Preds Fall to Coyotes in Game 3 as Arizona Takes Series Lead

Viktor Arvidsson scored the lone goal for the Predators on Wednesday afternoon, and the Arizona Coyotes earned a 4-1 win in Game 3 to take a 2-1 series lead in their Stanley Cup Qualifier with Nashville.

The result means Friday's Game 4 is a must-win for the Preds in the best-of-5 scenario.

In the postseason, all that matters is the result. Predators Head Coach John Hynes has preached throughout the series that the best-of-5 set is just that - an up-and-down, back-and-forth battle. That's what makes Wednesday's score tough to accept.

The Predators did just about everything but find the back of the net in the opening 20 minutes, as Arizona netminder Darcy Kuemper stopped all 19 Nashville shots he faced. Instead, the Coyotes scored on their first shot of the game - a redirection from Christian Dvorak - and took a 1-0 lead into the intermission.

"It's frustrating right now," Predators Captain Roman Josi said of the result. "Especially in the first [period], I thought we played really well. We created a lot of chances, had a lot of shots, a lot of zone time; obviously, we couldn't get a goal, but I think it was a really good first period for us… But looking back, in the first, I wish we got some goals."

Nashville remained on the attack despite the setback. Finally, in the second period, Ryan Johansen stole the puck from two Coyotes in the neutral zone and started an odd-man rush. Filip Forsberg then slipped a pass over to Arvidsson, who tallied his second goal on a slap shot in as many days to even the score at 1-1.

"We bring it every shift," Arvidsson said of his line. "We work hard for each other and for the team. That's what we want to do. We want to be in the front and lead, so I think we've been good. We create chances, and we've been rewarded for it too."

Kyle Turris appeared to give Nashville a 2-1 lead early in the final frame, but the goal was disallowed with Matt Duchene offside on the far side of the blue line. Arizona's Connor Garland converted off the rush to beat Preds goaltender Juuse Saros roughly five minutes later.

"We were fine," Josi said of his club's response after Turris's goal was disallowed. "We had a couple of shifts in the O-zone right after, a couple of chances. It's playoff hockey. There's so many things happening out there. I think as a player, you have to let go of things, no matter what happens. You just have to stay present and focus on that next shift. You can't change things, and I didn't think it was an issue. I thought we were fine, and we kept pushing."

After Garland ended the deadlock at 7:08 of the third, Taylor Hall put the game out of reach with a power-play goal in the final five minutes of regulation, and Carl Soderberg added an empty-netter. By the end of the afternoon, Kuemper had made 39 saves to earn the win.

The equation is now simple for the Predators: they must find a way to prevail in Game 4 in order to extend their stay in Edmonton.

"If we start like [we did in Game 3], I like our chances in the game," Josi said. "But after that, I think we've got to make sure that we play like that for 60 minutes. It's a really good team over there, and we let up a little bit in the second and they got a couple of chances. So, I think we have to make sure we start like that, but then keep playing for 60 like that."

To his credit, Hynes effectively said what he's said after each game in the series: it's all about the next game. Nashville moved on quickly after their Game 2 win, and they'll do the same after their defeat in Game 3. Game 4 is Friday afternoon.

"We're in a hard-fought series, and their goaltender came up and made some huge saves," Hynes said. "It's not frustration, it's the challenge of a series and that's the ebb and flow of what goes on. You have to find solutions, you've got to stay focused and I think your energy has to be [put into finding] ways we can be a little bit better in those areas or find ways to be able to put the puck in the net when we have the looks that we had. That's all part of the part of the process of getting through a series, and now it's onto Game 4."

Notes:

Nashville again went with the same lineup for Game 3 as they did in the previous two outings.

Dan Hamhuis, Korbinian Holzer, Daniel Carr, Eeli Tolvanen, Yakov Trenin, Colin Blackwell, Alexandre Carrier, Michael McCarron, Troy Grosenick and Connor Ingram were scratched for the Preds in Game 2.

Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Qualifier series between the Predators and Coyotes comes Friday afternoon at 1:30 p.m. CT from Edmonton (Watch: FOX Sports Tennessee, NHL Network; Listen: 102.5 The Game).