Duchene scores in shootout as Preds hold off Canucks

*Photo from the San Diego Union Tribune*

   They certainly lived up to their team name in this game. Philip Tomasino scored, Matt Duchene scored the game winner, and the Nashville Predators defeated the Vancouver Canucks with a 5-4 shootout victory on Tuesday night in Nashville.

   Entering the game having lost 3 of their last 4, the Predators picked up a gutsy win at home, surviving a late push from the Canucks to get the win. Juuso Parssinen was the only multi point scorer with a two assist game. 9 other Nashville skaters registered a point.

   Predators head coach John Hynes said after the game that "When you get to four, you’ve got to be able to close out the game. They had some breaks. They did a good job, too. I think on the six-on-five, we had multiple shot blocks, couldn’t get the clear on it. Guys were exhausted. They wound up making a good play."

   Cole Smith scored the only goal of the first period, giving the Predators a 1-0 lead on his 3rd goal of the season. Tomasino scored his first goal of the season to double the Nashville lead to 2-0 with a second period power play goal. Andrei Kuzmenko and Sheldon Dries scored for the Canucks to tie the game before Nino Niederreiter scored for Nashville to make it 3-2 after two periods.

   Mikael Granlund gave the Predators a 4-2 lead thanks to a goal 7:47 into the 3rd period, assisted by Parssinen and Cody Glass. Conor Garland scored with 1:07 left in regulation to make it 4-3, then Kuzmenko scored with 16 seconds left to tie the game. Kuzmenko and Elias Pettersson couldn't score in the shootout for Vancouver, with Duchene being the only Predator to score in the shootout.

   Tomasino said of scoring his first goal that "Obviously, it was nice to get that first one out of the way, and I think it was a big goal for our group and for our unit, especially. I think we've had some good looks the last few games and haven't been able to click. Obviously, great play by Parssinen to feed me there."

   Getting the start in net for Nashville was Juuse Saros, who improved to 21-16-5 in 42 starts with the win. Saros stopped 35 of the 39 shots he saw from the Canucks in regulation and OT, good for a .897 save percentage.

   Starting for the Canucks opposite Saros was Collin Delia, who couldn't outduel his counterpart. Delia turned aside 22 out of the 26 shots on goal the Predators had, recording a .846 save percentage. His record now stands at 7-4-2 in 13 starts.

   Canucks forward JT Miller said of the loss that "We played a really good road game. A couple of breakdowns, but for the majority of the game I thought we outplayed them. A really solid game, a good character comeback. Once you get past the end of regulation, it's kind of a crapshoot from that point. We battled really hard tonight. Good character stuff."

   Both teams resume their schedules with road showdowns on Thursday night. Saros is the likely starter for the Predators as they face the San Jose Sharks, while Delia is projected to start for the Canucks against the St. Louis Blues.