New Jersey 5, Nashville 4
When: 2:00 PM ET, Saturday, December 3, 2016
Where: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tennessee
Referees:
Tom Chmielewski, Dan O'Rourke
Linesmen:
Darren Gibbs, Brad Kovachik
Attendance:
17113
By The Sports Xchange
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The New Jersey Devils got one shot in overtime and made it count.
Michael Cammalleri's second goal of the day at 4:42 capped a rally from a three-goal deficit Saturday as New Jersey stunned the Nashville Predators 5-4 at Bridgestone Arena.
After Nashville controlled the puck most of the extra session, Taylor Hall finally got it and roared down the right side with Cammalleri to his left. Hall set him up and Cammalleri made no mistake with his wrister into a partially open net as the Devils (11-8-6) snapped a four-game losing streak.
"We really needed this win, especially on the road," Hall said. "Even though they had the puck the majority of the time in overtime, I felt like we were on the right side. We were forcing shots that (goaltender) Keith (Kinkaid) could stop, and they got too far into our end and let us have a 2-on-1."
The result snapped a six-game home winning streak for Nashville (11-8-4), which appeared headed for another easy home victory when it took a three-goal lead to the third period. At that stage, the Predators had outscored the opposition 39-14 at home, and had dominated the second period, extending a one-goal edge to three.
In fact, Nashville almost made it 5-1 just before the second period ended, but Kinkaid stoned Calle Jarnkrok on a Grade-A chance in the slot.
"They upped their compete level in the second period and we didn't match it," New Jersey coach John Hynes said. "We just talked about getting ourselves back in the game, getting our intensity level back where it needs to be."
The Devils' response? Try two goals in the third period's first 55 seconds, an outburst that shaped the game's remainder, even as the Predators kept pouring shots toward Kinkaid.
Cammalleri started the comeback by scoring off the rebound of Andy Greene's shot at the 25-second mark, making it 4-2. Greene followed up Vernon Fiddler's shot by slamming the rebound by Pekka Rinne at 55 seconds to make it a one-goal game and force a timeout from Nashville coach Peter Laviolette.
Laviolette's stern pep talk might have inspired more attacking, but it did nothing to change the momentum shift. Kinkaid kept the deficit at one with some clutch stops, and his teammates equalized when given a man advantage.
With Craig Smith in the box for hooking, Adam Henrique tallied his fifth goal at 12:37 with a wrister from the right faceoff circle, his fifth of the season. Kinkaid preserved the tie for regulation's remainder with tough saves on Roman Josi and Colin Wilson.
Cammalleri's textbook finish on Hall's pass enabled New Jersey to salvage a win from its four-game road trip and win a road game for the first time since Nov. 15 in Dallas.
"We know as a group that we have to get two points instead of one, and we were able to do that tonight," Hynes said.
Kinkaid (3-1-2) stopped 38 shots to earn the win, while Rinne (10-5-4) made just 17 saves in his first game after earning the NHL's First Star for November with a 9-1-2 record, 1.49 goals-against average and a .949 save percentage.
It was a bitter loss for the Predators, who were trying to push their record over .500 for the first time since winning the season opener over Chicago on Oct. 14.
"It's an ugly, ugly way to lose a game," Laviolette said. "It's a terrible feeling for everyone involved."
Wasted in the loss was Kevin Fiala's second two-goal game of the season. He started the scoring at 16:14 of the first period by deflecting Matt Irwin's wrister, then made it 3-1 at 6:02 of the second with a tap-in tally off Smith's perfect setup to the goalmouth.
P.K. Subban and Josi also scored for Nashville, while Hall had the Devils' first goal in just his second game back from injury.
NOTES: New Jersey placed LW Reid Boucher on waivers and Nashville snapped him up Saturday morning. The 23-year old Boucher played in nine games with the Devils this year, collecting a pair of assists. ... The Predators recalled D Matt Pardy and RW Miikka Salomaki from their AHL affiliate in Milwaukee Saturday morning. Salomaki sustained a lower-body injury while with the Admirals Friday night on a conditioning assignment. ... New Jersey scratches were D Jon Merrill, C Jacob Josefson and C Sergey Kalinin. ... Nashville scratched Pardy and LW Pontus Aberg.
Top Game Performances
New Jersey |
|
Nashville |
Taylor Hall 3 |
Points |
Kevin Fiala 2 |
Michael Cammalleri 2 |
Goals |
Kevin Fiala 2 |
Taylor Hall 2 |
Assists |
Mike Ribeiro 2 |
Adam Henrique 1 |
Power Play Goals |
N/A |
N/A |
Short Handed Goals |
N/A |
Keith Kinkaid .905 |
Save Percentage |
Pekka Rinne .773 |
Keith Kinkaid 38 |
Saves |
Pekka Rinne 17 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Shots |
Goals |
Power Play |
Penalty Kill |
Penalty Mins |
Face Offs Won |
New Jersey
|
22 |
5 |
1-3 |
2-2 |
6 |
36 |
Nashville
|
42 |
4 |
0-2 |
2-3 |
8 |
43 |
Upcoming Games
-
Nashville will play their next game at home against Philadelphia. The Predators have a W/L % of .364 after a win and .583 after a loss.
-
New Jersey will play their next game at home against Vancouver. The Devils have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .429 after a loss.