NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Peter Laviolette’s decision to put Daniel Carr into the lineup paid off for the Nashville Predators.
Carr scored the deciding goal in the shootout and Nashville beat the St. Louis Blues 3-2 on Monday night.
Nick Bonino and Ryan Johansen scored in regulation for Nashville, and Juuse Saros made 23 saves in regulation and overtime for the Predators. Saros stopped three of four shots in the shootout.
The Predators have won two straight, both ends of the home-and-home set with St. Louis.
David Perron and Brayden Schenn scored for St. Louis, which has lost two straight.
“We played a good third period, battled back and got a point out of it,” St. Louis coach Craig Berube said. “It’s a tough game. They are a good team, they work hard, and it’s a tough building to play in.”
In the fourth round of the shootout, Carr skated to his left, and then drifted to the slot where he snapped a quick wrist shot by Blues goaltender Jake Allen. Carr was recalled from Milwaukee of the AHL earlier Monday.
“It’s a lot of fun,” Carr said. “I’m really excited to be back here and grateful.”
Carr played just over 14 minutes in his fourth game with the Predators this season.
“I thought he worked really hard,” Laviolette said. “I thought he competed hard. Their line had some chances to score. He was part of that.”
Allen made 37 shots. He stopped two of four in the shootout.
Two days after the teams met in St. Louis, the physicality was turned up in the rematch. This game featured one fight and many more hits, giving the contest more of a playoff feel, despite being played in November.
In Saturday’s game, Nashville lost first line left wing Viktor Arvidsson for four-to-six weeks due to a lower-body injury sustained after being cross-checked by Blues defenseman Robert Bortuzzo. Bortuzzo served the first of his league-imposed four-game suspension Monday.
Bonino scored the game’s first goal at 7:59 of the opening period.
Dante Fabbro lifted a long pass from near the Nashville goal line to Rocco Grimaldi at the St. Louis blue line. After deftly controlling the pass out of midair, Grimaldi found Bonino heading to the right side. From above the right circle, Bonino sent a wrist shot high to the far side of Allen.
Bonino is tied for the team lead in goals with 10.
Johansen made it 2-0 at 11:37 of the first.
Standing just outside the St. Louis crease, Calle Jarnkrok deflected Filip Forsberg’s attempt from the left boards. Allen stopped that shot, but Johansen skated in and lifted a backhand just underneath the crossbar for his second in his last three games.
“Especially when you’re in a funk, you’ve really got to look yourself in the mirror and understand what you need to bring to the table and do everything you can to bring more,” Johansen said. “I feel like I’ve played a couple of solid games to help us as much as I can.”
Perron cut Nashville’s lead at 12:30 of the second.
Driving into the Nashville zone on a 1-on-1 against Predators defenseman Dan Hamhuis, Perron’s initial shot was kicked aside by Saros. But the rebound landed right on Perron’s stick, and he fired it by Saros for his 11th of the season.
“On the first one, I was trying to go glove side,” Perron said. “When it came back to me, I saw there was a little bit of room upstairs and I just kind of shot it there and it went in.”
Schenn tied the game with 6:51 remaining in the third after Robert Thomas found him all alone in the low slot with a pass from the right side.
NOTES: Predators Mikael Granlund played his 500th career NHL game. ... Nashville C Kyle Turris was a healthy scratch for the fourth consecutive game. ... Saros started consecutive games for the first time this season. ... Blues RW Troy Brouwer played his first game of the season after signing as a free agent Nov. 20.
UP NEXT:
Blues: Visit Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday.
Predators: Host Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday.
