5:1 after 25 minutes, 5:7 after 60 minutes – what a bitter evening for the San Jose Sharks against the Nashville Predators. Without Nico Sturm, who had to sit out at short notice due to injury, the league’s new side left two points safe. The Predators scored four goals in the final third alone, with Sharks goalie Alexander Georgiou not looking good when Nick Blankenberg scored the sixth goal. “We’re all very disappointed,” coach Ryan Warsowski said after the game. “We have to learn and get better.” A chance for revenge is already there on Thursday when the two teams meet again in San Jose.
Tuesday was not a good day from Germany’s point of view, only the Buffalo Sabers led by JJ Peterka (1 assist) managed a 3-2 win at the Vancouver Canucks. The Edmonton Oilers were without the suspended Connor McDavid in a 3-2 loss to the Washington Capitals. Leon Draisaitl scored his 34th goal of the season and set up Corey Perry’s second Oilers goal and now has 71 scorer points – three fewer than Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche and one more than Nikita Kucherov of the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Detroit Red Wings got at least one point in a 1:2 overtime against the Philadelphia Flyers, scoring points for the sixth game in a row. The Ottawa Senators dropped to 0-5 at the New York Rangers. The Rangers have now extended their point streak to nine games.
Since the Montreal Canadiens won 3-2 against the Tampa Bay Lightning, the race for wild card spots in the Eastern Conference is getting tighter. Ottawa and Montreal hold the final two playoff spots, followed by Boston. All three teams have 52 points. They are followed by Columbus (51), Rangers and Philadelphia (50). Pittsburgh (48) and Detroit (47, down a bit after the series in the middle) are within reach.
Tuesday’s results
Montreal – Tampa Bay 3:2 (0:1, 2:1, 1:0)
NY Rangers – Ottawa 5:0 (1:0, 1:0, 3:0)
Philadelphia – Detroit 2:1 at (0:0, 1:0, 0:1, 1:0)
Nashville – San Jose 7:5 (1:4, 2:1, 4:0)
Dallas – Carolina 1:2 (0:0, 0:1, 1:1)
Edmonton – Washington 2:3 (1:1, 0:1, 1:1)
Vancouver – Buffalo 2:3 (0:1, 2:0, 0:2)
Anaheim – Florida 2:5 (2:3, 0:0, 0:2)
