The Predators play a strong first period, but give up four goals in the second and fall 6-2 in Game 5. Read & Watch
Cinco de Mayo turned out to be less of a party than hoped for — or expected, for that matter.
A four-goal flurry helped push the Nashville Predators to the brink of elimination as they suffered a 6-2 loss to Winnipeg on Saturday evening at Bridgestone Arena.
The series shifts back to Winnipeg for Monday’s Game 6 with the Jets holding a 3-2 series lead.
The first period was filled with plenty of offensive chances for the Predators - none of which were buried - and plenty of energy. Winnipeg had one early surge, but beyond that, the Jets were mostly fending off waves of Nashville attacks for the opening 20 minutes.
The Jets scored first with 12:16 to go in the second period when Patrik Laine’s shot redirected off of Paul Statsny’s glove and in the net.
Yannick Weber, who just a couple of moments earlier had thwarted a sure Jets goal, tied the game with a wrist shot above Hellebuyck’s blocker.
A scramble in front of Rinne led to Kyle Connor giving Winnipeg back the lead with 7:30 to play in the second. Not long thereafter, the Preds failed to clear the puck after a wild scramble in front of Rinne and Dustin Byfuglien blasted a shot home from the right point to push Winnipeg’s lead to 3-1.
Nashville inability to clear the puck led to another goal from Connor, putting the Preds in an even deeper hole.
Ryan Johansen pulled the Preds back within two with a shorthanded goal after Arvidsson took the game’s first penalty late in the second period.
Mark Schifele buried a chance 28 seconds into the third period after Connor turned Johansen around to create space for the setup pass.
Nashville’s first power play chance came and went without any really good scoring chances. Shortly thereafter, Ryan Hartman had a breakaway chance and was unable to get a shot away. He then went to the box for interference moments later.
Juuse Saros relieved Rinne after Winnipeg’s sixth goal, which came off of Mathieu Perrault’s stick 6:23 into the third, and had 13:37 of scoreless work.
Random Observations
Bridgestone Arena is a no-licking zone. Except for ice cream.
Also, even though it is Saturday night, 8:30 games are becoming old hat. But, if the Preds continue to win said late starts, it will bode well for them later on.
Fake noise. Yeah, right.
The lineup swapping contines as Fiala is back in for Hartnell. Meanwhile, Mathieu Perrault makes his series debut after missing the Jets’ last eight games.
Yikes, Lady A. It’s okay, though. They’ll get over that.
Somehow, someway, Hellebuyck kept Turris off the board on that rebound.
Preds really keeping things toward the Winnipeg zone early on. Good to see.
And yet, Winnipeg holds a 5-2 shots on goal advantage through 10 minutes. Preds have been wide quite a bit early on.
A couple of times, pucks have gotten tangled up in between feet right in the crease in front of Hellebuyck. So many good chances and can’t connect.
Preds are doing the little things well so far. Except finishing. It’s reminiscent of Game 1, and that’s not a good thing.
Pat Sajak in the house. Preds don’t need to buy a vowel, but they do need to buy a goal, though.
Peter Laviolette sending Forsberg out with Turris and Smith early in the second period.
Mike Fisher has been good so far tonight.
Sometimes Pekka Rinne does things that make your jaw hit the ground. That stick save on the wraparound attempt is one of those things.
Wait, that was indeed Yannick Weber that saved a goal.
But a slight breakdown led to the first goal as Statsny was left alone in front.
Yannick Weber has come to play, ladies and gentlemen.
This thing’s gotten too helter-skelter and the Jets like it that way.
Apparently the answer to the problem is go shorthanded and let Joey handle it.
Yeah, those chances the Preds didn’t bury in the first period have indeed come back to haunt them. Hard to think that it didn’t deflate them.
Great move by Connor to set up Schifele for that goal. That’s a dagger.
This series is on the defense. Aside from an excellent effort in Game 4, they’ve been atrocious in the series and Roman Josi is chief among the disappointments.
So much for home-ice advantage. Then again, that’s really been these entire Stanley Cup Playoffs, not just this series.
Basically, this is the biggest blown opportunity this franchise has ever had. They’re going to have their backs against the wall in Winnipeg against a team with an entire country behind it.
