Josi Hits Milestone, Helps Preds to Bounce-Back Win Over Devils

Roman Josi had a pair of points in his 700th NHL game, and the Nashville Predators defeated the New Jersey Devils by a 4-2 final on Friday evening at Bridgestone Arena. The result gives the Preds wins in two out of three outings to conclude their homestand as they collected at least one point in their 10th consecutive matchup against the Devils.

Josi started the scoring on Friday when he snuck a shot through the five hole of Devils goaltender Jonathan Bernier from a sharp angle at 7:31 of the opening period, a tally that provided Nashville with a 1-0 advantage after 20 minutes of play.
Philip Tomasino doubled that lead when he capitalized on a feed from Nick Cousins and found twine in front for his fourth of the season, and Mikael Granlund did the same on a pass from Matt Duchene in the third period to put his club up by three.
New Jersey beat Juuse Saros twice in the final frame, but an empty-netter from Alexandre Carrier helped to seal the victory on a Gold Friday in Smashville.
Ryan Johansen dished out a pair of assists in the win as well, Filip Forsberg added a helper for three points in two games since returning from injury and Saros made 23 saves for his ninth win of the campaign.

Friday Storyline:

Game No. 700 of Roman Josi's NHL career epitomized the blueliner's nightly abilities for the Predators.
A goal and a helper while leading the team in time-on-ice, shots and shot blocks on Friday evening - well, that's just another night at the office for Nashville's captain.
"Time flies," Josi said of the milestone. "I still remember when I first came here, 10 years ago now, and 700, I mean, it's pretty cool. I'm definitely very grateful to be able to play that many games in Nashville with the same team. It's been an amazing ride, so I'm definitely proud of it and don't take it for granted, for sure."

"That's so many - 700 games, that's very impressive," Preds Head Coach John Hynes said of Josi. "And not only 700 games, but how many meaningful games he's played in and been productive, so I'm really happy for him. A special night for him… and he obviously has the two points, but blocked some shots, played well, and it's nice to see Jos be able to get recognized at home for a 700th game in front of our fans. He had a good game tonight."
Josi also helped his club bounce back in a big way after a disappointing effort just under 48 hours earlier. A 5-2 loss against Vegas on Wednesday night left plenty to be desired, and Josi played a key role as Nashville made corrections and found themselves back in the win column to close out their Thanksgiving homestand.
"Our breakouts, our puck execution - I think against Vegas, we gave them some goals, a couple of bad turnovers and didn't really execute in our zone," Josi said. "I thought that was a lot better tonight, especially in the first, and you can see we had a lot of pressure, a lot of zone time, a lot of shots - and a lot of it starts in our own end getting out of the zone."
"Guys were really hard on pucks, the execution was strong, we had a shot mentality, so it was good to see, and that's kind of what this group has been," Hynes said. "You're not going to be perfect every night, but they always find a way [to improve]. They come in, they learn, they see what needs to change and they're committed to playing better, so I'm proud of their effort. I thought the guys played really well tonight, so a good win."

Tomasino's tally was another bright spot on the evening as the rookie potted his fourth of the season - and first in nine games - after seemingly producing chances on a nightly basis. Every player has ups and downs, especially one who has far less than 700 games to his credit, but Tomasino was certainly pleased to contribute on Friday.
"It can maybe get a little frustrating, not being able to score, but tonight, I'm just trying to do everything I can to help the team win," Tomasino said. "If I'm not scoring, I'll try to be hard on pucks, win every battle, and eventually the goals will come. Tonight, it was nice to get one, and obviously Cousins made a hell of a play there to me, so it was awesome. And it was awesome to get one, but I think just overall, it's a great team win and I was glad to contribute as well."
The Preds won't have long to enjoy this one as they'll be back on the ice Saturday night in Colorado against the Avalanche in an important Central Division contest - and Nashville wouldn't mind coming home with another two points with a similar effort tomorrow.
"The last couple games it's been kind of up and down a little bit," Josi said. "I think we've got to get some consistency back in our game. I think we had that before, but it's obviously a long season, so there's going to be some ups and downs. But then I think we know how we have to play. The way we played tonight, that gives us a good chance to win every night and that's what we're going to have to do going forward."

Highlight of the Night:

They Said It:

Philip Tomasino on Roman Josi:
"He's amazing, I mean, I think he's one of the best players in the world, I think he's definitely the top defenseman in the world, so just to be able to lean on him for questions and learn from him at the rink is unbelievable. And he's been such a great teammate, especially to me… I don't think our team would be the same without him. Every game he comes in and he's prepared, and he does his job, and obviously he's a pretty good player. So, just to have him on our team, we're really lucky, and it's awesome to see him have that achievement. It's a lot of games, and I'm sure he's got a lot more coming up."

Notes:

Josi is fourth player in Preds franchise history to hit the 700 games played mark. He trails only David Legwand (956), Shea Weber (763) and Martin Erat (723).
Per NHL PR, the Preds allowed just two shots on goal in the first period, tying the franchise benchmark for fewest shots against in an opening frame (also Jan. 21, 2012 vs. CHI, Jan. 17, 2004 vs. EDM, March 5, 2002 at SJS, March 22, 2001 at CHI & March 19, 2001 vs. CBJ).
The Preds scratched defensemen Ben Harpur (conditioning loan) and Philippe Myers on Friday against the Devils.
The Predators will now head to Denver to complete a back-to-back set by facing the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday night (8 p.m. CT) before returning for another three-game homestand next week.