Time for the last home Sunday Shots of the regular season as SlapShot Radio’s intrepid photographer was out and about yesterday at Bridgestone Arena, capturing the color and the action…
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| From Predators vs Stars April 4, 2015 |
Now this game had it all, well, almost... Lead changes, solid goaltending, a stirring comeback and … a loss for the home team in overtime on a penalty shot? Yup… that’s what happened last night in Nashville’s 4-3 loss to Dallas. The last act of a desperate team that refuses to get the fact that its playoff dreams are dead, the Stars had their typical excellent second period… and their typical third period meltdown to make sure the game went to overtime. That OT point could be critical for Nashville.
Hard to fault Mattias Ekholm for trying to breakup the breakaway and full marks to Cody Eakin for making his opportunity count. But, as these losses mount, an 0-1-2 home stand for a team that has dominated at home, difficulties holding a lead… all things that give Pred Nation pause
The point is important, but there is a question burning in the collective mind of Pred Nation. Does this team have a “playoff gear?… It is hard to tell as the Predators have known that they will be in the playoffs for quite awhile. I know I have found myself saying “could we please get the playoffs going? But that next gear one is a nagging question that simply will not go away.
The team has been dinged up a bit, the return of three veterans to the Nashville lineup certainly made a difference as Shea Weber, Matt Cullen and James Neal all returned from injuries last night. James Neal played well and tied the game with his 23rd of the year and Filip Forsberg took advantage last night potting one and assisting on another. Getting that top line back on track will be critical for any kind of playoff run. Having the captain back, blasting away from the point was a very good thing.
The Predators came into last night with control of their destiny in their hands… win out and they have home ice at least through the Western Conference finals and as a bonus, they would get a couple of banners in the rafters of Bridgestone Arena… unfortunately that slipped through their fingers for now.
Three games remain, the team leaves for Colorado tomorrow for Tuesday’s game against the Avalanche, then return home for a potential first round preview game against the Minnesota Wild before finishing the season in Dallas on Saturday. Win out and they finish with 110 points… St. Louis would have to win out to finish ahead of the Preds (that would include two wins over Chicago) and Chicago would have to win out to finish tied in points with the Preds but Nashville currently owns the tie-breaker.
Lots of hockey left to play.
Here are your highlights from nhl.com
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Random Notes
- Standings update after play on 4/4 – Nashville continues to lead the Central Division lead with 104 points, St. Louis trails by one point with 103. Anaheim leads the Western Conference with 107 points. Chicago is four points behind the Preds. The Blackhawks and Blues play each other tonight, that represents the game in hand both have over Nashville, the Preds have a game in hand over Anaheim.
- The Western Wild Card – Minnesota (78 games played) owns the first wild card slot with 96 points, the Los Angeles Kings (78) are in the second slot with 92 points. The Calgary Flames (79) own the third slot in the Pacific Division. The Winnipeg Jets (78) are tied with LA, but they lose the tie-breaker with LA.
- Who Should Pred Nation Root for Tonight? – One game draws the focus… St. Louis at Chicago. This should be appointment viewing, starting at 6:30pm on NBCSN. These two teams play twice before the end of the season, root for a split, both games ending in regulation. Blues win one, Hawks win one is the best result for Fans of the Fang.
- SportsClubStats has the following percentages for potential Preds playoff partners for round one… Chicago – 38.1%, Minnesota – 28.2%, St. Louis – 21.8%, Winnipeg – 6.4%, Los Angeles – 3.2%.
- Mike Ribeiro’s assist on James Neal’s game tying goal was the 500th of his NHL career.
- Filip Forsberg’s two points last night ties him with Calgary’s Johnny Gaudreau for the rookie points lead. Forsberg leads the rookie goal scoring race with 24 over Gaudreau’s 22.
- With three games to play, Mike Fisher is one goal away from being the fifth Predator scoring 20 this season.
- Four playoff spots are clinched in the West. There are five teams realistically battling for those four slots.
- I know that the Philadelphia Flyers are out of the playoffs again, but they have a chance today to do some real damage to the Pittsburgh Penguins playoff hopes. The Penguins are in free fall, they are currently in the first Wild Card slot and in danger of slipping down further. And here we thought that Boston may be the one to drop out. National TV for this one on NBC.
- Congrats to Team USA, the American women won the World’s with a 7-5 win over Canada. That is Team USA’s fifth championship in the last seven years.
- Five games in the NHL today – Penguins @ Flyers, Capitals @ Red Wings, Canadiens @ Panthers, Senators @ Maple Leafs, Blues @ Blackhawks.
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