Predators’ Effort Falls Just Short in 3-2 Loss to Capitals

A gutsy effort by Juuse Saros and the Nashville Predators fell just short as they fell to the Washington Capitals, 3-2, Wednesday at Capital One Arena.

Saros was exceptional between the pipes for Nashville, turning aside 33 shots for a .917 save percentage against a Washington offense that ranked seventh in the NHL in total goals for (46) entering Wednesday’s contest.

The Predators also showed some life on offense and had a strong net-front presence against Washington, a positive sign after Monday’s 3-0 shutout loss to the Los Angeles Kings at home. According to Natural Stat Trick, Nashville had 13 high-danger chances against the Capitals, compared to just eight against the Kings.

How the Predators lined up vs. Washington

Forsberg – O’Reilly – Stamkos

Marchessault – Sissons – Nyquist

Tomasino – Pärssinen – Evangelista

L’Heureux – McCarron – Smith

Josi – Skjei

Lauzon – Carrier

Del Gaizo – Schenn

Saros

Wedgewood

Extra: Fabbro, Jankowski, Novak*

*Tommy Novak was a late scratch, and the team announced that he is day-to-day with an upper-body injury.

Game Summary

For just the fourth time this season, the Predators scored the first goal of the game as Juuso Pärssinen tipped in a Luke Evangelista shot from the blue line for his first goal of the season to give Nashville a 1-0 lead just over three minutes into the first period.

Initially set to be a healthy scratch in Wednesday’s contest, Evangelista was a late addition to the Predators’ lineup after Tommy Novak’s injury update. Evangelista and Pärssinen played on Nashville’s third line alongside Philip Tomasino, who had been healthy scratched for the previous seven games.

Just over a minute after Pärssinen’s tally, familiar demons haunted the Predators as a defensive breakdown left Connor McMichael all alone in front of the net for an easy, game-tying goal.

The Predators got into some penalty trouble early, logging two trips and an interference call in the first period alone, but their top-ranked penalty kill came through with a 100% success rate against Washington.

The score remained knotted at 1-1 until the 15:03 mark of the second period, when Alexander Ovechkin found Aliaksai Protas unattended in front of the net for the go-ahead goal. This time, the Predators had a quick response, as Steven Stamkos tipped home a shot from the point by Alexandre Carrier to tie the score once again at 2-2.

Ovechkin broke the tie at 10:35 of the third period with a wrist shot from the right circle. The Predators appeared to tie the score again as Marc Del Gaizo and Jonathan Marchessault crashed the net with 7:47 left in regulation, but the officials called no goal due to goaltender interference.

Nashville challenged the call on the ice but was unsuccessful, and the Predators killed the ensuing penalty for delay of game. Saros was pulled from the net for the extra attacker with 90 seconds remaining in regulation, and despite sustained pressure in the offensive zone in the final minutes of the period, Nashville was unable to find the back of the net to send the game to overtime. Washington won by a final score of 3-2, and the Predators moved to 4-8-1 on the season.

Key Takeaways

The Predators continued to be snakebit on offense, hitting the post or crossbar four times in the second period alone.
Nashville played the majority of the game shorthanded forward Colton Sissons left the game early in the second period and did not return after blocking a shot with his wrist in the defensive zone. The team has not yet provided an update on Sissons’ status for Thursday’s contest against the Florida Panthers.
Stamkos’ game-tying tally was his third goal of the season for Nashville and his first at even strength.
Ovechkin’s goal was No. 861 of his career, bringing the magic number for him to tie Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record to 33.

#Preds forward Steven Stamkos: “Sometimes you’re working hard, you’re not necessarily working smart. Today, we worked a lot smarter, we forechecked, we hounded, we created turnovers. The 5-on-5 game was a lot better tonight, and if we can replicate that moving forward, I like our…

— Brooks Bratten (@brooksbratten) November 7, 2024

Up Next

The Predators will wrap up their back-to-back road set Thursday with a visit to the defending Stanley Cup champions in Florida. Puck drop is at 6 p.m. CT, and the game will be broadcast regionally on FanDuel Sports Network South and on ESPN+ for out-of-market customers in the United States.

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