Defenseman Alexandre Carrier scored with 2:48 remaining in overtime, and the Nashville Predators snapped their season-high, six-game losing streak with a 4-3 victory over the visiting Edmonton Oilers on Monday.
Grabbing a long stretch pass, Carrier, back in the lineup after missing four games with an upper-body injury, raced in via a two-on-one and sent the puck over the glove of Edmonton goalie Jack Campbell (31 saves).
Fellow defensemen Mattias Ekholm and Jordan Gross each had a goal and Matt Duchene scored in his second straight contest for the Predators, who ended that 0-4-2 slide and an eight-game losing streak to the Oilers.
Down 3-2, Edmonton tied the game just 1:51 into the third period on Ryan Nugent-Hopkins' second power-play goal of the night. However, the Oilers couldn't come through again to avoid matching their season high with a third consecutive loss (0-1-2) since winning 6-3 at Nashville on Dec. 13.
Nashville, which totaled nine goals in its previous six games, opened the scoring just 4:35 into the contest. After the Predators won the puck in the neutral zone. Tommy Novak, recalled from Milwaukee of the AHL, sent a backhander at Campbell, who gave up a rebound that Ekholm buried.
The Oilers answered a little more than four minutes later. Jesse Puljujarvi simply threw the puck toward the net, and it found a way through the legs of Nashville netminder Juuse Saros (30 saves) to tie the contest.
The Predators regained the lead just 2:57 into the second period when Gross' point shot appeared to deflect off Edmonton defenseman Tyson Barrie and in. But again, the Oilers, on the power play, equalized when a streaking Connor McDavid, who had two assists to extend his point streak to 13 games, dropped the puck for Nugent-Hopkins to push in from close range at 4:22 of the second.
Nashville, though, recaptured the lead by snapping a six-game power-play drought with 7:58 remaining in the middle frame. Duchene broke in, fended off an Oilers defender and put the puck over Campbell's shoulder.
--Field Level Media
Edmonton | Nashville | |
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins 2 | Points | Cody Glass 2 |
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins 2 | Goals | Alexandre Carrier 1 |
Connor McDavid 2 | Assists | Cody Glass 2 |
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins 2 | Power Play Goals | Matt Duchene 1 |
N/A | Short Handed Goals | N/A |
Jack Campbell .886 | Save Percentage | Juuse Saros .909 |
Jack Campbell 31 | Saves | Juuse Saros 30 |
Team | Shots | Goals | Power Play | Penalty Kill | Penalty Mins | Face Offs Won |
Edmonton | 33 | 3 | 2-3 | 1-2 | 4 | 24 |
Nashville | 35 | 4 | 1-2 | 1-3 | 6 | 28 |