Predators defeat Jets, extend point streak to 13

WINNIPEG -- The Nashville Predators extended their point streak to 13 games with a 4-2 win against the Winnipeg Jets at Canada Life Centre on Wednesday.

“We knew it was a big game,” Nashville captain Roman Josi said. “They’re one of the best teams in the League and I felt like we played a really good game for 60 minutes. I felt like maybe in the beginning there [they had] a couple good chances, but after that I felt like we played fast, we were relentless and didn’t give them much time. It’s just a great game for us.”

Gustav Nyquist had a goal and an assist, and Josi had two assists for the Predators (38-25-4), who are 11-0-2 during their streak. Juuse Saros made 28 saves.

“In this building, you’re in here so many times and you’re down 2-0 before the first TV timeout,” Nashville coach Andrew Brunette said. “So I think for us [the start] was important. It was kind of an emphasis that our start was going to be key against these guys and that we get into our game as fast as possible.”

Alex Iafallo and Mason Appleton scored for the Jets (41-19-5), who have lost three of five. Connor Hellebuyck made 34 saves.

"A lot (was missing),” Winnipeg coach Rick Bowness said. “The execution wasn't there. Face-off readiness, they were jumping by us. We were winning draws and getting ourselves into trouble. The execution was way off from the start. … Give them credit, they played a great game. They came at us. We know that. We talked about it before the game. They've had points in 12 straight games so we knew what to expect.”

Nyquist gave Nashville a 1-0 lead at 6:38 of the first period. He scored with a wrist shot from above the right face-off dot after Josi fed him with a stretch pass of the right boards.

“That’s a hard pass to make off the wall,” Nyquist said. “It landed right on my tape and was a heck of pass. It was nice to be able to put that one in. … That’s a [heck] of a team that we just beat. I thought we played a great game for 60 minutes honestly all the way throughout. Pretty elite job from everyone.”

Kiefer Sherwood extended it to 2-0 at 14:32. Josi carried the puck into the Winnipeg zone and passed to Sherwood, who scored with a wrist shot from the top of the slot.

“I just feel like we’ve been playing very connected as a team,” Josi said of the point streak. “You look back, every game was a team effort and every game different guys step up. It’s been a lot of fun.”

Nashville scored twice in 22 seconds in the third period.

Filip Forsberg made it 3-0 from the high slot at 1:29 after Nyquist hit him with a between-the-legs drop pass.

“I think we’ve learned that there’s no easy games in this league, no matter whether you’re up against a team in the top of the standings or at the bottom,” Nyquist said. “I think lately, we’re just finding a way to focus on our game and how we want to play, and if we do that, we know we’re a tough opponent for any of the teams. So, I think it’s more about us than any other team.”

Jason Zucker then pushed it to 4-0 at 1:51 by lifting a rebound over Hellebuyck’s pad on the backhand. It was Zucker's first goal in three games with the Predators since being traded from the Arizona Coyotes on March 8.

“At the end of the day we’ve got a lot of games here. We’ve got to understand what went wrong and move on,” Jets defenseman Dylan DeMelo said. “At the same time, there are so many games we’ve got going on this month that at this point of the season, we know what our game looks like. We’re confident we can get back to it. Tonight, we didn’t have it. Hats off to Nashville, they did, and they played really well.”

Iafallo cut it to 4-1 at 13:12 when he tipped Brenden Dillon’s shot.

“[Vladislav Namestnikov] made a nice play on the wall there and kept it in,” Iafallo said. “[Dillon] had a good shot, so I was just trying to get to the net and just tip it. Luckily it was the right height.”

Appleton scored on the power play at 19:49 for the 4-2 final. Winnipeg had a 6-on-4 advantage with Hellebuyck pulled for the extra attacker and Nyquist in the box after being called for hooking at 18:08.

“[Saros] probably deserved a shutout tonight,” Josi said. “He played unbelievable and made some amazing saves. I mean, those two (Saros and Kevin Lankinen) have been unbelievable for us this whole year, and too bad we couldn’t get him the shutout. … He was great for us.”

Jets center Mark Scheifele was a late scratch because of an illness.

Predators defenseman Spencer Stastney (undisclosed) left the game late in the third.

NOTES: Josi reached 50 assists for the second time in his 13 NHL seasons, tying Paul Kariya for the most such seasons in Predators history. Josi had 73 assists in 2021-22. … Josi also became the first Nashville player to have 100 games with multiple assists. He became the fifth active defenseman with that many, joining Erik Karlsson (130) and Kris Letang (105) of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Victor Hedman of the Tampa Bay Lightning (103) and Brent Burns of the Carolina Hurricanes (101). … Saros is 8-0-2 in his past 10 starts. He got his second assist of the season on Nyquist’s goal. … With an assist on Appleton’s goal, defenseman Colin Miller got his first point in two games with the Jets since being traded from the New Jersey Devils on March 8.