Three Stars of the Game
Weber. A goal-saving play and a goal of his own. Lone bright spot for the Preds tonight. Johansen. Shorthanded goal and looked confident early. Saros. Two-thirds of a period of relief and he kept his end of the bargain again.
Postgame Reaction
Subban on what experience the team can pull from entering an elimination game:
“We’re a character group. We’ve got a ton of experience in here. We’ve had our backs against the wall before and we’re going to go to Winnipeg, we’re going to win a game and we’re going to come back here. Every single guy in here believes that, so for us we’ve got to park this real quick and just get ready to win a Game 6 on the road. It’s going to be a great atmosphere, it’s going to be great for a way to build a lot of character in that game and bring it back here.”
Austin Watson on if there was any concern after the first period following a lot of missed scoring chances:
“There’s not enough time on the bench or in the game to really think about much else but your next shift. We just wanted to keep doing the same things. Kudos to (Hellebuyck), he made some big saves there in the first period and early part of the second, and they capitalized on some chances.
Josi on if there’s any sense of panic following the loss:
“No. I don’t think so. There’s no panic. I think we all know what we have to do. There’s no panic, no panic in the room. We’re a pretty confident group ... (Winnipeg) got a couple of bounces and got a couple of goals, but we’ve got to try to stick to our game plan.”
Johansen on giving the Jets too many high-danger chances near the crease:
“That’s how they scored a couple of their goals. It felt like one small breakdown and it just cost us. We’ve just got to stick with our plan and try to win a hockey game up in Winnipeg.”
Peter Laviolette on going back to Winnipeg facing an elimination game:
“We had to go to Winnipeg anyway, right? The plane’s already booked and we’re ready to go. There’s no group that I’d rather be with to win one hockey game than this group.”
Tweets of the Night
Welp. We’re human too y’all ♂️ ♀️ ♂️ We’re still rooting for ya Preds!!! #smashville pic.twitter.com/0fWw5EqV8R — Lady Antebellum (@ladyantebellum) May 6, 2018
I need at least forty more minutes of this along with Pekka being good, ty https://t.co/HQCgbCn933 — Marya (@_marya_k) May 6, 2018
Always cool to have this guy back in town. pic.twitter.com/KY076eOgtg — Dan (@DanDBradley) May 6, 2018
Didn’t we use to be good at 2nd periods? — On The Forecheck (@OnTheForecheck) May 6, 2018
Can I revise my @OnTheForecheck postseason prediction to predict that Scheifele, instead of Wheeler, is going to get the Conn Smythe? — Kate (@statswithkate) May 6, 2018
Shameful. At some point, you have to expect more out of the team. Being outclassed in your own arena in a game five like this is shameful. — Dan (@DanDBradley) May 6, 2018
Game Extras
CLOSE Ivan Santamaria and Deborah Glenn Powers, aka GMA, stop for a chance to cheer on the Predators before Game 5. Autumn Allison, USA TODAY NETWORK- Tennessee
Nashville Predators center Nick Bonino (13) and goaltender Pekka Rinne (35) defend against Winnipeg Jets center Andrew Copp (9) during the second period of Game 5 of the second round NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena, Saturday, May 5, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn. (Photo: Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com)
It was 25 minutes of Nashville domination with nothing to show for it, then another one of those second-period Winnipeg flurries with the Predators collapsing and the Jets crushing.
Kind of like Game 1. Kind of like Game 3. But Game 5 was its own special kind of misery in Bridgestone Arena, which could not have been more primed Saturday night for the series-defining victory that ended up in the hands of the other team.
More: Predators teetering on edge of elimination after blowout Game 5 loss to Jets
The Jets got loose, as they’ll do if you let them, and put four goals on the board in less than 10 minutes in the second. There would be no ensuing drama — Winnipeg rolled from there to a 6-2 stunner to go up 3-2 in the Western Conference semifinals. The Jets are home Monday with a promising opportunity to advance and to end the Predators’ season well short of expectations.
"It's going to be awesome," said Winnipeg goalie Connor Hellebuyck, who kept his team even in the first period despite waves of Nashville chances. "Our home fans have been waiting for this for a while."
