Preds Fall to Blackhawks

Pekka Rinne made 34 saves, but the Nashville Predators only scored once as they fell to the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday night at the United Center, 2-1. It's the second defeat in as many evenings suffered by the Preds; they dropped a 4-3 overtime decision in Ottawa on Monday.
Nashville is 0-6-2 in their last eight away from home, and although the group said their overall effort was better at times on Tuesday, the results still weren't there, which didn't bring about any satisfaction.
"We didn't get a win, so it's not good enough," Preds Captain Roman Josi said. "Pekka stood on his head for a lot in the second period, and it seemed like we just couldn't get anything going. We didn't get enough zone time, didn't win enough battles, so it's disappointing. We need to win some games on the road."

"Better effort yes, energy no," Preds Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. "I don't feel like we had a lot of energy… We didn't have any pop to our game, and they scored two goals and that's the difference."
It was Kevin Fiala who gave the Predators a 1-0 lead with less than a minute to play in the game's opening period after he took a pass from Ryan Johansen and sniped a shot past Cam Ward.

In the second, the Blackhawks ratcheted up the pressure, and they eventually broke through on Rinne. Gustav Forsling and Erik Gustafsson tallied in the middle frame to give Chicago their first lead of the night.
The third period belonged to the Preds, predominantly, as they registered 13 shots in an effort to even the score, but Cam Ward turned them all away to give Chicago the win.
Compared to Monday's outing in Ottawa, the Preds believe they had a better start in Chicago, but there were still too many inconsistencies throughout the game, an area harped on after the fact.
"We know we have a great team in this room, but we have to try to make plays," Nashville forward Ryan Hartman, who made his first trip back to the United Center since being traded by the Blackhawks in February, said. "There's a lot of guys in this room that can make plays, and we just have to make sure they're 100-percent plays."

From here, Nashville's trip will continue in Philadelphia on Thursday, and with their recent record away from home, the Preds want nothing more than to find success before the excursion concludes.
"We have to go out there right from the start and attack the game," Josi said. "Just go and try to get the first goal - we have to have that mindset more often on the road."
"We're in a position right now on the road where you need to play a consistent 60 minutes," Laviolette said. "Some of it was ok tonight, and some of it was not."

Notes:
Preds forward Colton Sissons was helped to the Nashville locker room by Predators trainers in the third period and did not return.
Defenseman Anthony Bitetto entered the lineup for Matt Irwin on Tuesday night, with Irwin and Zac Rinaldo serving as healthy scratches.
With the road trip now halfway done, the Preds will continue on to Philadelphia for a date with the Flyers on Thursday night before finishing up in Boston on Saturday afternoon.