James Neal wins Game 1 in OT for Nashville Predators (Video)
The Predators drew first blood in the Western Conference Final on the road.
James Neal fired a puck through traffic in front of John Gibson to win Game 1 of the NHL’s Western Conference Final on Friday for the Nashville Predators. The Preds took an early series lead over the Anaheim Ducks in overtime, winning 3-2 on the road at the Honda Center.
The winning goal was just reward for a hard offensive-zone shift by Nashville, who crowded Gibson’s crease with bodies to draw him out of position. The puck bounced out of traffic to defenseman PK Subban, who fooled everyone with a faked point shot before sliding it over to Neal. With plenty of space, Neal bounced a shot off Ducks forward Corey Perry into the net.
James Neal FTW in OT! Predators take Game 1, 3-2. https://t.co/vC8rNTLJBo pic.twitter.com/MISVk08HF0
— SI NHL (@SI_NHL) May 13, 2017
Here’s another angle of Neal’s goal:
James Neal wins Game 1 of the Western Conference Final for the Predators with a @WestJet OT Winner. pic.twitter.com/pCqZMp7hQc
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 13, 2017
The Predators come away with a crucial road win in this series, effectively stealing home-ice advantage from Anaheim. They looked the better team all night, too, sending 46 shots at Gibson compared to the Ducks’ 29 the other way.
Anaheim tied the game at 2 midway through the third period, with Hampus Lindholm’s first goal of the playoffs beating Pekka Rinne.
The overtime goal was Neal’s fourth marker of this postseason, and 23rd of his career. He contributed 41 points for the Preds in the regular season this year.
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Taking Game 1 gives Nashville a huge advantage, taking some of the pressure off of them heading into their next meeting with the Ducks on Sunday night. The winner of this conference final series will move on to face either the Pittsburgh Penguins or Ottawa Senators for the Stanley Cup.