The Nashville Predators entered the dreaded Saturday matinee game against the Florida Panthers, after a bruising loss to the Boston Bruins on Thursday. They managed a huge win in style against a skilled and desperate team, amply rewarding the fans who showed up.
Tommy Novak got the scoring started early, opening his first shift of the game by capitalizing on some determined possession by Roman Josi to put the Preds up 1-0 at 2:36. Josi kept the puck alone while the rest of the Preds changed; good to see the effort rewarded.