On his first shift of the playoffs, James Neal pounced on an unattended puck in the slot in front of the Anaheim Ducks' net.
Neal didn't waste his earliest opportunity to get the postseason off to a stellar start, and neither did the rest of the Nashville Predators.
Filip Forsberg got credit for the tiebreaking goal with 9:35 to play, and the Predators opened their first-round series with a 3-2 victory Friday night.
Pekka Rinne made 27 saves for the Predators, who knocked off the Pacific Division champion Ducks with a gritty road effort. Five years after Nashville eliminated Anaheim in six games for the franchise's first playoff series victory, the Predators again took away home-ice advantage from the Ducks in a series opener.
"In the playoffs, you've got to be ready for any opportunity," said Neal, who scored 35 seconds in. "I think you need to have a mindset that you're going to have a chance like that (on any shift)."
Game 2 is Sunday night in Anaheim.
After Colin Wilson scored in the second period, Forsberg got the go-ahead goal when his cross-ice pass to Craig Smith hit defenseman Shea Theodore's skate and trickled past John Gibson.
"I thought (Smith) got a stick on it, but it doesn't really matter," said Forsberg, who has seven points in seven career playoff games.
More nhl 16 news is shared in vipnhlcoins which is a site doing nhl 16 Coins trade, sell and buy. You will always find the cheap nhl Coins from www.vipnhlcoins.com.
Loading
List all items from this seller
Useful information
- Avoid scams by acting locally or paying with PayPal
- Never pay with Western Union, Moneygram or other anonymous payment services
- Don't buy or sell outside of your country. Don't accept cashier cheques from outside your country
- This site is never involved in any transaction, and does not handle payments, shipping, guarantee transactions, provide escrow services, or offer "buyer protection" or "seller certification"