“I haven't scored yet since I've been down here, so it feels good to get the first one,” Martin said. “And yeah, it was a nice play by [Reid] Schaefer there, throw it off the boards and made a nice move. It was a good goal.”
“He created, and I thought him and [Schaefer] played really well together, especially the first two periods,” Brunette said of Martin. “I think for me, a little bit more consistency in the third period, but I thought it was a great showing. He’s going against a pretty good lineup there, and I thought he played really well. I thought both of them…and all our young kids played well. So, it was a good day for everybody, besides the result.”
Tampa Bay regained the lead before the opening period was out, however. Both Martin and Joakim Kemell hit the post on the same power play late in the second stanza, but that was as close as the Preds came to tying the game before the night was done.
“I thought it was a great learning experience because you're not going against American League [players] or rookie tournaments,” Brunette said. “This is a really good roster here that are veteran guys that know how to win puck battles, know how to play the game a certain way, and I think for our guys to go up against it to see where they measure up was a great experience for them, and I think we'll learn from it.”
One of the lone veterans in the Nashville lineup, Saros looked like his old self in net and had a solid showing to begin the preseason slate, even showing some feistiness in the process.
“He was great,” Brunette said of Saros. “I thought he looked really quiet, very comfortable; I thought he was tremendous in net, and I felt very good with him. I thought he was very solid. There wasn't a lot of excess movement, and he was sharp.”
Training camp continues from here, and the Preds will now head back home for practice on Monday before they host the Lightning on Tuesday at Bridgestone Arena with daily improvement top of mind.
“We’ve still got a lot of work to do,” Brunette said. “It's kind of a condensed camp, and urgency is at a premium here to be ready. So, tomorrow's another day. We’re looking ahead, not behind, and tomorrow's a day for us to get a little bit better.”
“Just taking it day by day,” Martin said. “It’s one step at a time, and every time you have a chance to showcase yourself, just do so. Just one day at a time.”
Notes:
Tyson Jost and Nick Perbix served as alternate captains for the Predators in Tampa Bay on Sunday.
Training Camp continues for the Preds this week, and they’ll host the Lightning on Tuesday night at Bridgestone Arena for a 7 p.m. CT puck drop in the first of two home preseason games this week. Nashville will then travel to Carolina on Thursday before hosting the Hurricanes in the preseason finale on Saturday afternoon.
