owd.Fiala at least helped Nashville avoid being shut out with his wrister 1:23 into the third . Not even pulling backup goalie Juuse Saros with more than 2 minutes left helped.”For us right now, there’s a few things we have to clean up, a couple of mistakes cost us, but bounces are going to happen in

For their return to the ice Thursday night after a four-day Christmas break Tampa Bay Lightning T-Shirts Authentic , the Nashville Predators got a pair of reinforcements. What they didn’t get was a much-needed win.Despite outshooting Dallas 49-30, including a total of nine shots on net from Viktor Arvidsson and P.K. Subban in their return after absences of a month-and-a-half each, Nashville couldn’t get a puck past Anton Khudobin. It cost them a 2-0 defeat, their fifth straight loss.Article continues below ...The Predators hope to snap their longest skid since January of 2016 when they host the New York Rangers Saturday night at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.With a road-heavy schedule awaiting it in January, Nashville could use these two points. To hear coach Peter Laviolette talk after Thursday night’s game, success might not be very far away, even though his team again failed to get the result.“We were working to create,” Laviolette said. “It wasn’t a lack of effort or opportunity. I think when you put that many pucks on net, you’re looking to do the right things. We’ll go back and nit-pick it. We’ll try to find some times we could have been better. It’s frustrating.”In spite of the loss, the Predators (22-15-2) remain four points behind Winnipeg for first place in the Central Division and have four meetings left with the Jets, including an unusual two-game home series with them January 15 and 17. So there’s still plenty of time to play catchup.Subban, whose first game back from an upper-body injury suffered in mid-November offered three shots but a minus two rating, said Nashville can build on its ability to marry puck possession with shots on net in Thursday night’s defeat.“We put nearly 50 shots on net and not a lot of teams can do that,” he said. “We did some things well. I think the two goals were tough ones and we would like to have them back. We had a lot of chances but just couldn’t bury them.While the Predators search for consistency and points Tampa Bay Lightning Hoodies Authentic , New York (15-14-7) has managed to pick up a point in seven of its last nine games. But the Rangers have just two wins to show for the stretch following a4-3 overtime loss Thursday night in Madison Square Garden to Columbus.Chris Kreider’s goal at 12:06 of the third period gave New York a late edge, but the Blue Jackets equalized via Zach Werenski at 17:40 and then skated off 31 seconds into overtime on Pierre-Luc Dubois’ 14th marker of the year.“We can’t let this get in the way of moving on and getting ready for Nashville,” said first-year coach David Quinn. “There were situations where we had a chance to get the puck out and didn’t do what we were supposed to. It’s about learning how to win.”The Rangers have struggled across the board, ranking 25th in goals (100) and 23rd in goals against (117). Their penalty kill hasn’t helped, ranking 26th.The teams met on October 4 in their season opener, with the Predators earning a 3-2 win. NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) Connor Hellebuyck loves what he’s seeing in his first NHL postseason, and the 24-year-old goalie is doing his best to make sure the Winnipeg Jets do much more than just stick around.Hellebuyck made 47 saves and the Jets beat the Nashville Predators 4-1 on Friday night in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinal between the NHL’s top teams in the regular season.”I love the intensity, I love the game in front of me,” Hellebuyck said about the playoffs. ”It’s awesome and a little different. Intense is the right way to put it.”Not only did the teams top the standings, this series is the first between clubs with the most combined points ever before a conference finals after Nashville (117) edged Winnipeg (114) for the Presidents’ Trophy.Both the Jets and Predators brought a Vezina finalist into this series. Hellebuyck outdueled veteran Pekka Rinne, who was pulled after the second period after giving up three goals on 16 shots. Hellebuyck, who finished off Minnesota with back-to-back shutouts, picked up where he left off a week ago.Hellebuyck stretched his shutout streak to 163 minutes before Nashville finally scored. Coach Paul Maurice said the Jets weren’t at their best and can play better.”But we pay our goaltender Tampa Bay Lightning Hats Authentic , too,” Maurice said.Mark Scheifele scored two goals, including an empty-netter as the Jets were outshot 48-19. Brandon Tanev and Paul Stastny also scored to help the Jets – the NHL’s best home team in the regular season – steal home-ice advantage.Kevin Fiala scored for the Predators, which had won 11 of their last 14 playoff games in Nashville. Several Predators said they thought this was perhaps their best game of the season, talk coach Peter Laviolette didn’t share.”You give me two choices on where to be, our game or their win, I’d take the win,” Laviolette said. ”It’s about winning hockey games right now.”The Predators had the sparkling pregame show with the retractable screen dropping from the ceiling and country star Dierks Bentley singing the U.S. anthem, and a couple catfish hit the ice before the puck drop to boot. Then they pelted Hellebuyck with 15 of the first 19 shots.Then the Jets scored the game’s first goal for a sixth straight playoff game. Tanev’s wrister beat Rinne’s outstretched right skate at 14:51 of the first.Nashville finished the period with 20 shots, a franchise postseason record for a period, with Hellebuyck continuing his shutout streak started with consecutive shutouts to finish off Minnesota in the first round.”He was awesome,” Jets forward Blake Wheeler said about Hellebuyck. ”They were throwing everything at the net. What we were trying to do in front of him was just get bodies, get sticks, let him see things. You could tell early on if he was seeing the puck he was going to make the stops.”The Predators kept shooting away with Hellebuyck making every save Custom Tampa Bay Lightning Jerseys , and the Jets proved very opportunistic. Stastny scored off a rebound of Patrik Laine’s shot at 9:01 of the second on Winnipeg’s ninth shot for a 2-0 lead.Filip Forsberg, Nashville’s postseason scoring leader, hit the post on the power play with 3:31 left. The Jets killed off the penalty, and Scheifele beat Rinne with a long shot with 2:09 left in the second for a 3-0 lead that silenced the sold-out crowd.Fiala at least helped Nashville avoid being shut out with his wrister 1:23 into the third . Not even pulling backup goalie Juuse Saros with more than 2 minutes left helped.”For us right now, there’s a few things we have to clean up, a couple of mistakes cost us, but bounces are going to happen in a hockey game, that’s just the way it is,” Nashville defenseman P.K. Subban said. ”We’ll be ready to go on Sunday. Let’s do that for the rest of the series, we’re going to be a happy bunch at the end of it.NOTES: Nashville defenseman Ryan Ellis went to the locker room after being clipped on the cheek by the skate of Jets defenseman Ben Chiarot early in the third. … Austin Watson, who had seven points in the first round for Nashville, did not return after playing 4:09 of the first period. Laviolette said an update on Watson is expected Saturday.UP NEXTGame 2 is Sunday night in Nashville.—