Filip Forsberg scored the lone Nashville goal as the Predators fell to the Carolina Hurricanes by a 4-1 final on Wednesday night at Bridgestone Arena. The result sees the Canes sweep the two-game season series with the Preds dropping just their fourth outing in their last 11 overall.
The Predators had a push in the third period that produced one goal - and nearly more - and although Juuse Saros was excellent in the Nashville net, the home club was unable to overcome a 3-0 deficit against one of the League’s top teams.
“In the first [period], I feel like we're not attacking the game,” Preds Captain Roman Josi said. “We're kind of just hoping we get the puck out, hoping we get past their forecheck. We couldn't really get [out of] our zone in the first period. They had so many shots. They were kind of all over us…and we played a little better in the second and they get two quick ones in the third. [We had a] push at the end, but it's too late.”
“I don't think we were breaking out really well,” Forsberg said. “We kept getting pushed back in, which is one of their strengths, is their forecheck and their tenacity on the wall. So, I thought we got better as the game went on, then obviously the game kind of started tilting in our favor. But, we should [have started] a little bit better.”
The Hurricanes took a 1-0 lead in the opening frame with a goal from Jackson Blake, and that score held until the final frame when Sebastian Aho tallied on the power play for a 2-0 Carolina advantage.
The visitors added another before Forsberg capitalized on a loose puck in front to extend his point streak to six games and get Nashville on the board. The Preds continued to produce chances from there and registered 15 shots in the third period, but Carolina added an empty-netter to close out the night.
“Well, they're a really good team,” Preds Head Coach Andrew Brunette said of Carolina. “They're fast, and I thought we played slow for the first part of the game. It took a little while to kind of get into the game for us, and then a little of the game plan wasn't executed. I thought we turned over pucks at the blue line. Credit to them, they got great sticks and back pressure, but made it a little bit harder on ourselves, and we just didn't get the puck enough. We didn't get to put ourselves in positions to get where it felt good. We knew it was going to be a muddy game, a one-goal game, and then we take a kind of senseless penalty [at the start of the third period], and two goals is going to be really hard against this team, especially the way they're playing right now.”
Despite Wednesday’s result, the Preds have still produced some impressive outings as of late. With that in mind, they’ll now turn their attention to a back-to-back weekend set that begins Saturday against Toronto with a chance to get back into the win column.
“I thought the third period was good, so we’ve got to take that with us,” Forsberg said. “Probably could and should have had another one make it 3-2, and at that point, you never know what's going to happen. But, like I said, I think we had a little too slow a start, but we can take the end [of this game and build off of that].”
Notes:
Preds forward Cole Smith returned to the lineup on Wednesday after missing 19 games due to injury.
Nashville winger Jonathan Marchessault left Wednesday’s game in the second period and did not return with a lower-body injury.
The final homestand of the 2025 calendar concludes this weekend with a back-to-back for the Preds as they host Toronto on Saturday and the New York Rangers on Sunday.
