National Hockey League
Nashville 5, Arizona 2
When: 8:00 PM ET, Tuesday, February 5, 2019
Where: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tennessee
Referees: Kendrick Nicholson, Francois St. Laurent
Linesmen: Derek Amell, Libor Suchanek
Attendance: 17295

Captain Roman Josi collected a goal and two assists as the host Nashville Predators skated to a 5-2 victory over the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday.

Fellow defenseman Ryan Ellis and forward Calle Jarnkrok each scored and set up a goal, and Filip Forsberg ended Nashville's pronounced power-play drought to highlight his team's three-goal second period. Craig Smith also tallied, and Pekka Rinne finished with 24 saves for the Predators, who snapped a three-game home losing skid and averted a season sweep by Arizona.

Vinnie Hinostroza scored his fifth goal in six contests, and Derek Stepan also tallied for the Coyotes, who have dropped four in a row to conclude their six-game road trip with a 2-3-1 mark. Calvin Pickard turned aside 42 shots in the loss.

Entering the game mired in an 0-for-31 drought on the power play, Nashville was unsuccessful on its first two attempts before Forsberg beat Pickard on a shot from the outer edge of the right faceoff circle. Forsberg's 19th goal of the season gave the Predators a 2-1 lead at 7:45 of the second period.

Ellis doubled the advantage less than six minutes later, cleaning up a loose puck from the doorstep before absorbing a crosscheck from defenseman Alex Goligoski.

Stepan scored on a wraparound to trim the Predators' lead to 3-2 at 4:19 of the third period, but Rinne got his revenge by stopping him from point-blank range with less than seven minutes to play. The sequence proved pivotal as Nashville regained its two-goal advantage shortly thereafter, with Colton Sissons one-touching Josi's feed to Jarnkrok at the doorstep.

Hinostroza accepted a slick backhanded pass from Goligoski and wristed a shot from the slot past Rinne to open the scoring with 3:01 left in the first period.

Nashville forged a 1-1 tie just 2:58 into the second period as defenseman Mattias Ekholm's one-timer from the right point produced a juicy rebound for Smith, who chipped the puck home from the right doorstep. The goal was Smith's 15th of the season and his first since he tallied twice in a 4-1 win over Montreal on Jan. 5.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Arizona   Nashville
Vinnie Hinostroza 1 Points Roman Josi 3
Vinnie Hinostroza 1 Goals Roman Josi 1
Alex Goligoski 1 Assists Roman Josi 2
N/A Power Play Goals Filip Forsberg 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Calvin Pickard .913 Save Percentage Pekka Rinne .923
Calvin Pickard 42 Saves Pekka Rinne 24
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Arizona 26 2 0-3 4-5 10 25
Nashville 47 5 1-5 3-3 6 38
Upcoming Games
  • Nashville will play their next game at home against Dallas. The Predators have a W/L % of .625 after a win and .522 after a loss.
  • Arizona will play their next game at home against Columbus. The Coyotes have a W/L % of .458 after a win and .414 after a loss.