The Nashville Predators had one of their worst performances of the season last night. It was the team’s second game in Dallas against the Stars, and the Preds had a 2-1 series lead and a chance to extend that to 3-1 before heading back to Nashville to close out the series. That chance didn’t last long, as the Stars quickly scored 4 goals in the First Period of Game 4. Two of those goals were the Stars’ first two shots of the game.
After the first 4 goals, the Predators did all they could to stop the bleeding and try to catch up, holding it even to 1-1 after that. It was not nearly enough however, and Preds fans saw once again some of the problems they’ve seen in parts of the season. Only this was on a larger stage, and it looked quite a bit uglier.
Predators fans should be reassured to know that this does seem like a very likely fluke, and a very bad off night for Nashville coinciding with the Stars offense getting unusually hot. The Preds had never allowed three power play goals in a single period all season long, and had never trailed by 4 after the First Period of play. Dallas has also been one of the lesser efficient scoring teams in the league, scoring only a total of 39 goals in the first period all season and not a single first period goal in a game this series.
It’s easy to point out that yes, last night was likely a fluke. Preds fans shouldn’t be too concerned; the series is tied and heading back to Nashville. The Predators however cannot play another game like last night’s however, or they will face early elimination.
The Predators and Stars will face off for Game 5 in Nashville on Saturday, April 20th at 3:00pm.