By Canadian Press

Matt Duchene scores in shootout, Predators beat Canucks 5-4

Feb 21, 2023 | 9:16 PM

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Matt Duchene scored the only goal in the shootout as the Nashville Predators held off the Vancouver Canucks 5-4 on Tuesday night.

Vancouver tied it twice when trailing by two goals, the last with two goals about 50 seconds apart in the final 1:06 of regulation. Conor Garland made it a one-goal game, and Andrei Kuzmenko tied it with his second goal of the night with 15.4 seconds left.

Duchene beat goalie Collin Delia as Nashville’s second shooter, and he improved to 4 of 5 in shootouts this season. Goalie Juuse Saros stopped Kuzmenko, J.T. Miller and Elias Petterson for the win.

Nashville had plenty of chances to seal the win in regulation but couldn’t hit the empty net after Vancouver pulled Delia for the extra attacker.

Cole Smith, Philip Tomasino, Nino Niederreiter and Mikael Granlund each had a goal for Nashville, winners of two of its last three. The Predators also took the season series at 2-0 — both in shootouts — with one game left in Vancouver on March 6.

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Quinn Hughes had two assists, and Sheldon Dries also had a goal for Vancouver, which has lost four of five. Pettersson had an assist in his 300th career game.

Smith put Nashville up 1-0 at 4:38 of the first period, tapping the puck in from the side of the net. Tomasino made it 2-0 on the power play at 7:57 of the second with his first goal since being called up to replace Filip Forsberg, out with an upper-body injury since Feb. 11.

Kuzmenko beat Saros over his glove at 12:47 of the second on the breakaway off a turnover by Nashville defenseman Mattias Ekholm for his third straight game with a goal. Kuzmenko extended his points streak to four games.

Vancouver tied it at 2 when Dries tapped in a puck Saros thought he had stopped before the net came off the pegs with 22 seconds left in the second. Nashville retook the lead 12 seconds later as Niederreiter got his 16th on a backhander past Delia.

Granlund provided some breathing room, scoring on a backhander at the left side of the net at 7:44 of the third.

INJURY ALERT

Predators center Ryan Johansen was helped to the locker room late in the second after Canucks defenseman Jack Hughes’ skate appeared to clip the back of his right leg.

PROTECTING SCHENN

The Canucks made defenseman Luke Schenn a healthy scratch, sending him back to Vancouver in advance of the March 3 trade deadline.

HALL OF FAME SURPRISE

Former Nashville captain Mike Fisher was surprised during the first intermission with the announcement he will be inducted into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame in July. He retired after the 2017 run to the Stanley Cup Final before coming back in January 2018 as Nashville won its first Presidents’ Trophy.

UP NEXT

Canucks: At St. Louis on Thursday night.

Predators: At San Jose on Thursday night.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Teresa M. Walker, The Associated Press