Being down 2-0 after one period woke up the Ducks, as they out-shot the Predators 28-10, but they could only muster one goal of their own.
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He went into more detail on Thursday, explaining that in 2012 in his first year in New Jersey, the Devils — who, like the Predators, trailed three-games-to-two in the first round — won games six and seven and carried that momentum into a five-game elimination of Philadelphia in the second round.
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) – Pekka Rinne and the Nashville Predators clung to a small lead for two full periods, scrambling and dodging and stopping everything the Anaheim Ducks could throw at them. Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau is 1-7 for his career when a series goes the distance, dating to his days with the Capitals. The Ducks were left with the same unusual story to tell for another long summer. While it’s tempting to say Nashville needs Rinne to steal a few games in order to win the series, the Preds are not that team anymore-and he’s not that goalie.
“It was the best two periods we played in the series”, Boudreau said. It’s a really good team we played against. “I think both teams are happy that we’re starting tonight”.
The San Jose Sharks exorcised some postseason demons by eliminating the rival Los Angeles Kings in five games during the first round of the 2016 Stanley Cup Playoffs. But you take a step by beating Nashville in this round.
The Predators handled the pressure splendidly despite the franchise’s total inexperience with the winner-take-all game.
“It’s very bad. It never gets any easier”, defenseman Cam Fowler said. “I think we’ve done a great job blocking shots”.
For the fourth year in a row the Ducks held a 3-2 lead in a playoff series with Game 7 on home ice – and they lost. A late Nashville penalty carried over into the third period as Nashville began to lose discipline. But a redirected shot clanked off Rinne’s post in the third, and nothing went in during a frantic final minute, leaving the Ducks with a mountain of frustration and the Predators with a cathartic escape. I know it is unusual to suggest that either of these two players are under the radar talents but they are rarely the names that get talked about.
They’ve been outscored by a combined 16-8 in seventh games since 2013, including 9-1 in the first periods of those games after Nashville took its 2-0 lead. What killed the Ducks was just like Jonathan Toews did against St. Louis, Corey Perry did not score the whole seven game series.
So even though the Sharks had the sixth-best record in the Western Conference, they will be the higher-seeded team with home ice advantage in the next playoff round that opens Friday night at SAP Center.
“I feel like they provide a similar challenge to Anaheim”, said Rinne, who stopped 36 of 37 shots in the 2-1 Game 7 win over Anaheim. So, in that aspect, I think they’ll be ready to go.
The Predators and the Sharks, just like everyone expected, right? We played hard. We played to win.
The Sharks managed just five goals against Nashville in the three games of the season series. San Jose beating L.A. wasn’t almost as big an upset, if at all, than Nashville taking out the Pacific Division-champion Ducks.
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Wilson, who had a point in five of the seven games, scored on a backhand at the 6:19 mark after Ducks defenceman Simon Despres failed to cleanly handle an airborne puck and let the winger get behind him. Patrick Marleau – one goal, three assists, 12 hits. Jakob Silfverberg broke his stick on a three-on-two chance. Also, it might not show initially but the Sharks will not have to deal with fatigue, based on the style and length of their first-round series, that the Predators will. Not much has changed on the Sharks roster from the time the Predators last played them and now.
