The new guys came in clutch once again for the Preds, as Nino Niederreiter scored twice and Kevin Lankinen made 31 saves to lift Nashville to a 3-2 win over the San Jose Sharks Saturday at the O2 Arena in Prague, Czech Republic.
Niederreiter, who signed with Nashville as an unrestricted free agent in July, now leads the Preds with three goals in his first two games.
“Nino has come in and has fit in seamlessly,” Head Coach John Hynes said. We feel like we have a strong identity in how we want to play and the culture that we want off the ice… Nino fits that. He’s played fantastic, and he’s the style of player we wanted to have.”
The Sharks entered the first intermission up 1-0 thanks to a power play goal by former Pred Luke Kunin. Niederreiter’s first goal tied the game at 1-1 in the second period, but San Jose’s Logan Couture responded mere seconds later with a goal of his own to retake the lead.
Filip Forsberg tied the game 2-2 at 6:29 in the second period, wrapping around the right post to bank one past Sharks goalie Kaapo Kahkonen. After serving a two-minute boarding penalty, Niederreiter scored the eventual game winner on a 3-on-2 rush coming out of the box at 12:13 in the second period.
“Obviously, the most important thing is that we won,” Niederreiter said. “But it feels great being able to contribute to the team, and it was a great pass by [Eeli Tolvanen] to put it on my stick and give me the chance to put it home… It was definitely a huge goal for our team, and I’m very happy we won.”
Lankinen, who also signed with Nashville as a free agent this offseason, earned a win in his first start in goal for the Predators.
“It was a big battle… that I think showed a lot of character from the whole team,” Lankinen said. “It was huge seeing the guys out in front of you like that and putting everything on the line and doing whatever it takes. It gives you a boost as a goalie – you don’t want to let them down and you want to do whatever it takes for them as well.”
Having completed the sweep of the Sharks in the 2022 NHL Global Series, the Preds will head back to Nashville Sunday with a perfect 2-0 record and an optimistic outlook for the 2022-23 season.
“We definitely gained some confidence,” Ryan Johansen said. “Obviously, there’s so much work to do. We’ve got 80 games left, but we should definitely feel pretty good about ourselves. When we’re doing the right things on the ice we can be a successful team and create a lot of trouble for the opposition.
The Preds return to action Thursday in their home opener against the Dallas Stars at Bridgestone Arena. The puck drops at 7:30 pm CT, and the game will be televised on ESPN+.
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