The better team won.
For Jets fans the teeth gnashing, the blame-storming, and frustration is understandable but it won't change what happened. Also, don't let the late goal by Laine on the Power Play fool you. The game was over even though the shut out was broken.
This game really showed that Paul Maurice was out-coached. His team fell behind with a chance but after the second goal, scored by Subban on the PP, the Preds strangled the life out of the Jets. They took away all space and position that the Jets wanted and eventually had. It was a net zero for them and Nashville was masterful.
What became the bigger story was the reluctance of head coach Paul Maurice to make adjustments. It was not until the clock had about 8 minutes left in the game that we started seeing changes to the forwards. But look a the time for defense pairs- Trouba and Morrissey, arguably the best pairing on the Jets (it's not an argument) were two the lowest in ice time. Guess who was ahead? Myers (#2) and Chiarot. It boggles the mind.
That being said there's not much to take away from this game because it's simply a summation of what many Jets critics have been saying. Paul Maurice is not making consistent sound decisions. Last night he got out-coached. It was obvious and for many it was inexcusable and even for the causal fan there should be questions about roster and usage.
Were the Jets skating? That's what many observed last night a team running on emotional fumes with no energy. Don't believe that, it may have been a factor but not a game changing one. The game changed when Laviolette made some serious changes to his roster bringing in Weber and swapping Fiala for Hartnell. Paul Maurice added Armia while removing Roslovic and keeping Hendricks.
When you are down 2-1 game four is everything and Laviolette knew it and used his wild cards well. When you are up 2-1 over the President's Trophy winner game four is everything too, because you can bury they. One coach saw this, and one coach didn't. The results speak for themselves.