Of course, every game of this series has departed significantly from its predecessor, leaving us at this point to simply wait and see what’s next without preconceived notions. The Predators came apart in humiliating fashion in Game 5. Pekka Rinne was pulled early in the third for Juuse Saros, a mercy move more than anything because everything in front of Rinne was going wrong.
But the Predators aren’t technically done until they’re done. They need a road win Monday to force a Game 7, back home Thursday. The Nashville locker room could not produce a solid explanation for what had just happened late Saturday night, but it did produce some bold words about the next game.
CLOSE P.K. Subban was adamant that the Nashville Predators were "going go to Winnipeg, win a game and come back here' to complete the series. Autumn Allison, USA TODAY NETWORK- Tennessee
"We're going to go there, we're going to win a game, we're going to come back here," said Preds defenseman P.K. Subban, who uttered that sentiment three straight times, regardless of the questions that came at him. "It's that simple."
Need some manufactured sunshine to go with that semi-guarantee? Nashville was the NHL’s best road team in the regular season. The Predators have been better in hostile environments than their own this postseason — 3-2 away, 3-3 at home, after they went 9-2 in Bridgestone a year ago on the way to the Stanley Cup Final. They stifled the Jets in Game 4 at MTS Bell Place, 2-1, to set up the opportunity they just squandered. The home team in this series is 2-3.
More: Lady Antebellum sings national anthem before Game 5 against Winnipeg
Those are the numbers that give hope. There are others that make it seem slim. Stanley Cup playoff history tells us teams that win Game 5 of a tied series go on to win it 79 percent of the time. Nashville Predators playoff history tells us they have never won a series that they trailed 2-1 — they are 0-9 all-time and one loss away from making it 0-10. Not that either of those historical trends necessarily apply to this, the best Predators team in franchise history.
Nashville Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne (35) stands near the bench in the second period of Game 5 of the second round NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena, Saturday, May 5, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn. (Photo: George Walker IV / Tennessean.com)
It’s a team that has always answered when absolutely necessary and now must do so twice to overcome Winnipeg. The numbers that really sting after this one are as follows — 26 shots on Rinne and six past him. Just like in Game 3, the defense in front of him was disastrous. The Predators needed him to bail them out once things started going sideways, and he couldn’t do it.
"We're giving them way too much, too many great chances," said Nashville captain Roman Josi, the leader of a defense corps that has not played nearly as well as needed overall through five games. "Tonight you saw it again, the goals, they're all like backdoor, empty net, rebounds in front of the net. I mean, they're a dangerous team, they're going to get their chances, but we've got to make sure we stay calm. ... There's no panic. We know what we have to do. There's no panic in the room."
More: 5-year-old with new heart lives out dream by tossing catfish on ice at Predators game
So let’s review. The Predators dominated the territorial battle at home in Game 1, outshooting the Jets 48-19, and lost largely because Hellebuyck outplayed Rinne. The Jets played better in Game 2, overcame deficits three times, forced overtime with 65 seconds left in regulation, but lost on a swooping Kevin Fiala goal. The Predators rolled to a 3-0 lead in Game 3 at Winnipeg, lost that lead in less time than it takes to spell Byfuglien without cheating, and ultimately fell 7-4 in a cloud of ill-timed penalties.
Winnipeg Jets center Mathieu Perreault (85) celebrates his goal with Winnipeg Jets left wing Nikolaj Ehlers (27) who got the assist during the third period of Game 5 of the second round NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena, Saturday, May 5, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn. (Photo: George Walker IV / Tennessean.com)
Peter Laviolette made a surprise move for Game 4, sitting Fiala and putting Scott Hartnell in his place. Nashville gummed up the Jets, turned them to paper airplanes, and Rinne did the rest to even things. Laviolette switched back for Game 5, Hartnell out and Fiala in. Fiala was flying around and the return of an end-to-end game seemed to suit the Predators. Until it really, really didn’t.
"We played hockey not too much after that," Laviolette said of the second-period takeover.
Also in the second, Yannick Weber ripped one past Hellebuyck after a neutral-zone takeaway and Ryan Johansen scored short-handed, or the third period would have been meaningless. As it was, Mark Scheifele took a pass from Kyle Connor and got an easy one past Rinne 32 seconds into the third with Johansen and Subban crossed up on a 2-on-2. That killed the idea of any late dramatics.
