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Blackhawks 5, Predators 4: Kane Sends Game To OT With 13.6 Left; Hossa Wins It
Chicago, IL (Sports Network) - Marian Hossa scored 4:06 into overtime to lift the Chicago Blackhawks to a 5-4 win over Nashville in Game 5 of their Western Conference quarterfinal series.
The teams had alternated wins since Nashville took the opener in Chicago, and the Predators were eyeing to take a 3-2 lead in the series. They were leading by a goal late in regulation and headed to the power play after Hossa received a major penalty for shoving Nashville defenseman Dan Hamhuis into the boards behind the Nashville net with 1:03 to play in the third period. Hamhuis was injured on the play.
Chicago pulled rookie goaltender Antti Niemi and Patrick Kane deposited the rebound of a Jonathan Toews shot to force overtime with 13.6 seconds remaining.
Nashville remained on the power play at the outset of overtime, but couldn't convert. Hossa exited the box and joined the play in the Predators' zone. Chicago defenseman Brent Sopel unloaded a shot from the point that deflected off a Nashville player. The puck went right to Hossa at the side of the net and he buried it before Pekka Rinne could get across.
The Predators are now 0-for-21 on the power play in the series.
Andrew Ladd, Niklas Hjalmarsson and Tomas Kopecky also scored for the Blackhawks, who can close out the series Monday in the Music City.
Niemi finished with 17 saves.
Martin Erat tallied twice in the third period for the Predators, with his second goal breaking a 3-3 tie with 8:21 left in regulation.
David Legwand and Joel Ward both registered a goal and an assist for Nashville, which got 27 saves from Rinne.
Patric Hornqvist, who led Nashville with 30 goals during the regular season, missed his fourth straight game due to an upper-body injury that he aggravated in the opener.
Down 3-2, Erat one-timed a J.P. Dumont pass at 1:34 of the third. He then gave the visitors the lead at 11:39. Denis Grebeshkov held the puck at the left point and dished to Erat in the right circle. Erat took the feed off his skate and snapped a shot along the ice behind Niemi.
The Predators grabbed a 1-0 lead 6:23 into the contest on a wrister by Legwand.
Ladd pulled Chicago into a 1-1 tie midway through the first period. Rinne was down after a slap shot by Blackhawks defenseman Brent Seabrook. Ladd crashed the crease and put home the rebound past the prone netminder at 9:57.
The Blackhawks seized the lead on Hjalmarsson’s first career playoff goal, a rocket from the point that made its way through traffic and beat Rinne on the short side with 5:07 left in the first.
Chicago got caught for too many men at 14:14 of the middle stanza and killed the power play. Kopecky served the penalty and raced out of the box to gather a cleared puck. He eluded the poke check of Rinne, switched to the backhand and slipped the puck into the open net at 16:24.
Moments later, Nashville's Jerred Smithson went off the ice for hooking, but the Predators capitalized on a turnover by Kane to net a short-handed goal and trim their deficit to 3-2. Ward joined Legwand on an odd-man break. Legwand carried the puck down the left side and dished across to Ward, who buried a shot behind a sliding Niemi at 17:31.
Toews, Seabrook and Grebeshkov each had two assists...Nashville has not won a playoff series in its 12-year history, losing in the first round in all four of its previous trips to the postseason.
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