Predators defeat Flames in shootout, gain ground in West wild card race

NASHVILLE -- Matt Duchene became the first 40-goal scorer in the history of the Nashville Predators, who gained in the Western Conference wild card race with a 3-2 shootout win against the Calgary Flames at Bridgestone Arena on Tuesday.

Duchene gave the Predators a 2-0 lead at 12:09 of the second period when he drove around goalie Dan Vladar and swiped at his own rebound with one hand before it went off Flames defenseman Chris Tanev.
"Obviously, to do it in my 900th [NHL] game, too, is kind of cool," Duchene said. "It's one of those things that you enjoy after the year, but the reaction from the crowd was unbelievable. It made me a little emotional on the bench for sure. … They made it hard not to feel that moment a little bit, so I really appreciate that from the fans."

Filip Forsberg scored his 39th of the season, and Juuse Saros made 19 saves for the Predators (44-28-5), who are 5-4-1 in April.
Nashville moved two points ahead of the Dallas Stars for the first wild card in the Western Conference and six points ahead of the Vegas Golden Knights and Vancouver Canucks. The Canucks lost 4-3 in a shootout to the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday.
"I really liked the commitment to defend, the way we played tonight," Predators coach John Hynes said. "I thought it was much more the structure that we need to play with, that makes us a stingy team to play against. I think we got taught some lessons in some loose play against [the St. Louis Blues in an 8-3 loss on Sunday], but I thought the attention to detail tonight was at the level that you need to have to be a stingy team defensively."
Andrew Mangiapane scored two goals, and Vladar made 25 saves for the Flames (47-20-10), who are 7-1-1 in their past nine games and are 10 points ahead of the Edmonton Oilers for first in the Pacific Division.
"It was a tight game," Mangiapane said. "Those are kind of the fun ones to play in, that make us that much better. You want to be in those close games. That's what playoff hockey is all about. So, it was a good game for us to gear up and get ready for the next couple of weeks here."
Forsberg made it 1-0 at 7:23 of the second period, scoring on a one-timer from the left face-off circle on the power play to end an eight-game goal drought.

Mangiapane cut the lead to 2-1 at 15:13 on the power play, tapping in a rebound off the body of teammate Matthew Tkachuk, and tied it 2-2 at 6:40 of the third period on a loose puck in the slot.
"It was 2-0, and [the Predators] maybe thought like it's going to be an easy game," Vladar said. "Then, all of a sudden, we got those bulldogs in front and they just score. It doesn't matter how. It can be nice, it can be ugly, whatever, they just score. Guys are blocking shots in front of me. As the season is moving on, it's more and more fun."
Mikael Granlund scored the deciding goal in the shootout, and Saros made saves against Johnny Gaudreau, Tkachuk and Tyler Toffoli.
"There's a mental component of the game and a toughness component of the game that is required to win," Hynes said. "It's required to make the playoffs. We're still in the hunt to be able to do that.
"But I think it's embracing high-stakes hockey, embracing what the games are like when you play against really good teams or playoff teams or down the stretch, where every game matters and your decisions matter."
NOTES:Tkachuk had an assist and has scored 99 points (30 goals, 69 assists) this season. He needs one point to become the eighth player in franchise history to reach 100 points in a season, joining Kent Nilsson (131 points in 1980-81, 104 points in 1982-83), Joe Mullen (110 points in 1988-89), Hakan Loob (106 points in 1987-88), Theoren Fleury (104 points in 1990-91, 100 points in 1992-93), Mike Bullard (103 points in 1987-88), Al MacInnis (103 points in 1990-91) and Gaudreau (108 points in 2021-22). … Gaudreau had an assist, and has scored 108 points (38 goals, 70 assists) for third-most in a single season in franchise history ... Flames forward Brett Ritchie had two shots on goal and three hits in 8:56 of ice time after not playing the past three games.