Nashville Predators: Winners and Losers From Game 3
The Nashville Predators didn’t play well in Tampa. Sometimes the score determines the winner. And other times winners are determined by what they proved.
The Nashville Predators put up a good fight but in the end, they were outmatched. The Lightning boasted Steven Stamkos, Nikita Kucherov, and Mikhail Sergachev. Meanwhile, the Predators put together a first line of Colton Sissons, Frederick Gaudreau, and Austin Watson. The Predators definitely had a chance in this game, but it wasn’t a fair fight. Not by any means. So I honestly believe that this loss should be counted as a moral victory. While some of the younger guys stepped up, some other guys seemingly stepped out. In hockey, as in life, there are winners and losers. While the Nashville Predators as a whole were “losers” last night, there were, in fact, some winners.
The Winners
I know I’ve been beating his drum a lot recently but Samuel Girard came out swinging. Yannick Weber and Girard played most of the game together and didn’t look too bad as a first pair. Girard impressed with a second assist on the Nashville Predators only goal. Not only that, but Girard had quite a night in according to advanced stats. Girard posted a dominant Corsi score of 75.86 and an incredible Fenwick score of 72.22. Girard was a shot generating machine and most of the shots actually made their way to the net. What’s more, he did it while playing mostly against Victor Hedman and Steven Stamkos.
Kevin Fiala isn’t exactly a prospect anymore but he was a man on fire yesterday. The speedster didn’t score a goal but did register four shots and draw a penalty. That doesn’t tell the whole story though. Fiala posted an elite Corsi of 83.33 and an even better Fenwick score of 88.98. That means Fiala was generating shots at close to a nine-to-one ratio. Although Fiala didn’t play against the toughest competition, that’s similar to how the regular season will be. Fiala will be an elite second line presence this season.
The Losers
Vladislav Kamenev had an interesting set of linemates, Austin Watson and Anthony Richard. Kamenev had no points and his possession stats aren’t very impressive. He posted a Corsi score of 45.00 and a Fenwick score of 37.50. Not only was Kamenev not generating shots, but the shots he was generating weren’t hitting the net. The interesting part is Kamenev actually had better possession scores without Watson and had worse scores without Richard. Kamenev went up against second and third line competition. And quite frankly, he didn’t produce enough. More showings like game three will land him back in Milwaukee.
Emil Pettersson didn’t have a bad game on the score sheet, but that’s the only sheet that scores him favorable. Like Kamenev, Pettersson played third line minutes with less than great linemates. Pettersson scored a 47.62 Corsi and a 37.50 Fenwick. Once again, like Kamenev, he wasn’t putting many shots up, especially on net. All in all, Pettersson had a better game than Kamenev in my opinion but it still wasn’t up to snuff. He’ll need some convincing performances to earn a spot in the lineup.