Takeaways From Predators’ Block Party Game 2 Win Over Canucks

Conversely, the Predators’ attack was opportunistic and not much else. How could it be described otherwise when the team tallied only 16 shots on Vancouver’s net? Then again, there is an old adage stating that to be good one has to be lucky. Another says one must create their own luck. Was former Canuck Anthony Beauvillier’s opening marker at 1:14 fortuitous? With that kind of deflection, yes. But it set the tone and Nashville, to their credit, controlled the play for much of the night. It must be a wonderful feeling to be one of the league’s top netminders – in this case, Juuse Saros – and basically have the night off in the postseason. 

Bad Omens for Canucks

On the opposite end of the spectrum were the Canucks who certainly tried to create chances. In a few instances, their scoring opportunities were brilliant. And yet, something was off. Look no further than when Elias Pettersson received the puck on the right side of Nashville’s zone at the very end of the first period with the Predators’ goalie unable to glide over in time to make a save. The Swede fired the puck into the side netting. Everyone in attendance knew a huge opportunity had been blown and so did Pettersson, who looked to the sky in a mixture of disbelief and shame. Pettersson has had a good season overall (34 goals and 55 assists in 82 games) but has cooled off since mid-March. In 13 games – postseason included – he’s netted but three times, and that includes a March 19 match against the moribund Buffalo Sabres in which he earned a brace. 

J.T. Miller had a great chance in the second period to slap a wicked one-timer and his stick broke. Another Miller moment came on the power play late in the second period. This time he did get his shot off, plus a deflection, only for the puck to bounce off the post. 

No one can predict what’s going to happen from one period or shift to the next. Even so, there are some contests where one can just sense that it isn’t going to be a club’s night. Given Nashville’s brilliance on defense and the odd mistakes and unlucky bounces Vancouver committed and suffered, the potential outcome looked gloomy as the game wore on.

Time for the Canucks to Step Up

It’s said all the time at this time of year. Playoff hockey is different from the regular season. That much should be obvious. But in a series such as this one, that means the Canucks, who spent so much of the campaign wowing their fans and neutral observers, need to kick their game into a higher gear. 

Assuming future contests are played the way Games 1 and 2 have been, the longer this series lasts the more the Predators will be favoured. For a team that was a middle-of-the-pack side in goals against (3.02) and a bottom-10 side in shots against (2,507), they aren’t giving the Canucks anything. If one thinks about it, the big moment of the first two contests combined was the 12 seconds in the first game when the Canucks scored to go from 2-1 down to 3-2 up. And that was at home. Now Rick Tocchet’s group has to figure out a way to get past the Predators’ defense and goaltending away from the comfort of Rogers Arena.

The Canucks are 0-for-6 on the powerplay so far, have scored five goals (one into an empty net), and have 39 total shots on target. There is no version of Vancouver winning this series if statistics such as these persist. People talked about the club’s relative lack of postseason experience. Well, they now have two games under their belt. Two very good lessons in what happens when one doesn’t capitalize on precious opportunities and what it feels like to go through the postseason grinder. 

It’s time to get on a plane for Nashville and leave the bad vibes behind.