Pekka Rinne, the 2018 Vezina Trophy winner, finally secured his first win against the Vegas Golden Knights, making 33 saves as the Nashville Predators cruised to a 5-2 victory on Tuesday night.
Rinne, who had only started two of the previous six matchups between the teams, remained unbeaten this season, improving to 4-0-0. Despite the Predators’ reliance on backup Juuse Saros against Vegas in past encounters, Rinne stepped up this time.
“I don’t know what’s behind it. Saros has actually played unbelievable against these guys,” Rinne said. “To me, they’re one of the top teams in the West, so that obviously gets you going.”
Kyle Turris, Colton Sissons, Calle Jarnkrok, Filip Forsberg, and Nick Bonino all scored for Nashville, with nine players registering points. The Predators, who have now seen 17 of their skaters score this season, overwhelmed one of the NHL’s most potent offenses.
Nashville coach Peter Laviolette praised Rinne’s performance, calling it one of his best. Rinne kept the Predators in the game after Vegas jumped to a 2-1 lead in the first period, with goals from Mark Stone and Reilly Smith.
“He worked and battled and just stayed with it,” Laviolette said. “He gave us a chance, especially early on. It could’ve been 3-1 or 4-1, and it might’ve been hard to climb out of.”
Nashville responded quickly in the second period with three unanswered goals in the first seven minutes. Sissons tied the game, capitalizing on a rebound just 44 seconds into the period. Jarnkrok then scored after a brilliant setup by Viktor Arvidsson, who maneuvered around a Vegas defenseman and passed to Jarnkrok for the go-ahead goal.
Forsberg extended his point streak to six games and scored his 150th career goal after intercepting Marc-Andre Fleury’s pass behind the net, pushing the Predators’ lead to 4-2. Bonino capped off the scoring with a power-play goal early in the third period, as Nashville extended its streak of games with a power-play goal to five.
“We know it’s hard to come in here and take two points against this Vegas team,” Jarnkrok said. “The offense has been working. We kept it simple today, and it worked out for us.”
Vegas coach Gerard Gallant lamented the team’s mistakes in the second period, which led to three Nashville goals. “We made three real bad mistakes,” Gallant said. “You get behind, you’re pressing a little bit, and we made some mistakes that are uncharacteristic of our team.”
The Predators have now scored 28 goals in their first six games, the most in franchise history, and have netted at least four in five. Fleury, who allowed a season-high five goals, made 34 saves in the loss.
Game Notes:
- Nashville has now won four of its last five games against Vegas.
- Mark Stone leads the Golden Knights with 10 points and has already scored three power-play goals this season. His career-high is six.
- Vegas defenseman Shea Theodore played in his 200th career game.
- Golden Knights rookie Cody Glass has recorded a point in five of the team’s first seven games.
UP NEXT:
- Nashville: Concludes its three-game road trip in Arizona on Thursday.
- Vegas: Wraps up a brief two-game homestand against Ottawa on Thursday.
