26 January 2024
There was a lot at stake at Xcel Energy Center on Thursday night, and the Wild and Nashville Predators played like it for most of two periods, careful not to make a mistake in a four-point game between division rivals.
Nashville Predators right wing Luke Evangelista (77) skates with the puck as Minnesota Wild right wing Mats Zuccarello defends during the first period of an NHL hockey game Thursday, Jan. 25, 2024, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Then Nashville exploded in the third period.
Alexandre Carrier and Filip Forsberg scored 34 seconds apart to erase a 1-0 deficit early, and Roman Josi deflected a shot off defenseman Brock Faber and past Filip Gustavsson with just more than 8 minutes left as Nashville beat Minnesota, 3-2.
Joel Eriksson Ek and Matt Boldy scored power play goals for Minnesota, and Gustavsson stopped xx of xx shots. Juuse Saros stopped xx shots for the Predators.
It was a missed opportunity for the Wild, who had won four of five games to pull within four points of Nashville for the eighth and final Western Conference playoff spot. Now it’s six points with a game Saturday against the Anaheim Ducks before the weeklong NHL All-Star Game break.
The teams produced a good pace from the start but still seemed tentative, sending few shots on goal and playing to a 0-0 tie until there was 7:16 left in the second period. That’s when Eriksson Ek scored his team-leading 22nd goal of the season, and sixth in his past five games.
The Wild were nearly out of time on a power play chance when former Cretin-Derham Hall star Ryan McDonaugh knocked a puck out of play and was called for delay of game. The Wild didn’t get a shot off during 10 seconds of a two-man advantage but scored when Eriksson Ek deflected a slap shot by Kirill Kaprizov past Saros at 12:44.
The Predators tied it, however, early in the third period — and took their first lead even more quickly.
Alexandre Carrier got behind the Wild defense and took a pass from Yakov Trenin in the high slot before skating right at Gustavsson and firing a snap shot left into the high corner to make it 1-1 at 1:44.
Just 34 seconds later, Filip Forsberg deflected a slap shot from the point by Roman Josi. Gustavsson never saw it, and the Predators were up 2-1 at 2:19.
Boldly scored a power play goal on a snipe from the slot with 3:53 left in regulation, and the Wild pulled Gustavsson with …