WINNIPEG -- Patrik Laine made his first scoring contribution of the Western Conference Second Round for the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday, but it was too little, too late in a 2-1 loss against the Nashville Predators in Game 4 at Bell MTS Place.
Laine scored a power-play goal with 50.2 seconds remaining in the third period, but it wasn't enough to change the outcome. The Predators were able to tie the best-of-7 series 2-2.
Game 5 is at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on Saturday (9:30 p.m. ET; NBCSN, CBC, TVAS).
After scoring 44 goals in the regular season, second in the NHL behind Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals (49), Laine went six Stanley Cup Playoff games without a goal, including the first three of this series.
The No. 2 pick of the 2016 NHL Draft, the Jets forward scored on his 20th shot of the series, a wrist shot from the left face-off circle that found its way past Predators goalie Pekka Rinne.
"It's always nice to score," said Laine, who has three goals in his first NHL postseason. "That was just a little bit too late. At least that goal gave us a chance to tie the game, but we just couldn't capitalize. Hopefully it gives us and gives me more confidence for next game and hopefully I can maybe score a couple of more."
The Jets scored 15 goals in the first three games of the series and won two of them, but offensive contributions from some of their young forwards have been sparse.
Kyle Connor, who led NHL rookies with 31 goals this season, has not scored in the playoffs. Same goes for Nikolaj Ehlers, who had 29 goals during the regular season. Each has three assists.
"We've got a few guys who hadn't scored in this series," Jets coach Paul Maurice said. "I hadn't necessarily seen (frustration) in their game. Sometimes frustration is a really good thing. It can drive you.
"Not all negative emotions are bad. (Laine) has had some really good looks, so I would expect him to have some frustration and hopefully lots of confidence he's going to break through."
The Jets' biggest challenge in Game 4 was less about who was scoring and more about struggling to generate offense. They had their chances through the first 30 minutes but fell behind 2-0 after Predators forward Ryan Hartman scored at 17:20 of the first period and defenseman P.K. Subban scored a power-play goal at 14:36 of the second.
From there, Maurice said the Predators decided to be less aggressive and clamp down.
"It was almost the least-offensive game they've played against us," Maurice said. "They knocked some stuff down and did a good job of it, but we were a little slow in the neutral zone."
Nashville showed its strongest commitment of the series to blocking Winnipeg's puck movement and speed.
"When they're defending that well, you've got to get pucks in deep and try to get a lot of O-zone time and try to shoot a lot and create some loose pucks," Laine said.
The Jets thrived on speed throughout the regular season. They were second in goals scored with 273; the Tampa Bay Lightning had 290.
"You can't play our game unless you move the puck better than we did," Maurice said.
Slow is a relative term in most games, but it was true of the Jets in Game 4. It ultimately ended their 13-game home winning streak that dated to Feb. 27, when they lost 6-5 against these Predators.
In the second half of the game, their forecheck was often a half-step late, their puck movement was telegraphed and their decision making was a shade slow. The more-determined Predators won the majority of puck battles, especially along the boards.
"We were a little slow moving the puck through the neutral zone, trying to do things individually more than you need to, but that wasn't the case in the first 30 minutes," Maurice said. "Halfway through the game, the shots were 22-11. We had lots of offense. But you've got to be careful about decrying the chances that you didn't score on. That's a dangerous thing."
Laine believes the tactics will continue to evolve in the series, which had been very offensive in the first three games, evidenced by the 25 goals scored.
"Now the series is tied," Laine said. "It's a best-of-3 series and we've got to be able to win on the road again and try to play better defense and not give the Predators so many odd-man rushes like we did tonight and just try to defend better."
Jets captain Blake Wheeler was unrattled after the defeat and shot down the idea that their approach will have to change heading into Game 5.
"We just got chasing a game tonight against a team that was desperate and needed a win," Wheeler said. "They were willing to sit five guys back and we weren't willing for the most part to do the things we needed to do to break that."
Entertainment Plaza - TV, Movies, Sports, Music, Soaps
http://almosthuman99.com
Babe Of The Month - Vote Now!
http://almosthuman99.com/polls/babes/babeofthemonth.html
Hunk Of The Month - Vote Now!
http://almosthuman99.com/polls/hunks/hunkofthemonth.html
No comments:
Post a Comment