The Nashville Predators need all the wins they can get, not only to chase down the Winnipeg Jets, but also to hold off the St. Louis Blues. They got a big one on Tuesday night, rallying late to beat the Dallas Stars, 5-3, at the American Airlines Center. Roman Josi scored twice in the third period, breaking a 3-3 tie, to inch the second-place Predators within one point of the first-place Jets. Josi also added an assist on the night, as his latter goal was of the empty-net variety. His first was a little bit of luck, which he admitted after the game, as the puck bounced off of both Esa Lindell and Anton Khudobin, before finding the back of the net.
The Predators also got goals from Brian Boyle, Rocco Grimaldi, and Fillip Forsberg in their 35th victory of the season, giving them 75 points on the season. Pekka Rinne had 36 saves between the pipes, The Stars continued to struggle as of late, going 1-4-1 in their past six games. Despite that, they still hold the top Wild Card spot in the Western Conference, just six points behind the Blues for third place in the Central Division. Lindell and Jason Spezza scored in their 25th loss of the season, while both also recorded an assist on the night. Khudobin made 42 saves on the night, but that was not enough to shut down the Predators, who overcame a 5-1 loss to the Las Vegas Golden Knights from Saturday.
Over in the Eastern Conference, the Montreal Canadiens snapped a four-game losing streak with a 3-2 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets at the Bell Centre. Tomas Tatar had the game-winning goal at 13:08 of the third period, tipping in the go-ahead tally to break a 2-2 tie. Max Domi and Paul Byron also scored in the Canadiens' 32nd victory, while Carey Price made 31 saves in the loss. The win helps Montreal avoid tying their season-long for a losing streak, as they lost five in a row from November 19th-November 27th, a stretch that saw them go 0-3-2.
The Canadiens hold the top Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of the Blue Jackets, who dropped out of third place in the Metropolitan Division. The Pittsburgh Penguins moved back in to that spot with a win over the New Jersey Devils. Sergei Bobrovsky made 29 saves, while Josh Anderson and Nick Foligno scored in the loss. The Jackets now hold a one-point lead on the Carolina Hurricanes for the final Wild Card spot. Carolina was unable to capitalize on the Blue Jackets' loss, as they fell to the New York Rangers.
The Predators also got goals from Brian Boyle, Rocco Grimaldi, and Fillip Forsberg in their 35th victory of the season, giving them 75 points on the season. Pekka Rinne had 36 saves between the pipes, The Stars continued to struggle as of late, going 1-4-1 in their past six games. Despite that, they still hold the top Wild Card spot in the Western Conference, just six points behind the Blues for third place in the Central Division. Lindell and Jason Spezza scored in their 25th loss of the season, while both also recorded an assist on the night. Khudobin made 42 saves on the night, but that was not enough to shut down the Predators, who overcame a 5-1 loss to the Las Vegas Golden Knights from Saturday.
Over in the Eastern Conference, the Montreal Canadiens snapped a four-game losing streak with a 3-2 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets at the Bell Centre. Tomas Tatar had the game-winning goal at 13:08 of the third period, tipping in the go-ahead tally to break a 2-2 tie. Max Domi and Paul Byron also scored in the Canadiens' 32nd victory, while Carey Price made 31 saves in the loss. The win helps Montreal avoid tying their season-long for a losing streak, as they lost five in a row from November 19th-November 27th, a stretch that saw them go 0-3-2.
The Canadiens hold the top Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference, two points ahead of the Blue Jackets, who dropped out of third place in the Metropolitan Division. The Pittsburgh Penguins moved back in to that spot with a win over the New Jersey Devils. Sergei Bobrovsky made 29 saves, while Josh Anderson and Nick Foligno scored in the loss. The Jackets now hold a one-point lead on the Carolina Hurricanes for the final Wild Card spot. Carolina was unable to capitalize on the Blue Jackets' loss, as they fell to the New York Rangers.
