3-4) didn't look like a team that lost in overtime last night. The Predators dominated special teams and imposed their will on the Colorado Avalanche (6-5-1) to win the second game of the franchise's first back-to-back 6-2.
The Predators scored on four-of-seven power-plays and killed all four of Colorado's power play chances as they led wire-to-wire to claim a big two points in the standings against a Central Division foe.
"Yeah, it was [a complete game]," Andrew Brunette said. "We had 20 drivers tonight. Every time it was their turn to grab the wheel, they floored it. It sets up a little bit of what my expectations of this group were, the kind of standard we're trying to set here a little bit. We know we can't get to it every night, but we know we can do it, and we need to bring it a little bit more each night. Tonight was a great example of that."
Ross Colton got Nashville off to a quick start, drawing a hooking penalty in the first three minutes of the opening period and putting the Predators on the power play. Nashville's top power-play unit got to work, maintaining the offensive zone and peppering Scott Wedgewood's net. Steven Stamkos kept a rebound in the zone to Roman Josi, who found Filip Forsberg all alone in the slot. Forsberg fired past Wedgewood's glove at 4:01, giving the Predators a 1-0 lead.
Nashville doubled up after a breakaway Mavrik Bourque found Ryan O'Reilly, who moved the puck to his left to Stamkos at 10:48. Stamkos one-timed the shot, but Wedgewood got his pad on it and slowed it down, but the puck slipped past him. Colorado superstar defenseman Cale Makar swiped at the puck on the line but couldn't clear it in time, and after video review, the Predators took a 2-0 lead.
Josi put Colorado on the power play at 11:08 with a cross-checking penalty, but Nashville's penalty killing unit continued its outstanding work and kept the Avalanche off the scoreboard. Nashville outshot Colorado 11-8 and took their 2-0 lead into the first intermission.
Nashville put Colorado back on the power play early in the second when Nic Hague drew an interference penalty. The Predators stood tall for a second straight kill to keep the Avalanche off the scoreboard again.
The intensity rose at 5:55 when Jayden Struble and Martin Necas got into a skirmish. Struble hit Necas in the corner, and the forward took exception, smacked Struble with his stick, and started a scrum. In the chaos, Colorado ended up with too many men on the ice, giving the Predators their second power play of the night.
Less than a minute later, Ryan O'Reilly received Josi's pass in front of Wedgewood and poked it home for his fifth goal of the year, giving Nashville a 3-0 lead.
Josi slashed Colorado star Nathan MacKinnon at 7:13, giving the Avalanche another power-play, but the Predators killed another extra-man advantage to maintain their 3-0 lead.
Struble took the physicality to another level as the second period progressed when he and Parker Kelly dropped the gloves at center-ice. Struble struck Kelly with a few clean blows, but slipped, and Kelly landed on top of the Nashville defensemen.
The fight was brief, but it kept Nashville's momentum rolling. Three minutes later, the fourth line capitalized on a nifty pass from Ross Colton with Jack Drury's second goal of the season, giving the Predators a 4-0 lead at 16:36.
Brock Nelson put the Predators back on the power play with an interference call at 16:58. Nashville kept the special teams dominance going when Jonathan Marchessault found O'Reilly for his second goal at 17:29 for a 5-0 lead.
Colorado finally got on the board, capitalizing on an odd-man rush when MacKinnon found Necas, who passed to Artturi Lehkonen across the slot for the finish, cutting the lead to 5-1 at 17:55.
The Predators ended the period with their fourth extra-man advantage when Brent Burns hooked Nils Höglander. Nashville finished the second period with a 24-15 shot advantage and took their 5-1 lead into the final frame.
O'Reilly and Nazem Kadri drew penalties within 40 seconds of each other to open the last period, creating a four-on-four situation. Colorado defenseman Devon Toews carried the puck into Nashville's defensive zone and fired a laser past Justus Annunen at 2:43, cutting the lead to 5-2 and reminding the Predators to stay sharp against a quality team.
Burns and Logan O'Connor combined for Colorado penalties eight and nine on the evening, giving Nashville a five-on-three power-play. The Predators' top unit worked the puck into a dangerous area before it fell to Stamkos in a scramble on the left side of the ice. Nashville's top scorer buried it into the top shelf at 10:24, making the score 6-2.
The Predators kept the pressure on throughout the final 10 minutes for a much-needed victory.
Nashville returns to action on Tuesday, Oct. 27, at home against the New York Islanders.
Follow us on Twitter/X, Facebook, YouTube, Threads, Bluesky, and Instagram for the latest news.
Add us as a preferred source on Google