How do you decide to keep your number one goaltender at the trade deadline?
You keep winning.
On Tuesday night, in Nashville, the Predators picked up their sixth straight win, 4-1, over the visiting Ottawa Senators.
Juuse Saros, the object of many rumors in the trade circles, made 24 saves in the win.
The Predators moved to 33-25-2.
Roman Jose hit for a double in the win.
“I think we’re just playing really well as a team,” Josi said. “I think it helps everyone. Our power play has been getting better again toward the end of the road trip. I think we’re all getting more familiar with the system and getting more comfortable with the system. The same goes for me. We want to keep this momentum and keep playing that same way.”
Nashville grabbed a 1-0 lead on a strike by Michael McCarron at 3:23 of the opening stanza.
“We had a good start,” McCarron said. “We came out ready to go. We’ve got a good thing going right now. We’re all clicking, we’re all on the same page, and we’re all pulling the same rope, too. Everybody is buying into their role right now and playing well.”
Josi hit for his first of the game off the power play, at 5:44.
Ottawa trimmed the deficit to 2-1 with a power play marker from Drake Batherson at 18:58.
“I thought we battled hard in the second period,” Senators coach Jacques Martin said. “I thought we had some great chances. I mean, I know they scored the goal, but I thought we outchanced them in the second. I think it was 5-2. I thought we were short in manpower, but I thought we battled hard and did a good job. And then in the third we just ran out of gas.”
The Senators dropped to 25-29-3.
“There’s definitely things we need to clean up,” Ottawa’s Brady Tkachuk said. “It’s frustrating and a frustrating game last night. I don’t really know what else to say.”
In the middle frame, Josi collected his double at 18:31Â for a 3-1 lead to the Preds.
“It was a great breakout pass by [Predators defenseman Ryan McDonagh],” Nashville’s Gustav Nyquist said. “I knew Roman likes to join the rush with speed. I just tried to hold on to the puck and get it to him in a good spot, and he made a really nice move.”
Nyquist sealed the win with a strike at 13:12 of the third period .
“That’s probably one of our best third periods this year,” Josi said. “Especially being up 3-1, I felt like we had the puck most of the period, playing in their zone. That next goal is so big with a 3-1 lead. That was great. That’s how you want to play every time you have the lead. Obviously, it’s not that easy, but it was really good tonight.”
Nashville locked down the Sens offense in the third period, not allowing a shot on goal fro for the final 20 minutes of play.
Joonas Korpisalo made 32 saves in the loss.
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