Hurricanes defeat Predators in OT in Game 5, take series lead

RALEIGH, N.C. --Jordan Staal scored 2:03 into overtime, and the Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Nashville Predators 3-2 in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup First Round at PNC Arena on Tuesday.

Staal batted the puck out of the air after goalie Juuse Saros stopped a shot from the point by Brett Pesce. The goal came 20 seconds after Alexandre Carrier was called for interference, which ended a Predators power play.
"I was fortunate enough, I easily could have whiffed on that one," Staal said. "I think I got my shaft on it. I was just swinging at it and I got a good bounce."
Martin Necas scored twice, and Alex Nedeljkovic made 23 saves for Carolina, which is the No. 1 seed from the Discover Central Division and leads the series.
"I think we got rewarded tonight," Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "We finally got a bounce, something that went our way that we really haven't had this series. It's that kind of goal you have to have every night."

Yakov Trenin scored twice, and Saros made 34 saves for Nashville, the No. 4 seed, which had won the previous two games each in double overtime.
"I thought it was a hard-fought battle," Predators coach John Hynes said. "Unfortunately, tonight we didn't come out on the right end of the stick. But [I'm] proud of the way we played. We're in a series, so it's on to Game 6."
Teams that win Game 5 after a 2-2 tie are 213-58 (78.5 percent) winning a best-of-7 Stanley Cup Playoff series. Game 6 is at Nashville on Thursday (9:30 p.m. ET; NBCSN, SN360, TVAS, BSSO).
Trenin gave the Predators a 1-0 lead at 11:44 of the first period. After Jani Hakanpää couldn't clear the Hurricanes zone, Roman Josi took a slap shot from the left point that hit Carolina forward Steven Lorentz before fluttering in off Trenin.
"It's such a tight series," Josi said. "There's a lot of chances on both sides, and they just found a way to score in OT tonight. It's a tough loss for us, but we're still in the series and we have to go home and win one."
Necas tied it 1-1 at 14:21 with a wrist shot from the top of the right circle on the power play.
Trenin scored 53 seconds of the second period to make it 2-1, finishing a saucer pass from Colton Sissons on a 2-on-1. Sissons started the play when he gathered an errant drop pass by Pesce in the Predators zone.

Carolina appeared to tie the game at 12:22 when Jaccob Slavin's point shot redirected in off Staal's skate, but Hynes challenged the play for goaltender interference, and the goal was reversed after a video review.
Necas was able to tie it 2-2 at 12:55 of the third period. He received a pass at Carolina's blue line, skated through two defenders in the neutral zone, and held off Matt Duchene as he circled the net and tucked a wraparound inside the left post.
"At first, I was for sure looking for somebody else," Necas said. "I had a little speed, and I saw that Saros was pretty far from his crease. I saw there was an opportunity for that. Fortunately, it worked."
Brind'Amour said, "We definitely have talent, and you're going to get one of those Necas goals every seven or eight games. The talent got us back in the game, basically a solo effort. It got us back to have a chance to win the game."
Slavin returned to the lineup after missing three games with a lower-body injury. He had the primary assist on Necas' second goal plus two hits and one block in a game-high 26:08 of ice time.
"I definitely get more nervous watching than being out there in the action," Slavin said. "But it felt good to get back out there tonight and we got a huge win."
NOTES:Predators forward Viktor Arvidsson missed his third straight game with an upper-body injury. ... Staal's goal was the second playoff overtime goal of his NHL career. He scored in a 1-0 win against the New York Islanders in Game 1 of the 2019 Eastern Conference Second Round. ... The home team has won each game in the series.