The Nashville Predators avenged their last season's loss to the Chicago Blackhawks as they outscored them 3-2 at Chicago's United Center Wednesday night.
The game was decided by Joel Ward as his power-play goal tilted the game in Nashville's favor with just 27 seconds left in regulation. Hawks defenseman Nick Boynton helped the Predators in their victory as he accidentally tossed the puck out of the rink that resulted in game penalty.
Predators, currently at 2-0-0, ensured their victory by focusing on both the offense and defense sides of their team play. Ward scored his first goal of the season by capitalizing on a feed from J-P Dumont and directing it to a wide-open net.
The Hawks scored two goals, each by Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, with both scoring in the first period. They used the opportunity provided by the naïve rookie goalie Anders Lindback, who was making his NHL debut. Lindback quickly improved his performance and stopped 23 of 25 shots, including 15 straight after Toews' first goal.
Chicago had a lead of 2-1 in the first period and both teams failed to score in the second period thanks mainly to the strong defense by their respective goalies. The game was tied in the third quarter with Colin Wilson scoring at 4:43 by one-timing a shot after he identified the loopholes in Chicago's defense.
It was all Ward's game afterwards as he did not allow the Hawks to score another and eliminate any chances of Nashville victory. The Hawks, who are the defending Stanley Cup champions, have 1-2-1 start in the current season.
