Preds Force Overtime, Earn Single Point After Wild Finish in Minnesota

Steven Stamkos tied the game with 0.3 seconds to play in regulation - and then the Predators were left questioning the final result.

Nashville battled back to earn a point but fell to the Minnesota Wild by a 3-2 final in overtime on Tuesday night at Grand Casino Arena. The result sees the Preds drop the conclusion of their back-to-back set with both games ending in OT.

After Stamkos tied the game with the extra attacker on a one-timer to force the extra session, the Wild were awarded the winning goal after Preds goaltender Justus Annunen pushed from side to side and inadvertently knocked the net off its moorings in the process. At that point, Wild forward Marcus Johansson eventually shot the puck over the goal line where the net would have been.

Following a review, the goal was allowed to stand, sending the Preds home with a single point instead of the two they felt they deserved.

“Obviously a weird play,” Stamkos said. “I can see the confusion, but the confusing part for us was why it was so emphatically called a goal. Listen, the net came off, but if the puck goes in right away, no problem. If the net is off - but he missed the net - and the puck actually bounced back to him because the net was sideways, and then he hit the back of the net and it popped back. My interpretation of the rule is that if the net wasn't off, that puck wouldn't have come back to him to have an open net. It would have went behind the net and then the play would have been blown dead because the net was off.

“I understand the net came off. I don't think there was any intent from our goaltender to knock it off - it came off twice today. From our vantage point - obviously going to differ from theirs - but we thought the puck came back to him on the second attempt because the net was off. If not, the puck goes behind the net, and we live to fight another day. So, that's where we didn't agree with the call.”

Preds Head Coach Andrew Brunette also offered his thoughts following the game.

“The explanation was, in [the referee’s] opinion, it was a goal,” Brunette said. “I disagree with his opinion, but that's the way it is… Just by the physics of pushing, I don't think [Annunen was trying to knock the net off]. I thought they'd miss the net. If the net didn't dislodge, it wouldn't have ended up being in the net. Unfortunately, they didn't see it the same way and you move on.”

Minnesota had a 1-0 lead through 20 minutes courtesy of a power-play goal from Kirill Kaprizov, but early in the second stanza, Michael McCarron found Matthew Wood at the side of the net, and the rookie tapped in his third goal in the last four games to even the score.

Nashville outshot Minnesota by a 14-4 margin in the middle period, but a single goal was all they came up with before the Wild potted their second of the night on the man advantage to take a 2-1 lead into the final frame.

The Predators continued to press in the third, and with an extra attacker, Nick Blankenburg found Stamkos with a last-second shot that found twine. But ultimately, one of Nashville’s best efforts of the season - and on the second half of a back-to-back - didn’t fall their way.

“I think we deserved that last goal to tie it,” Brunette said. “I was happy for [Stammer]. It was a hell of a shot. There's only a few players in the history of the NHL who can make that shot. He made it. We just had trouble scoring a little bit, but we hung in there, and it was good to get a point. I would have liked to go on the shootout or play a little bit longer.”

“We had great determination tonight,” McCarron said. “All four lines were going. Everybody was playing hard. We played the right way. We played a great road game. Second period, we doubled them up, meaning we had good changes. We went through three, four lines with, with only one of their lines not able to change, which is huge and just key for the road. We had a really solid game. I loved our game tonight. I loved our determination. And like I said, to tie it up late in the game was huge for us. And to get a point, obviously, we wish we were still playing.”

Notes:

Prior to Tuesday’s game, the Predators recalled forward Zach L’Heureux from Milwaukee (AHL). L’Heureux did not play against the Wild and was Nashville’s lone healthy scratch.

Steven Stamkos scored with one second remaining in regulation to pull the Predators even and tied Mikael Granlund (59:59 on Feb. 27, 2020) for the latest game-tying goal in franchise history.

The Predators will now return home to host the Flyers on Thursday night before a Saturday matinee against Dallas, the final two games at Bridgestone Arena before the Preds head to Sweden next week.