Written by Cody Benjamin at CBSSports.com
One more win and the Nashville Predators are in the Stanley Cup Final.
With Pekka Rinne turning in maybe his best outing of the postseason and the blue line clamping down after a go-ahead strike from Pontus Aberg, Nashville took a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference finals with a 3-1 decision over the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday night.
Two days after edging the Preds in a 3-2 overtime clash, Anaheim did enough early in Game 5 to take a 1-0 lead, staying even with Nashville in terms of first-period shots and faceoffs, then scoring on Rinne thanks to a putback from Corey Wagner. And the Ducks ultimately put more shots on the Predators net over the course of the evening, looking to take advantage of a Ryan Johansen-less unit.
But it was Music City’s postseason heroes that finished strong, finally converting on a power-play try with Aberg’s goal — his first ever in the playoffs — 11:01 into the third, when Filip Forsberg and Mattias Ekholm refused to back down in front of John Gibson.
Rinne and the defense then tightened up to follow up Aberg’s milestone score, allowing just one shot from Anaheim in a span of just about six minutes and shutting down a threatening attempt from Brandon Montour right near the net.
An unassisted Austin Watson goal sealed the deal for the Preds in the game’s final minute.
And Nashville, even with a big-name defenseman sidelined in Johansen, has pulled within striking distance of a historic trip to the Stanley Cup Final, in large part due to the top-line blue-line play that drove the Preds past the Chicago Blackhawks and St. Louis Blues.
With Game 6 slated for a return to Nashville, the Ducks are officially on life alert, even if their slate of comebacks this postseason suggests otherwise.
The Predators, meanwhile?
To continue reading this article, click here.