Nashville Predators left wing Kevin Fiala (22) moves the puck in the second period of Game 5 of the second round NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena, Saturday, May 5, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn. (Photo: Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com)
I wouldn’t go so far as to say Laviolette erred and cost his team. If the Predators cash in early this might be a totally different kind of game. His magical touch lost some zing, though. Stylistically, the first 25 minutes was the game the Predators employed to win their first Central Division and the Presidents' Trophy. But Hartnell’s brutish touch around the boards seemed to be a source of inspiration in Game 4.
In every inch of Bridgestone other than on the ice, this was a championship effort. Well, except Lady Antebellum botching the lyrics to the national anthem. Blame them if you like. Otherwise, the place was perfectly primed on a rainy Cinco de Mayo on Broadway. Catfish flew. Scott Hamilton got the towels waving. The noise was plentiful and, as always, real.
At least the people who love the Predators can say they did all they could. The Predators sure couldn't. But one of them is now on record that they're going to find a way to make it so Saturday wasn’t the last home gathering until next fall.
Contact Joe Rexrode at jrexrode@tennessean.com and follow him on Twitter @joerexrode.
CLOSE P.K. Subban was adamant that the Nashville Predators were "going go to Winnipeg, win a game and come back here' to complete the series. Autumn Allison, USA TODAY NETWORK- Tennessee
Winnipeg Jets center Paul Stastny (25) reacts to scoring against the Nashville Predators during the second period of Game 5 of the second round NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena, Saturday, May 5, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn. (Photo: Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com)
Maybe it was a sign, the multi-platinum country group flubbing the words to the national anthem.
“We’re human too y’all,” Lady Antebellum tweeted, vocalist Charles Kelly’s face buried in his hands. So are the Predators, who spared Lady Antebellum the indignity of having the most regrettable performance on the Bridgestone Arena ice surface Saturday.
The Predators came up small when it mattered most. There's no other way to put their shameful 6-2 loss to the Winnipeg Jets, which has their historic season teetering on the edge of elimination.
“It just felt like every bounce went their way,” Predators defenseman P.K. Subban said. “Can we be better? Of course. We’ve got to be a lot better. But just seemed like every time we made a mistake, it ended up in the back of our net.
Rexrode: Buried on Broadway: Predators destroyed by Jets in Game 5
"Fact of the matter is we had to go to Winnipeg anyway. We’re going to go there, we’re going to win a game and come back here. It’s that simple.”
If the Predators have any intention of returning to Nashville with their season alive, then they’ll have to outshine a highly motivated Jets team seeking its first trip to a conference final in front of a delirious crowd.
That certainly won't happen if the Predators reproduce their calamitous second and third periods from Saturday, which were best watched through your fingers.
More: 5-year-old with new heart lives out dream by tossing catfish on ice at Predators game
With nothing to show for a dominant first period in which they accounted for 12 of 13 scoring chances at even strength, the Predators broke down in the defensive zone. The Jets, too good not to take advantage, feasted on bobbled pucks and lapses in coverage by scoring three consecutive goals in fewer than five minutes.
Jets rookie forward Kyle Connor, who starred with three points Saturday, effectively ended the game when he capped that run with his second goal off a slick pass from captain Blake Wheeler.
More: Lady Antebellum stumbles over lyrics before Game 5 against Winnipeg
“It’s tough because you don’t hate your game there at that point, either,” Predators forward Austin Watson said. “All of a sudden, you look up at the scoreboard and it’s 4-1.”
Nashville Predators center Ryan Johansen (92) shoots while Winnipeg Jets center Mark Scheifele (55) helps Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck (37) guard the goal during the first period of Game 5 of the second round NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena, Saturday, May 5, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn. (Photo: Andrew Nelles / Tennessean.com)
The Predators have been in this situation before. They just won in Winnipeg, where they're the only team to do so in the past two-plus months.
That all sounds nice, but they have no choice but to do it.
“There’s no group that I’d rather be with to win one hockey game than this group," Predators coach Peter Laviolette said. "This group’s been built for a game like the one that’s coming up. I’ve got a tremendous amount of confidence. I believe in them. I know that they believe in each other.”
Reach Adam Vingan at avingan@tennessean.com and on Twitter @AdamVingan.
