The Vancouver Canucks won game three against the Nashville Predators with only 12 shots on goal, a feat that hasn’t been done since the 2017 Stanley Cup Final when the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Predators 5-3 in game one.
Canucks Strike First:
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Vancouver’s top scorer in the regular season, J.T. Miller, opened up the scoring for the Canucks with a powerplay goal fired over the left should of Nashville’s Saros. Miller’s goal was also Vancouver’s first shot of the game 13:23 into the first period.
A Roman Josi tripping penalty in the second period would lead to the game-winner off the stick of Canucks’ Brock Boeser. A J.T. Miller pass from the goal line found the stick of Brock Boeser, who was parked right in front of Saros, and beat him five-hole for Vancouver’s second powerplay goal of the game.
Preds Pushing Back:
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Nashville fought hard throughout game three as they more than doubled Vancouver’s shot total with 30 shots of their own. The Preds cut the deficit to one when forward Luke Evangelista sniped one past DeSmith’s glove side with three minutes left in the third.
Even with Nashville’s late push with the goalie pulled, DeSmith and the Canucks held down the fort and solidified the 2-1 win in game three.
Nashville’s Not So Special Special Teams:
Nashville’s special teams were also non-existent in game three. Their powerplay went 0-5 with only four shots in total and they only killed off one out of their three penalties.
After the first week of playoff games, Nashville’s special teams have been at the bottom of the barrel in comparison to everyone else. Their 7.1 powerplay percentage is the 3rd worst among playoff teams and although they rank 6th for the penalty kill, 77.7% is not a number for success when it comes to the playoffs.
Vancouver’s Early Success:
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On the other side, outside of their 12 shots on goal, Vancouver played a great game. 28 blocked shots, 3 giveaways and 29 saves from DeSmith characterized the Canucks game-three play.
This was a big bounce-back game for DeSmith after his game two performance was very subpar, letting in three goals on 15 shots. DeSmith’s game three was completely different as he was blanking the Preds left and right, proving that he can be a playoff performer.
Vancouver’s 2-1 series lead has been backpacked by captain Quinn Hughes and forward J.T. Miller. Hughes’ 4 assists and Miller’s 3 points lead the way for Vancouver in these playoffs.
Predators Looking For Better Performances:
Nashville’s Filip Forsberg leads the team in points this playoffs with 3, with forwards Jason Zucker and Anthony Beauvillier behind him. Goaltender Juuse Saros has also struggled a little early on as his .880 save% ranks as the seventh-worst save percentage in these playoffs.
Nashville’s captain, Roman Josi, was questioned about the team’s performance in game three.
“I thought it was a good effort,” said Josi. “We held them to what, 11 shots? I felt like we had most of the game 5-on-5, but our powerplay needs to step up.”
Preds head coach Andrew Brunette said, “They defended extremely well, like they have all series and like I said, the whole series is gonna be hard. It’s gonna be muddy.”
Game Four, Sunday, April 28th:
The Canucks now lead the series 2-1 with game four taking place on Sunday, April 28th at 5 PM EST. Game four’s match-up will be available on TBS, TRUTV, and HBO MAX.
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About the author: Trevor Poetzinger is a senior at Western Michigan University studying journalism in hopes of becoming a sports journalist. Poetzinger is a big Chicago sports fan, with the Blackhawks and White Sox as his favorites. Poetzinger also loves talking about anything hockey and baseball-related, whether it’s the pros, semi-pros, or college
