What Went Wrong: Predators Eliminated by Hurricanes

The Nashville Predators put up an amazing effort in their series against the Carolina Hurricanes, but it still wasn't enough, as Sebastian Aho's overtime goal in Game Six ended the Predators' season. This was a series that was very close after the first two games were dominated by the Hurricanes, as the next four saw a combined 74:13 of overtime played. Nashville's two wins came in double overtime, leading the Hurricanes to score quickly in the last two extra frames to finish off the Predators.

Following their Qualifying Round loss to the Arizona Coyotes in the Edmonton bubble, it looked like the Predators' window had slammed shut. This was a team who had a dream season in 2016-17, reaching the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in franchise history, but went backwards ever since then. It looked like this season would see no playoffs from the Predators, as the Chicago Blackhawks and the Dallas Stars seem to be jockeying for that fourth-place slot in the Central Division. However, the Predators went on a winning tear to move past both teams and get into the playoffs, doing so for the seventh straight season.

So despite this, what exactly went wrong? It's really hard to say. Though the first two games gave a belief that the Predators were simply no match for the first-place Hurricanes, the next four showed that they were capable of playing up to challenges, and that was solely because all four went to overtime. The amazing thing about playoff overtime is that it's about being at the right place at the right time, and in Games Three and Four, that was the Predators. It takes a mixture of skill, happenstance, and luck to get that overtime goal, and while the Predators had all three in Games Three and Four, it was the Hurricanes who had it in Games Five and Six. That was the difference.

The players definitely produced when they did. Mikael Granlund led with five points (2G/3A), while Ryan Johansen led in goals with three. There were a lot of crooked numbers in players' goal totals in the series, so offense wasn't really a problem. Juuse Saros, the Preds' main goalie due to Pekka Rinne's decline in recent seasons: 2-4 record, 2.78 GAA, .921 SV%. 2.78 is pretty high, but I've seen worse, and while .921 isn't that ideal, it's not really that bad of a save percentage. So I guess the only thing that went wrong for the Predators: they were playing the Hurricanes. That's it. The Predators were simply the also-ran with three juggernauts in Carolina and the Florida teams. But even so, the Preds were very close to forcing Game Seven.

The Predators will return to the actual Central Division next year, where they will deal with the Avalanche, Blues, Jets, Wild, Stars, and Blackhawks. While the jury's out on what the Stars, Blackhawks, and Blues, the other three teams are strong and formidable, and that will make things difficult for the Predators. What they do in the offseason will determine whether or not the Predators will continue their playoff streak, and remain as a force in the Western Conference. It's hard to determine what they'll need; at one point, the Predators were in a selling mood, with their untouchables including stalwarts Rinne and Roman Josi, but strangely, not Filip Forsberg. If it's one thing I do recommend, it's that the Predators move on from Rinne. I get it. Pekka Rinne's been their guy, their goalie, their old reliable. He's basically the team's version of The Undertaker. But even the Deadman finally hung it up after a long and prosperous career. It's really time for the Predators to move on from Rinne, but not before thanking him for everything he has done for the team.

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