Ryan Hartman got a bit nervous with the puck so close to the empty net after a shot by P.K. Subban.
The Nashville forward wound up with not only the first playoff goal of his career but the winner with 1:09 left as the Predators held off the Colorado Avalanche 5-4 Saturday for a 2-0 lead in their first-round Western Conference series.
Hartman’s goal gave the Predators a 5-3 lead until Alexander Kerfoot pulled Colorado to 5-4 with 35.8 seconds left. But the Avalanche couldn’t get another puck past goalie Pekka Rinne.
”I knew he made a shot toward the net
Tremaine Edmunds Jersey Youth , and I just wanted to be there in case he missed the net to beat out the icing,” Hartman said. ”Sometimes those pucks don’t bounce far enough to the front of the net, luckily it did. Those are the ones you get nervous about, the ones that are laying right there. You just want to make sure you put it in.”
The Presidents’ Trophy winners gave up a goal on Colorado’s first shot for a second straight game. Yet the Predators rallied again to take their first 2-0 lead when starting a best-of-seven series in their own building.
”It was nice to start here for sure in front of our fans, and it was nice to get the job done,” Nashville coach Peter Laviolette said. ”We did what we’re supposed to do. Now we got to go on the road and do what I said, you got to win some road games along the way too.”
Kevin Fiala had a goal and an assist, and Viktor Arvidsson, Ryan Johansen and Austin Watson scored a goal apiece. P.K. Subban and Mattias Ekholm each had two assists for Nashville, which has won 12 straight over the Avalanche.
”It’s fun playing in this building,” Watson said. ”It’s tough to come in here as an opposing team. For us to be able to hold up our end of the bargain and get the two wins is great.”
Rinne made 26 saves for the win.
Nathan MacKinnon had a goal and an assist
Tarik Cohen Jersey , and Gabriel Bourque and Gabriel Landeskog each added a goal for Colorado.
Game 3 is Monday night in Denver.
”We’re going to go put our best foot forward,” Colorado coach Jared Bednar said. ”To me, if we would clean up a couple of mistakes, we win that hockey game. That’s the way I look at it. We’re certainly capable of doing it.”
Nashville struggled early yet again despite having country star Brad Paisley singing the national anthem and wrestler Jeff Jarrett revving up the fans before the game.
Bourque put Colorado up 1-0 on the Avs’ first shot 2:34 into the game after a turnover in the defensive zone by Hartman.
The Avalanche scratched rookie defenseman Samuel Girard with an upper-body injury and replaced him with Duncan Siemens after coming into the series with defenseman Erik Johnson already missing with a knee injury. The corps thinned when Tyson Barrie was hit in the face by a puck that deflected off goalie Jonathan Bernier’s stick, but he returned later in the period.
Fiala tied it with 3 seconds left on Nashville’s first power play a minute into the second period. Fiala beat Bernier with a snap shot from the inside edge of the left circle, and that seemed to get the Predators going.
The Predators kept Colorado from taking a shot until Nathan MacKinnon put one on net at 9:48, and Rinne smothered that.
Arvidsson gave the Predators a 2-1 lead, skating up the right side and blasted a slap shot that went under Bernier’s right arm for an unassisted goal. In a 4-on-4 situation, Predators defenseman P.K. Subban blocked a shot by Barrie. Johansen got the puck on a breakaway and beat Bernier with a backhander.
MacKinnon pulled the Avs within 3-2 just 36 seconds later with his first goal this postseason.
Watson scored off a Colorado turnover in the Predators’ offensive zone in the third period for a 4-2 lead. But Nashville gave the Avalanche 1:46 of a 5-on-3 to rally, and MacKinnon’s shot deflected off Landeskog to pull Colorado within 4-3. The Predators killed the rest of the penalty, and Rinne made a big pad save on Sven Andrighetto just after the advantage ended.
NOTES: The Predators have started series twice before 2-0 and won both series
Leighton Vander Cowboys Esch Jersey , including last spring when they swept Chicago in the first round. … Nashville went 37-2-4 when leading after two periods in the regular season. … Bednar said Girard is day to day. … Colorado went 2-26-4 when trailing after two periods in the regular season.
UP NEXT
Game 3 on Monday night in Denver.
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Between the birth of his first child in Tampa Bay and Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals in Boston, Yanni Gourde squeezed in what could be his last nap for a while.
The Lightning forward spent the night with his wife and newborn daughter in the hospital on the off-day and flew to Boston on Wednesday. He missed the morning skate, but was waiting for his teammates at lunch.
He received quite a greeting.
”It was like we scored a game-winning goal,” coach Jon Cooper said after Ondrej Palat scored twice and Gourde assisted on Tampa Bay’s third goal in a 4-1 victory over Boston that gave the Lightning a 2-1 lead in the series.
”It’s a team that cares,” Cooper said. ”We were so happy for him.”
Palat scored twice in the first 3:19 of the game, and Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 28 shots to help Tampa Bay to its second win in a row since losing the series opener at home.
Game 4 is Friday night.
”Boston came in and took one of our games at home, we had to take one of theirs on the road,” Cooper said. ”We did that.”
After Patrice Bergeron made it a one-goal game, Anthony Cirelli scored his first career NHL playoff goal to give the Lightning a 3-1 lead late in the first. Gourde provided an assist, chasing the puck into the zone before finding Cirelli in the slot.
”The last 24 hours have been amazing,” Gourde said. ”Obviously
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Tuukka Rask made 33 saves for Boston.
”Playoffs are desperate hockey,” Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy said. ”You don’t ever go into any games saying `Oh, we have the luxury of being able to lose this one.’ That’s not how it goes.”
Palat scored just 1:47 in after Boston defenseman Matt Grzelcyk settled the puck with his glove in his own end, then appeared to lose track of it and skated away, leaving the Lightning with an easy 2-on-1 opportunity.
Palat made it 2-0 just 92 seconds later on a shot that deflected off Bruins defenseman Torey Krug and into the net.
”It’s not good, obviously, but we’ve come back a lot,” said Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy, whose team has won 21 games this season in which it gave up the first goal.
”So this is nothing new
Reuben Foster Jersey ,” he said ”You’ve still got 50-some minutes left. There’s going to be a lull from the crowd, but you’ve got to get it back. … The second and third goals, to me, are much worse.”
It stayed 3-1 through the second period and most of the third, until the Lightning picked up a power play in the final two minutes of the game when Krug tripped Cirelli as he chased after the puck with an empty net in front of him.
The Lightning made it 4-1 anyway when Steven Stamkos found the empty net on the power play with 42 seconds left.
NOTES: Former Red Sox pitcher Pedro Martinez was the honorary fan banner captain, waving a Bruins flag before the game. He was also showed several times on the scoreboard trying to get the fans fired up. … Brad Marchand picked up a second-period slashing penalty and had to be forcibly steered to the penalty box by a linesman while he argued the call. … The Lightning won for just the 10th time in 54 visits to TD Garden. Tampa Bay is 13-9 all-time in Game 3s and 7-5 in Game 3s on the road.
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