So instead of facing the Penguins Saturday night, Rinne watched his fellow Finn, rookie netiminder Juuse Saros - who was on emergency recall from Milwaukee - stop 34 of 35 shots to collect his first NHL victory, much to the excitement of his countryman.
"He just looked really poised, looked really comfortable," Rinne said of Saros. "Pittsburgh scored early], but the rest of the night, I felt that he just looked super comfortable. he's obviously he's agile, he's fast and he played to his strengths, but at the same time he's really patient and looked really calm in net. I was really happy to see that. It's always a big deal when you get your first career NHL win, so it was nice to get that for Juuse."
Sure, the victory over the Penguins would've been enough cause for celebration, but considering the Preds did it with five players in the lineup who had been in Milwaukee the night before, it really didn't matter who the opponent was.
"I think more what took over the fact that they were the defending champs is just what we were dealing with ourselves internally, not only the Detroit game, but just trying to put it together from a player standpoint on who was going to be available or not," Laviolette said. "The guys who went into the lineup did a terrific job, and the guys that got called up helped out, guys coming back and playing after the sickness, so that to me stands out at little bit more.
"But for that reason, I thought it was a pretty good win, and we needed it at the time. You're sitting there 1-3 with a chance to go 1-4, but to pull it back to 2-3 I think was important."
Forward Austin Watson, among those who departed Milwaukee a little before 7 a.m. on Saturday morning to catch a flight to Chicago before flying to Nashville, did his part in the victory and was more than willing to help, considering the circumstances.
"For us coming up that morning to be able to come in and add some energy, add some life and just do what we could do to help the team win, that was great," Watson said. "Guys stepped up and it feels good when the odds are kind of stacked against you a little bit to come out on top."
There are still 77 games to go on the regular-season schedule - which starts back up again Wednesday night in Anaheim - but perhaps the Preds can look back on the last few days sometime soon and remember the night in Detroit, and then Nashville, when they simply got it done.
"The guys played really hard under the circumstances, and it shows what kind of group we have here," Fisher said. "We're digging deep and finding ways; that's a great sign."
Peanuts and Crackerjack:
The overwhelming majority would like to see an end to the curse.
Out of six players asked in the Preds locker room on Monday, five picked the Chicago Cubs to capture their first World Series title since 1908 when they begin play against the Cleveland Indians tomorrow night.
Some gave a simple answer, while others had their reasons.
"I feel like I want to root for the Cubs with the curse and everything, but maybe if they do lose, maybe it's got to have something to do with the curse, something weird happened," forward Austin Watson explained.
"Cubs in five," forward Craig Smith said. "I want to see it, let's do it, I'm Cubs all the way."
Forward Cody Bass and defensemen Ryan Ellis and Matt Irwin were also pro-Cubs. The lone Cleveland supporter, Captain Mike Fisher, had a simple answer, a loss still fresh on his mind.
"I'll go for Cleveland because they beat my Blue Jays."
Notes:
The four players who missed Saturday's game due to illness, goaltender Pekka Rinne and forwards Mike Fisher, Colton Sissons and Craig Smith, all returned to practice on Monday.
Defenseman Matt Irwin, who was
[recalled from Milwaukee
on Monday morning, was also on the ice. Forwards Austin Watson and Harry Zolnierczyk, who were among those recalled prior to Saturday's game, will remain with the team and travel out to California on Tuesday with the club.
"We're just making sure we have the numbers that we need," Laviolette said. "We have [Cody] Bass on Injured Reserve for a little bit, we have [Miikka] Salomaki and [Anthony] Bitetto out, so our numbers are down and we're going on a trip, so we just wanted to make sure we have bodies in place."
Shot of the Day:
