With only four weeks left in the 2024-25 NHL season, the Maple Leafs looked to extend their three-game win streak on the road in sunny Nashville, Tennessee facing off against the Predators. 
A rare opportunity would present itself as both the Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers saw themselves in the losing column.
This would give the Leafs a chance to take back first in the Atlantic Division with a win against a team out of the playoff picture.
Offense has been a struggle all season for the Predators only being able to score three goals in their last four games and as for the Leafs, they would like to keep that a trend.
Before the action, Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube had a chance to talk about how his team should take on an opponent struggling for wins.
“Just prepare them like normal,” Berube said. “We just gotta focus on our game and starting the game on time, being direct, not looking at Nashville and where they’re at in the standings.”
With pregame warmups and the two national anthems completed, the puck was dropped at Bridgestone Arena filled with fans in yellow, hoping their team would break its four-game losing streak.
The first period started slow with the first 10 minutes being a defensive battle with both teams not giving up any high-danger chances.
This would ultimately change as the Leafs would get the first powerplay of the night looking to continue the hot streak of the five-forward first unit.
The Predators would only be able to do so much as John Tavares would have enough open ice to slip a wrister past goaltender Juuse Saros.
This would give Tavares his 30th goal of the season and the Leafs a 1-0 lead.
Being in full control of the game, Mitch Marner would only add to the scoring by ripping a quick shot off a set faceoff play from Auston Matthews into the back of the net sucking the life out of the home team and supporters.
“I had a draw inside, so I just tried to time it quick and to make sure he (Mitch Marner) knew that I was trying to come to him and it ended up working out,” Matthews said regarding the set play.
Scott Laughton, who was traded to the Leafs at this year’s trade deadline and has been looking to make more of an offensive impact was able to tip a puck past Saros into the back of the net.
Unfortunately, Laughton’s bad luck has continued in a Toronto jersey, as the goal was reviewed and then called back due to a high stick.
As the period winded down, only the sounds of “Go Leafs Go” from Maple Leafs fans who took the trip to Broadway could be heard, hoping that the blue-and-white would be able to run up the score.
Even with the Leafs having a two-goal advantage to start the second period, the Predators would have an opportunity the cut the lead in half,
The Preds were able to have a chance a striking back getting an early powerplay.
The Leafs’ penalty kill was able to shut down Nashville’s first unit, but an old friend in Michael Bunting would put the puck past the Buds netminder Joseph Woll,
Bunting scoring his first as a Predator would be able to fill the arena with life, which wasn’t present in the first period.
From that point on, The Leafs would be the team struggling to create any offense allowing the Preds to tie up the game as former Toronto Marlies, Kieffer Bellows sniped one past Woll making it a 2-2 game.
Toronto would continue their poor play in the second only relying on Woll to save the day once again after stretching out and robbing a goal away from Filip Forsberg which definitely got the crowd on their feet.
Forsberg would eventually get his revenge on the Leafs’ starting netminder, as with under a minute to go in the period, he would give the Preds a 3-2 lead putting the arena into a frenzy amounting to the same number of goals in Nashville’s last four games.
Both teams would go into the locker rooms with the momentum flipped to the home side, giving the fans a chance to celebrate a rare multi-goal game.
The Leafs’ fortune would stay the same in the third not being able to form any threatening chances five-on-five, or with the man advantage.
Nashville would end up scoring a total of five unanswered goals.
The last two coming from Luke Evangelista with his seventh of the season and an empty net goal From Forsberg getting his second of the night.
With the Preds snapping a four-game losing streak, the songs will be loud in the music city but for the Maple Leafs, they will stay put tied with the Panthers for the division lead after coming up short on a great opportunity.
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After the game, Tavares had a chance to inform the media about what went wrong for the team that is fighting for playoff positioning.
“We just didn’t have a very good second period, obviously some of our detail, coverage broke down, led to odd-man rushes for them which obviously got them on the board,” he said.
Tavares mentioned how the Leafs were not able to put in the right 60 minutes of hockey leading to the five unanswered goals.
“After the first period, our game just wasn’t as sharp, wasn’t as good,” Tavares said.
The Leafs will fly back home to get ready for a battle against the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday looking to get back into the win column as it will be a fight for the top spot where every game has the most importance.
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