Ok… the good news is that the Predators have grabbed the last spot in the Western Conference and have qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the 10th time in the last 13 seasons and the 3rd consecutive. Despite a 4-1 loss in St. Louis, the Predators qualified due to a Los Angeles loss to the Arizona Coyotes, eliminating the Kings.
It is hard to fault the effort of Nashville in yesterday’s loss… it was a fairly tired team that played its fifth game in seven days and on the back half of a back-to-back. A perfect storm to benefit the St. Louis Blues that the Blues took full advantage of, let’s face it, a bounce or two goes the other way and we are taking about a different result. No need to go into the gory details so…
Let’s get to the GBU…
The Good - More resilience from Nashville… bouncing back to tie the game after a deflating first period goal with a great garbage goal from Ryan Johansen.
The Bad - Failing to take advantage of a couple of 5-on-3’s in the first period. Killing off those caused a momentum shift that led to the first St. Louis goal.
The Ugly - Escalating concern over James Neal’s status. This team will need his scoring come April 12.
So, now the attention turns to tomorrow night and improving the team’s playoff seed.
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ICYMI - SlapShot Radio’s intrepid photographer was out and about capturing all the color and fun of a Smashville Saturday Night. All photos courtesy Denise McCann Photography
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Random Notes
- Where We Stand – After yesterday’s play, the Nashville Predators have 91 points in 79 games played and remain in the 2nd Wild Card slot, they trail St. Louis for 3rd spot in the Central by two points, the Blues have a game in hand. The Preds are one point behind Calgary for the first Wild Card slot.
- Impact Game(s) Tonight - None… all eastern conference action in a light night for the NHL. Enjoy the NCAA Championship Game.
Matchup chances - This is really wide open right now… There are three possible places for Nashville to finish… If they finish 3rd in the Central, they will play the Minnesota Wild (% Chance = 3.6%). If they finish in the first Wild Card slot, they would probably play the winner of the Pacific Division, whoever that ends up being! The three team schmozle in that race will make it impossible to predict. Chances for each of the teams… San Jose = 1.3%, Anaheim = 21.3%, Edmonton = 15.7% If the Preds finish in the second wild card, they will play Chicago (58.2%). Matchup chances are from SportsClubStats.com
- If the Playoffs Started Today - As the 8 seed in the West, the Predators would play the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round.
- Teams that have clinched playoff spots - With Nashville clinching the last Western Conference spot, attention turns to the battle in the East and playoff seeding. 13 down, 3 to go… Washington, Chicago, Columbus, Pittsburgh, Minnesota, New York Rangers, Anaheim, San Jose, Edmonton, Montreal, Calgary, St. Louis and Nashville have punched their tickets.
- Playoff “Tragic Numbers… - In the East… Tampa Bay = 6, New York Islanders = 4, Carolina = 2. (Stick tap to Damian Echevarrieta for this data)
- It’s time to watch Calgary, if they win out, they will either be in the 3rd Pacific slot or the first wild card. Any other combination puts them in the first wildcard slot… if they lose two of their last three, that could put Nashville in the first wild card slot.
- Ryan Johansen scoring normally means a win for Nashville, but no go yesterday… it’s the first time in 13 games this year the Preds lost when Johansen scored.
- Three games in the NHL tonight, all times CST – 6pm – TOR @ BUF, OTT @ DET. 6:30pm – MTL @ FLA.
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