Chandler Stephenson, Nicolas Roy, and Reilly Smith scored, while Marc-Andre Fleury made 19 saves to lead the Vegas Golden Knights to a 3-0 victory over the Nashville Predators on Saturday night.
With this win, the Golden Knights secured back-to-back victories, including a win over Carolina the previous night. Vegas limited Nashville to its lowest shot total of the season and ended the Predators’ two-game winning streak.
“I thought we were good; that was a really solid 60,” said Vegas coach Peter DeBoer. “We talked last night about building on the good things we did in last night’s game. I thought we did that tonight for 60 minutes. It started with our defensive play.”
Fleury earned his third shutout of the season and the 59th of his career, moving him ahead of Nashville’s Pekka Rinne and tying him with Evgeni Nabokov for 18th place on the all-time list. Rinne made 36 saves on 38 shots in the loss.
“The first period was a little slow, especially coming off the break,” said Fleury, who hadn’t played since Jan. 21. “Sometimes it’s good to see a few shots to get into the rhythm. The guys were playing so good in front of me.”
Stephenson scored at 5:14 of the second period, finishing off a breakaway with a top-shelf shot over Rinne’s stick after receiving a pass from Mark Stone.
Despite the lopsided score, Rinne kept the Predators in the game, particularly in the first period when Vegas outshot Nashville 14-2. The Predators went over 16 minutes without a shot on goal, and Vegas maintained a 15-6 shot advantage in the second period.
“Right now, the biggest thing is every game for us is playoffs,” said Rinne. “We’re battling for our lives, and we’ve got to realize that it’s not going to be easy.”
Nashville’s best chance to score came late in the second period, but Rocco Grimaldi’s backhanded wraparound slid just wide of the crease.
“There wasn’t a lot of time and space, and we didn’t fight for it,” said Predators coach John Hynes. “Our puck pressure wasn’t what it needed to be as a five-man unit.”
Roy extended Vegas’ lead at 11:16 of the third period, knocking a rebound of Ryan Reaves’ shot from the right circle. Roy lifted the puck just under the crossbar for his third goal of the season.
“The angle was pretty tight, but it was a good shot from Reaves,” said Roy. “I was lucky to get a goal there.”
Smith capped the scoring with an empty-netter at 18:58 of the third.
Game Notes:
- Nashville center Calle Jarnkrok missed his second consecutive game due to illness.
- This was the first time Nashville lost a home game in regulation to Vegas.
- Fleury is now 10-7-1 in his career against Nashville.
- Mark Stone extended his point streak to three games.
Up Next:
- Golden Knights: Visit the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday night.
- Predators: Travel to face the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday night.