Preds Ground Jets, 3-2, in Fifth Straight Win

The Nashville Predators stifled a late comeback and held on to defeat the Winnipeg Jets, 3-2, in a Central Division showdown on Sunday at Bridgestone Arena.

Roman Josi led the Preds with three points (2g-1a), and Juuse Saros made 33 saves in goal. The Predators skated seven defensemen in a game for the first time this season after activating Luke Schenn from IR; the blueliner returned to the lineup on Sunday after missing the last 18 games with a lower-body injury.

The Predators, who put an end to Winnipeg’s five-game win streak, extended their own streak to five games and are now 10-10-0 on the season and 7-4-0 at home.

The Predators played a defensive first period in which Saros made a number of clutch saves to keep Nashville alive and Winnipeg off of the scoreboard. The Preds began to show more life on offense in the final few minutes of the period and put more pressure on the Jets defense; Yakov Trenin ultimately capitalized with just 20 seconds remaining in the frame, cleaning up the rebound on a Josi shot to give Nashville a 1-0 lead heading into the first intermission.

Josi doubled Nashville’s lead less than 90 seconds into the middle frame, sneaking a slick shot from the corner past Winnipeg goaltender Laurent Broissoit to make it 2-0 in favor of the home team.

The Preds made quick work of their first power play opportunity later in the period when Vladislav Namestnikov was whistled for tripping Philip Tomasino; just 11 seconds into the man advantage, Gustav Nyquist directed Filip Forsberg’s pass into the back of the net to give Nashville a 3-0 lead at 6:21.

Josh Morrissey broke up the shutout bid with 9:32 remaining in the third period, collecting the loose puck after his initial pass was disrupted by a sliding Ryan McDonagh and stuffing it past Saros to put the Jets on the board.

Less than a minute later, with Spencer Stastney in the box for tripping against Nikolaj Ehlers, Cole Perfetti struck six seconds into the Winnipeg power play to bring the score within one for the 3-2 final.

PREDS STANDOUTS

Captain Clutch: Josi has points in 11 of his last 17 games (4g-11a), including a four-game point streak from Oct. 28-Nov. 4 (2g-3a). With three points on Sunday, he now has 28 points (5g-23a) in 36 career games against the Jets.

Yak Attack: Trenin’s first-period goal was his fourth of the season. Having scored all four of his goals in his last five games, he is already one-third of the way to his season total of 12 goals in 77 games in 2022-23.

Filthy Forsberg: With a primary assist on Nyquist’s power-play goal, Forsberg extended his team lead in points to 25 (11g-14a). He has picked up at least one point in 13 of his last 22 contests against the Jets and has posted 23 points (6g-17a) in 35 career games vs. Winnipeg.

In Gus We Trust: Speaking of Nyquist, he extended his point streak to eight games (2g-8a); it is now the second-longest of his NHL career (longest: 10 in 2013-14).

Big Mac: With a secondary assist on Josi’s goal in the second period, McDonagh now has four points (4a) in three games since his return to the Preds lineup on Wednesday after missing the previous seven games due to a lower-body injury.

Saved by Saros: Saros’ 33-save performance was highlighted by a four-save sequence that kept the Jets off the board in the first period:

THEY SAID IT

Josi on his assessment of the win:

“I felt we played pretty well in the third. They obviously got two quick ones, which obviously wasn't planned, but I thought we played well after that. We kind of stayed calm. [Saros] was great. He was awesome in the first, especially, and he made some huge saves.”

McDonagh on Nashville’s five-game win streak:

“We've got a little bit of a recipe now of how we want to win games, how we want to prepare and approach games. It certainly wasn't perfect at times tonight, and it hasn't been perfect on the winning streak as well. But you've got to find ways to win games, and that's a great sign there. And we know we can be better, and we'll keep improving and it'll hopefully lead to some more consistency… And with that comes some confidence, and you want it to continue to be there. So you have to keep working hard and keep preparing and understand that it's not going to be easy each and every night. We knew it wasn't going to be another eight eight goals on the scoreboard for us tonight against this opponent, but it was a good close-to-60 minutes.”

Trenin on the team’s confidence after winning five straight:

“It’s pumping us up. We feel confident. Even when we were losing, I think we played some good games. And now, we’ve just switched it into the next gear.”

Saros on playing with a three-goal lead:

“I don't think, with how the game is nowadays, that a three-goal lead is maybe as secure as it used to be. So you kind of have to stay focused. One bounce or something can give the other team the momentum, so you can’t get really too comfortable there.”

Head Coach Andrew Brunette on his assessment of the game:

“I didn’t like our start. I thought both teams were a little bit sloppy, and we just left too many pucks in bad areas. Then, I thought we got to our game. I thought we played really solid for 40 minutes. Obviously, we let one in on a little bit of an unlucky bounce and then the power play right away. But I thought that in the first 10 minutes of the third period, we were really good. We showed a little bit of life against a good team. But this was good for us… We knew we had to get back to our game. I think we felt comfortable in our game for the most part. All game, I thought we defended well without the puck through the neutral zone. They’re probably the best rush team in the league right now, so I thought we did a good job of limiting their opportunities for the most part.”

Brunette on where his team has improved the most so far this season:

“They stick with it, and they show that resiliency when the games are hard. There's no easy game in this league. And if you let your foot off the gas or you don't manage it at different times, you chase it. And we've done a good job of understanding that… I think they're getting a little bit more comfortable with my expectations of how I'd like us to play, and I think they're getting more comfortable with the details of the system. It takes a while. We're still not there, but we're getting better.”

UP NEXT

The Predators continue their four-game homestand on Tuesday, when they host the Pittsburgh Penguins at Bridgestone Arena. The puck drops at 7 p.m. CT, and the game will be broadcast on Bally Sports South, 102.5 The Game and El Jefe Radio. Click here for tickets.