Predators hang on against Blackhawks, strengthen hold on West wild card

NASHVILLE --Mikael Granlund had a goal and an assist, and the Nashville Predators held on for a 4-3 win against the Chicago Blackhawks at Bridgestone Arena on Saturday.

Filip Forsberg had two assists, and Juuse Saros made 28 saves for the Predators (43-27-5), who had scored four goals in their previous four games (1-2-1), including a 4-0 loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday.
Nashville remained tied for the first wild card from the Western Conference with the Dallas Stars, who defeated the San Jose Sharks 2-1 later on Saturday. The Vegas Golden Knights, who lost 4-0 to the Edmonton Oilers, are four points back.
"I think we were engaged in the game the way we needed to (be)," Nashville coach John Hynes said. "We were ready to start the game on time. I think it was more to the identity that we want to be able to play with from a readiness standpoint and from a style of game standpoint.
"Coming off the Edmonton game, I think this was a step in the right direction. We're going to have to build on that going into [Sunday's] game against St. Louis."

Patrick Kane had a goal and an assist, and Kevin Lankinen made 30 saves for the Blackhawks (25-39-11), who are 1-7-2 in their past 10 games.
"We were just sloppy," Kane said. "Even when we got the puck back, we gave it away too easy. They're a hard forechecking team. I think Hynes deserves a lot of credit for the way they play. You look at their roster and you think it's a beatable team, but they just play so hard, and he obviously enforces that. So he deserves a lot of credit."
Eeli Tolvanen gave the Predators a 1-0 lead at 3:22 of the first period, scoring on a one-timer from the left face-off circle. It was his first goal in 12 games.
Kane tied it 1-1 at 7:31, capping a 2-on-1 rush with a shot under Saros' legs.
Dominik Kubalik gave Chicago a 2-1 lead at 5:15 of the second period, taking Lukas Reichel's pass at the side of the crease and scoring into an open net. It was the first NHL point for Reichel, who has played 10 games.
"I'm sure it's a relief for him," Chicago coach Derek King said of Reichel, the No. 17 pick in the 2020 NHL Draft. "It was a nice play, a good heads-up play, and that's what we expect. But yeah, him getting that point is going to make him feel better. Give him a little confidence, [so he's] not squeezing the stick as much, thinking, ' got to get points. I got to get points.'"
Roman Josi tied it 2-2 at 5:58, scoring his 20th goal of the season. Josi appeared to score again 1:04 later, but the call on the ice was overturned after Chicago challenged for offside.
"Obviously, we didn't score a lot of goals the last couple games," Josi said. "We didn't like our game against Edmonton. We knew if we played our style, played the right way, we were going to get some goals and we did tonight. Big win for us."

Duchene made it 3-2 at 19:34 on the power play. Granlund found Duchene in the slot from behind the net for his 300th NHL assist.
Granlund then extended the lead to 4-2 at 3:14 of the third period, deflecting a pass from Mattias Ekholm. It was his first goal in 20 games.
"It was a much better effort," Granlund said. "This time of year, the only thing you really care about is those two points and we found a way. It was such a poor effort last game, so it was good to get the correction and step up for this one."
Riley Stillman cut it to 4-3 at 14:31, redirecting Kane's pass.
NOTES:Nashville extended its point streak against Chicago to 14 games (11-0-3), dating to Jan. 9, 2020. … Kane extended his point streak to four games (eight points; three goals, five assists). … Josi is the second Predators defenseman to score 20 goals in a season. Shea Weber did so three times (23 in 2008-09; 23 in 2013-14; 20 in 2015-16). … Duchene scored his 15th power-play goal of the season, setting a Nashville record. ... Predators defenseman Mark Borowiecki returned to the lineup after missing one game with an upper-body injury. He had three blocked shots and three shots on goal in 16:47 of ice time. … Nashville defenseman Jeremy Lauzon left in the first period with an undisclosed injury after getting tangled with Blackhawks defenseman Alex Vlasic at the sideboards. Hynes did not have an update.