Predators best Kings in OT stunner

I gained a huge amount of respect for the Nashville Predators last postseason, and not just because I wanted them to beat the Penguins very badly. Among many other things, I liked their spirit. Tonight, not so much. After welcoming back Dave “Tiger” Williams for the first Legends Night (and here to up introduce him was Bob Miller! Bob Miller sighting Y’all!) the Kings had a good chance to take an early lead when 2:11 in they had a power play and had shown some good chemistry. Yeah… About that… Somehow said chemistry evaporated as soon as they found themselves with the man advantage, unable to connect on passes or even stay in their offensive zone. Andy Andreoff took Williams comments on the rulebook being too thick to heart, perhaps trying to beat Williams all-time NHL penalty minutes in a single game, when he picked the first fight of the evening 4:26 minutes in. If this was a more effective man outer or if he had any other tricks up his sleeve in a league where fighting doesn’t win you games anymore, I’d be less frustrated with him. MacDermid, however, knows how to use his force, smashing a guy so hard into the boards his helmet was still rocketing around the ice several minutes later. Cody McCloud took offense and picked a fight which MacDermid returned, only he drew the Kings the extra penalty. McCloud for instigating against him. This power play and much more bite to it; passes were connecting and causing a lot of movement for the Predators defense, but no shots made it past that red line into the net. Inevitably, therefore, with the Kings outshooting them 11 to 1, the Predators would draw first blood. Flip Forsberg flipped a pass through that whole neutral zone to Smith, who found himself alone in front of Darcy Keumper, with two Kings behind him unable to stop his shot from jetting past Keumper. (Folin was in a position to defend, but a patch of rough ice cost him his footing at the crucial moment.) P.K. Subban followed up with a shot that went through two Kings legs, including Muzzin who was screening Keumper so superbly you’d think he was a Predator. They had 2 goals on 3 shots. It wasn’t pretty. The racked up a few more to boost Keumper’s save percentage, but it didn’t help that the Kings shots were racking up just as quickly with nothing to show for it. The Kings closed out the period with a MacDermid penalty, split at least between the first and the second.

After successfully killing the remaining 42 seconds of the MacDermid penalty, the second period should have been off to a good start. If only the Kings could get started. They had no chemistry all period. The couldn’t exit their zone with any confidence, neatness or efficiency. In fact, for a few minutes after a Drew Doughty penalty (unsportsmanlike conduct for chirping a ref after the play), I had to question if the penalty was in fact over. Not to mention a third Predators goal in which Flip Forsberg (whom on any other occasion I thoroughly enjoy watching) sidestepped Toffoli and Folin to get the puck to a waiting and undefeated Smith, who beat Keumper clean over his glove. I felt like I’d taken a trip back in time to last season where playing a backup goaltender, or a team tired from being on heir second night of a back to back spelled inevitable doom instead of a steamroll win. Indeed the Kings weren’t playing like the team Steven has brought back to life. A Pearson drew power play furthered my time travel fears; unless a power play is where the other team is supposed to send the puck flying down the other end of the ice all the time leaving the Kings scrambling? Even when they could put together a few successful passes, they couldn’t buy a goal. Kopitar had several grade-A chances that gave me eerie flashbacks when they didn’t go in. Keumper closed out the period with some big, timely saves, but alas they didn’t spur the Kings onto a much-needed comeback goal before the second closed out.

It only took 16 seconds of the third period to get it though. Alex Iafallo, whom I have thoroughly enjoyed watching play with Dustin Brown and Anze Kopitar (though for the third period Brown had switched lines with Toffoli), finally notched his first NHL goal, a stunning rebound from Kopitar’s shot that had plenty of space to slide past Saros. 5 minutes later Folin notched his first as a King – a play as stunning as it was confusing. Having had it pointed out to him that Saros left the net early when the Kings dumped the puck, Folin looked like that’s exactly what he was going to do. As Saros left the net, Folin slapped the shot in from practically the red line into a wide open net and the game was suddenly within the Kings grasp. Brown did his part to try and tie it up, staying out for extended shifts and never giving up on the puck. He did not quit and I would have loved to see him rewarded. Drew Doughty had an extra spring in his skates, skating faster than I’ve ever seen him. It was ironically Subban who gave the Kings the chance to tie up the game; he was displeased with his penalty and even less pleased when Alec Martinez scored on it. He was itching for the puck the whole time and made it count when it found his stick; Jazz Hands struck with accuracy and force from the blue line. Tied game, 7:44 seconds remaining. And what a tense 7:44 it was. With about 4 minutes remaining I was practically begging for overtime, just to get the extra point. Around 2 minutes when Adrien Kempe had a series of stellar shots on goal I wished I could take that begging back. Then when overtime came, it didn’t go as expected. The Kings were 25-8 in OT, the best record in the league, and the Predators were 6-21, the worst. So of course after Muzzin saved the game when the puck ended up in the air behind Keumper, and after Keumper nearly pushed in a Forsberg shot in himself but managed to cover, there was a neutral zone turnover by Kopitar and Arvidsson capitalized. One on one Keumper was lacking this evening, and Arvidsson was all on his own with 20 seconds remaining on the clock. A disappointing end, but a well-earned point all the same. This team isn’t giving up this season, and it’s wonderful to watch.