Predators, minus Fiala, plan to push on vs. Blues (Apr 28, 2017)
ST. LOUIS -- The Nashville Predators faced the reality Thursday that they will have to play the rest of the playoffs without left winger Kevin Fiala, who sustained a broken left leg on Wednesday night in their series opener against the St. Louis Blues.
"Kev was playing so well for us," Predators defenseman Ryan Ellis told NHL.com. "He became a dominant player on the ice, and it's a big loss for our team. It hurts right now, hurts for Kev, too, but we have to move forward. He's going to be missed for sure, but we have to find a way to get past it."
The Predators will try to do that starting Friday night, when they take on the Blues in Game 2 of the Western Conference second-round series, trying to stay undefeated in this year's postseason.
After sweeping the top-seeded Chicago Blackhawks in the first round, the eighth-seeded Predators won Game 1 against the Blues 4-3 on Wednesday. Nashville got a goal and two assists from P.K. Subban and the game-winning goal from Vernon Fiddler with 5:05 left in the third period.
Colin Wilson also scored for the Predators in his first game of the postseason, having missed the Chicago series because of a lower-body injury, and he likely must play a major role if the team is going to overcome the loss of Fiala.
Wilson led the Predators in playoff points a year ago, when they lost in the second round to the San Jose Sharks. They are trying to advance to the first Western Conference finals in franchise history.
"He's awesome in the playoffs," Ellis said of Wilson. "He's been good for us all year, so he's adapted to his role on the team, and he's one of the guys we lean heavily on. Now losing Kev, we're going to rely on him even more than ever."
Wilson does not believe he will be able to carry the load alone.
"Throughout the year, I think we're a little bit inconsistent, but when we played our game, we were always unstoppable," Wilson told NHL.com. "We have a lot of talent, great D, great goaltending, all-around strong team with a lot of depth. Watching them was fun, but being a part of it is a lot better."
The Blues saw ways they can be better after the Game 1 loss, primarily by avoiding penalties that helped put them in a 3-1 hole in the second period. Two of the Predators' goals came on power plays.
"They put us on our heels, put us behind, created a lot of momentum," St. Louis goalie Jake Allen said. "When we didn't have to kill any penalties, it changed the game. I thought we played really well five-on-five."
That performance did not result in a win, however, which is becoming a problem on home ice for the Blues. They are now 1-2 at home this season, compared to a 3-0 record on the road.
"We have to be better at home," Blues coach Mike Yeo said. "We put ourselves in a tough position by not coming out and putting our best game in front of us (in Game 1). We have to be a little more focus and committed to playing a 60-minute game. For me, this time of year, you should definitely feel some momentum and energy from your crowd.
"There were some things (Wednesday) we can build off, things we certainly learned about their team and things we need to do to be successful."
