Preds Score Five Unanswered Goals to Steal Win in Montreal

They don’t ask how, just how many. 

The Nashville Predators scored five unanswered goals to come back and defeat the Montreal Canadiens by a 5-2 final on Thursday night at Bell Centre. The result gives the Preds their first road win of the season and three out of a possible four points on their current trip. 

Ryan O’Reilly scored what proved to be the game-winner on the power play late in regulation, while Alex Kerfoot and Matthew Wood started the comeback in the second stanza. As Montreal pushed for the equalizer, Adam Edstrom scored not once but twice into an empty net to seal the victory, and Juuse Saros made 32 saves for another outstanding effort to start the season. 

It certainly wasn’t easy for the visitors on the night, but Thursday was the definition of a gritty, greasy road win, and the Preds will certainly take the result. 

“We found a way to win, but we’ve got some things we have to improve on,” O’Reilly said. “If it wasn't for [Saros], that game could have gotten out of hand. Definitely some things we’ve really got to improve on, and [we just need to have] more of an attack mindset right away. But again, we stuck with it, everyone was working. It wasn't pretty at times, but we found a way to win, and that's a huge two points for us. And we know we still haven't played our best hockey yet.”

“It wasn't pretty…but I give the guys a lot of credit,” Preds Head Coach Andrew Brunette said. “They found a way to keep grinding back. Got a huge goal by [Kerfoot] to make it 2-1. Kind of give us a little life. Third period, I thought the power play obviously was huge. It's going to be a huge part of our success, and it was huge tonight. And [Saros]...he’s a reason we won. Got some things to work on, but there's going to be nights like this in this League.”

After a first period that ended without a goal - thanks to a successful Nashville challenge for offside to negate a Montreal score - the Canadiens struck first early in the second stanza before adding another for a 2-0 advantage. 

But, the Preds got back to within one when Kerfoot tipped in an Adam Wilsby point shot for his first with his new team to give the visitors life. Then, after a chaotic scramble in front on the power play, Wood shot home a loose puck as the net was sliding off the moorings to tie the game at 2-2 headed into the final frame.

The Predators lost both forward Mavrik Bourque and defenseman William Trudeau to injury, but even though they were down by two skaters in the third, they refused to give in. 

“I was impressed on the bench and in the room, everyone was talking,” O’Reilly said. “Sometimes when things don't go well, you tend to get quieter, and you just tend to not have that energy. Everywhere, we were getting hemmed in there. Guys were vocal. Guys stayed up. They stuck with it, and I think it's a big reason why we're able to kind of get the momentum back, get a few big goals there. So, we should be proud. We found a way to win, but also we know we have to be better.”

With less than four minutes left to play, O’Reilly redirected a Roman Josi shot past Jacob Fowler and into the twine for Nashville’s first lead of the night and their fifth power-play goal of the season. 

“Well, the big thing was getting it set up,” O’Reilly said of the man advantage. “We were kind of fighting to kind of get control and get some looks, but we just kind of got back, won some battles, and we're able to get set up, and then finally got to the net. I was just able to get a little stick on it, but it has to start with winning battles. We do that, we get the puck, and we’ve got so much talent out there. We're going to get looks, and that's exactly what happened.”

Finally, Edstrom potted a pair into the empty net to spoil any thought of a Montreal comeback and stun the home crowd. Instead, the Preds were the ones who got it done, and they did so against one of the top teams in the East. 

“It was a huge effort by everyone,” Wood said. “We have no quit in this group, and it starts with the leaders. They're out there battling every shift, and I think everyone just kept a good mindset for the whole game and battled through it.”

“They're not always always going to be pretty, really proud the guys stuck together,” Brunette said. “We had really good energy on the bench, even when things weren't looking good. We have great leadership that grabbed it when they had to grab it.”

Nashville knows there is room for improvement, and they’ll look to do just that against the Senators on Saturday night in Ottawa. 

But even though it wasn’t perfect in Montreal, a win is a win - and the Preds don’t mind that one bit. 

“[We’re going to] enjoy tonight,” Brunette said. “I think I’ve learned in this League [don’t] look too far ahead and enjoy what you have today and be present… [I’m] proud of the guys. It was a greedy kind of win, and we’ve got to get better, and we will tomorrow. But enjoy tonight.”

Notes: 

Preds forward Mavrik Bourque and defenseman William Trudeau both left Thursday’s game with upper-body injuries and did not return. 

The Predators went back to 12 forwards and six defensemen in their lineup, with Reid Schaefer joining the forward group on Thursday. Defensemen Ilya Lyubushkin and Jack Ahcan, as well as forward Vitali Pinchuk, were scratched. 

Per NHLPR, Roman Josi (0-2—2) assisted on the Predators' go-ahead goal and became the third defenseman in franchise history with a season-opening point streak of at least four games. The others: Marek Zidlicky (6 GP in 2003-04) and Dan Hamhuis (5 GP in 2007-08).

Nashville will conclude their three-game trip through eastern Canada on Saturday night when they face the Senators in Ottawa before returning to Tennessee for a three-game homestand next week.