Preds Come Back to Beat Blue Jackets on Opening Night in Nashville

Opening Night went quite all right.
Luke Kunin tallied his first with his new club, and Filip Forsberg potted what proved to be the game-winner, as the Nashville Predators came back to defeat the Columbus Blue Jackets by a 3-1 final on Thursday night at Bridgestone Arena.
Nashville scored three unanswered goals, and Juuse Saros made 29 saves in his first opening-night start to give the Preds their seventh victory in their last eight tries in home openers.

"Coming into the game, and not sure what to expect with no preseason games, I thought as the game went along, we played better," Preds Head Coach John Hynes said. "Our best period was the third period, but I think just the way that the game went… I really just liked our mindset through the game, whether it was on the bench or in between periods, we just kept playing and figuring out what we need to do a little bit better. We stayed with it, wound up tying the game and then found a way to win it, so a good first night. We'll take the positives out of it, and then I think there's a lot of lessons and things we can do a little bit better also."
"I felt we got better and better," Forsberg said. "We came out ready to play, but obviously they're a good team on that side, too. They're working hard in creating some chances, but I thought we defended well throughout the game, and especially in the first and second when we had to (defend) a little bit more. Then, toward the third period, I thought the offense really kicked in and we got a couple longer shifts down there and played our best hockey in the third. Obviously, that's something that we want to continue doing throughout the season, and I thought it was a good start."
Boone Jenner tallied the first goal of the night when he beat Saros on a breakaway midway through the opening period, and that score stood until 13:09 of the second.

Nashville newcomer Erik Haula sprung Kunin for a 2-on-1 with linemate Matt Duchene, and No. 11 in Gold kept it and ripped it past Columbus netminder Joonas Korpisalo to even the game at 1-1 through 40 minutes of play.
"It was a great effort by the guys tonight," Kunin said. "It's good to get that first win, and for me, it's nice to get that first one out of the way."
In the third, another 2-on-1 gave the Preds the lead for the first time, as Forsberg snapped his 167th career goal into the twine for a 2-1 lead. That mark was notable for Forsberg as he passed former Predators Captain Shea Weber to take sole possession of second place on the franchise's all-time goals list.

Nashville held the Blue Jackets to just three shots in the final frame, and Jarnkrok sealed the win with an empty-netter.
The Preds also blocked 20 shots on the night - led by Viktor Arvidsson and Mark Borowiecki with three apiece - and after emphasizing the need to be tougher to play against this season, that production in their own zone played a large part in earning two points.
"What I liked the most was definitely our effort," Preds Captain Roman Josi said. "We had a ton of blocked shots, and that's all effort, and I think that was there tonight from everyone. That was our most important point during camp, to have that effort for 60 minutes, and I thought it was there, so it was a good start."

Thursday's outing was just one of 56, and the next four months are sure to be a grind, but no matter what, a win on Opening Night is always the preferred result. Now, the Preds will look to build on what they've started with a fresh season and identity underway.
"We played a committed game," Hynes said. "And even when we were coming from behind, even though we were down 1-0, it didn't get loose and high risk, and you just understood, 'OK, what are the areas we need to get better?' I thought we did that, so it was a good first step, and we're excited to get back with the guys tomorrow and kind of assess the game and then go back to work."

Notes:
Preds forward Cole Smith made his NHL debut on Thursday night while skating on a line with Brad Richardson and Calle Jarnkrok. Smith registered one shot on goal in 5:57 of ice time.
Prior to Opening Night, the Preds recalled Smith from their taxi squad and assigned forward Lukas Craggs to Chicago of the AHL.
Nashville scratched forward Yakov Trenin and defenseman Jarred Tinordi on Thursday.
The Preds will host Columbus once more on Saturday night at Bridgestone Arena (at 7 p.m. CT) before the Carolina Hurricanes come to town for a back-to-back set on Monday and Tuesday.