Predators rally to defeat Golden Knights in shootout for seventh win in row

LAS VEGAS -- Ryan O'Reilly scored twice, and the Nashville Predators extended their winning streak to seven games with a 3-2 shootout victory against the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena on Friday.

O’Reilly’s second of the game tied it 2-2 at 9:44 of the third period. He recovered an Adam Wilsby rim-around behind the net, skated to the right circle, and roofed a shot.

“I stood there, I wanted to work on just some goal line stuff, right? You know, we're kind of struggling down there,” O’Reilly said. “We probably took around 20 reps and just me attacking off of the goal line, and we were laughing, obviously, to find a way to bury one on them, there. So it's nice, but it's one of those things, yeah, you put the work into something, and you see you get rewarded for it.”

Juuse Saros made 40 saves, and Filip Forsberg and Roman Josi scored in the shootout for the Predators (11-4-5), who tied the Carolina Hurricanes for the longest winning streak in the NHL this season.

“Saros was unbelievable,” Forsberg said. “Especially given the first half of the game, and you know, he kept us in (the game) and then set us up for the shootout and made some crazy extra saves in the shootout as well.”

Victor Olofsson scored for the second consecutive game, and Rasmus Andersson also scored for the Golden Knights (13-5-3), who have earned a point in five straight (4-0-1). Adin Hill made 30 saves.

“We just didn't really take care of the puck and too many giveaways, and then they did a good job in their offensive zone and our defensive zone,” Andersson said. “They got a lot of pucks towards the net and that's the hardest to defend, pucks towards the net. So I thought they did a good job in the third and I just thought we didn't really meet our standards in the third.”

O’Reilly put Nashville ahead 1-0 at 7:56 of the first period. He finished a one-timer off a Steven Stamkos touch pass across the front of the goal.

“That's why we're on a winning streak,” Nashville coach Andrew Brunette said. “I think everybody's kind of chipped in, everybody has got belief in each other, belief in the group and that's one time.”

Olofsson tied the game 1-1 at 11:19, driving to the net at the far post and finishing an Ivan Barbashev rebound.

Andersson gave Vegas a 2-1 lead at 10:48 of the second period with a 4-on-4 goal. Mitch Marner entered the offensive zone with speed, drew three defenders, and passed to a wide-open Andersson, who finished with a wrist shot.

“First two periods we couldn't separate right on the score, so they hang around,” Golden Knights coach Ryan Craig said. “In the third, I didn't think we managed pucks the way we did in the first two periods, meaning it wasn't so much in the neutral zone, it was more at our defensive blue line. We threw some pucks away, didn't move our feet, didn't use our support like we did at times in the first two periods to get us up and out of trouble and tilt the ice with territory. 

“If you give them second chance after second chance, now you get fatigued and now we're just punting the puck, right, instead of getting to our game like we did the first two periods.”

NOTES: Josi (23 points; two goals, 21 assists) became the first Predators player with 21 assists through 20 games in a season and the third with at least 23 points, following Forsberg (25 in 2023-24) and Steve Sullivan (25 in 2006-07). … Josi matched Sergei Zubov for the second most assists through 20 games in a season by an NHL defenseman born outside North America. Josi is one away from tying Borje Salming (1976-77) for the most. … The Predators recorded their seventh comeback win of the season. … Marner became the fourth Golden Knights player with a 10-game home point streak, joining Mark Stone (11 in 2023-24), Reilly Smith (11 in 2018-19) and Jack Eichel (10 in 2023-24).