Duchene, Saros Star in Shootout as Preds Sweep Back-to-Back with Chicago

Two nights, two wins.
Juuse Saros was perfect in the shootout, and the Nashville Predators defeated the Chicago Blackhawks, 2-1, on Wednesday evening at Bridgestone Arena. The result gives the Preds four points in a two-game sweep over the Hawks, their fourth win of the season and the top spot in the Central Division.
Matt Duchene scored the lone goal in the shootout and shared the role of hero in his 800th NHL game, and Nick Cousins helped the Preds get there with his first goal in a Nashville uniform.
Wednesday's effort, combined with Tuesday's overtime win against Chicago, left a much different feeling than what the Predators left Dallas with after two disappointing losses. Now, they find themselves playing back into their identity, and that's exactly what they wanted to do at home against the Hawks.

"Confidence is a big thing in this League, and I don't think anybody was happy with the way they played Dallas," Cousins said. "That's not who we are as a team, and that was unacceptable. Coming back home was kind of a chance to reset and play Chicago back-to-back… I thought we played them hard and didn't give them much in the offensive zone. In our defensive zone, I thought we were tight, we closed quick and Juice [Saros] made some big saves when called upon, so we've just got to keep it going."
"We got rewarded for playing good hockey," Duchene said. "Tonight, they had a better game tonight, they pushed back harder tonight, and they were definitely stingy and didn't give up as much, but we imposed some will on them again tonight."

The first 45 minutes of the game belonged to Saros and Blackhawks goaltender Kevin Lankinen, as they turned aside every shot, but five minutes into the third, Cousins found twine. The winger converted on a 2-on-1 for his first with the Preds and a 1-0 lead. Exactly four minutes later, Ryan Carpenter solved Saros and got Chicago on the board as well.

After overtime solved nothing, the Preds went to a shootout for the first time this season, and Duchene tallied on a beautiful backhander, while Saros stopped all three Hawks he faced to collect his third victory of the season.
"In the shootout, he made every save look pretty easy," Cousins said of Saros. "He's so patient in the net. Even just shooting on him on a regular basis in practice, he doesn't give you much. He's an athletic goalie, he covers a lot of the net, looks really calm, and it gives us a lot of confidence when he's out there making saves like he did tonight. He's been really solid for us so far this season, and credit to him, he works hard and he deserves everything he gets."
The Predators finished with 42 shots to Chicago's 30, and even though some of Nashville's top players have not found the offensive success they were hoping for through the first eight games of the season, two wins of this nature allow any individual frustrations to evaporate.
"[To have] 42 shots and score one goal, I mean, that's not going to happen very often," Duchene said. "For us, I don't think we're getting frustrated, and I know guys probably internally are wanting to score and wanting to produce, and I know myself, [I'm] one of them. But at the same time, I'm relaxed in terms of where our game is as individuals and as a team. So, we feel good and we've got a big road trip coming up."
That trip involves a visit to Florida to face the Lightning and the Panthers over the next week, Nashville's longest excursion of the young season thus far. They'll be taking some confidence with them too after coming back home to find four points, as well as some of their biggest fans back in Bridgestone Arena, a recipe for a satisfying 48 hours.
"It was awesome to see fans in the building," Preds Associate Captain Ryan Ellis said. "We have the best fans in the League, and it means a lot to us [to have them here]. People are going through a lot of things, and to come through with these two wins and put some smiles, not only on our [faces], but on other people around the town, it's a good feeling."

Notes:
Wednesday's game was the 119th all-time meeting between the Preds and Blackhawks, the most times Nashville has faced any opponent in their history.
Forward Rocco Grimaldi and defenseman Mark Borowiecki were scratched for Nashville on Wednesday night.
After completing their two games against Chicago, the Predators now head back on the road to the Sunshine State for a week. The trip begins in Tampa Bay when the Preds face the defending Stanley Cup Champions on Saturday and Monday before heading to the Atlantic side to meet the Panthers twice next week.