In Prague, a three-goal middle frame was enough to propel the Nashville Predators to a 3-2 win over the San Jose Sharks, and a sweep of the two-game Global Series to start the NHL season.
Nino Niederreiter hit for a double in the Preds’ win.
“I mean, obviously, most important thing is that we won, but it’s great being able to contribute to a team,” Niederreiter said. “Definitely (a) huge goal for our team, and very happy we won the game.”
Kevin Lankinen made 31 saves, for the Nashville victory.
“I think that showed a lot of character from the whole team,” Lankinen said. “It was huge. Seeing the guys battle in front of me like that, putting everything on the line, doing whatever it takes, it gives you a boost as a goalie too. You don’t want to let them down. You want to do whatever it takes for them as well. I think this trip has been huge for us. I’m so happy we can go home with two wins from here.”
Luke Kunin scored in the first period to stake the Sharks to a 1-0 lead, Logan Couture hit for a goal in the second period. Couture gave the Sharks a 2-1 lad in the second period.
“Unreal,” Predators center Ryan Johansen, said. “Super happy for him. I’ve known him for 14 years. He’s a great friend, and I’m really proud of him and happy for his start on a new team. As you can see, he’s going to be a big part of our team.”
Filip Forsberg also scored in the second period, his goal tied the game, 2-2.
The third period was scoreless.
“I actually thought that third period was the best period,” Sharks head coach David Quinn said. “I really did. I liked our third period. Huge contrast to what we saw last night. Staying out of the box, I felt we were on top of them.”
The two teams head back to their home arenas for games later in the week.
“Obviously, there’s so much work to do,” Johansen said. “We’ve got 80 games left. But we should definitely feel pretty good about ourselves and know that when we’re doing the right things on the ice we can be a successful team and create a lot of trouble for the opposition.”
Kaapo Kahkonen. made 15 saves in the San Jose loss.
“I thought our third was really good,” Kunin said. “They didn’t sit back, and I thought we had a lot of looks. We played hard. We were on the attack. I thought we were a lot more physical, playing more inside tonight and just couldn’t find a way to get one.”
You must be logged in to post a comment.