SportsDirect Inc. Ad
SportsDirect Inc. Ad
SportsDirect Inc. Ad
National Hockey League
Nashville 4, San Jose 3
When: 9:00 PM ET, Thursday, May 5, 2016
Where: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tennessee
Referees: Gord Dwyer, Eric Furlatt
Linesmen: Derek Amell, Pierre Racicot
Attendance: 17188

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- How did Nashville Predators center Mike Fisher maintain the energy to play 37 minutes and 33 seconds of playoff hockey through Thursday night and early Friday morning?

"Bananas, electrolytes and grapes," Fisher said.

Vitamin C and liquid refreshment, teamed with a providential rebound, led to Fisher's game-winning goal at 11:12 of the third overtime that gave Nashville a 4-3 win over the San Jose Sharks, evening the teams' Western Conference semifinal series at 2-2.

Pouncing on a juicy rebound of a point shot by defenseman Mattias Ekholm, Fisher waited for goalie Martin Jones to go down and then shoveled the puck under him for his second goal of the night and fourth of the playoffs.

The dramatic ending, occurring in front of about 14,000 from the original sellout crowd of 17,188, shook Bridgestone Arena and resulted in a wild celebration along the boards.

"Usually, a simple shot and a rebound will decide it when you get to that stage of a game," Ekholm said.

Game 5 of the series is Saturday night in San Jose, with the teams flying back to Nashville for Game 6 Monday night. While some Predator players believe the manner in which they won Game 4 will carry over, coach Peter Laviolette sounded a more cautious tone.

"With a day off, it resets everything for both teams," he said. "But there are good things we can pull from."

Such as the brilliant goaltending of Pekka Rinne, who gave up a brutal goal to Brent Burns on the first shot he faced 3:08 into the game and then went into All-Star mode. Rinne finished with 44 saves, 25 in the overtimes when he was seemingly all Nashville had at times against the relentless Sharks.

In a second overtime when San Jose outshot the Predators 11-4 and appeared to never cede possession, Rinne made the game enter a third extra session. He twice robbed Tomas Hertl on point-blank looks in the slot and then came up with a pair of key saves during a late power play.

"We missed some wide-open nets in the overtimes," Sharks center Logan Couture said. "We have to bury those."

San Jose thought it had buried one at 7:26 of the first overtime when Joe Pavelski appeared to knock a rebound home while sprawled across the crease with Rinne under him. The goal was immediately waved off, followed by a replay review.

The referees' call was affirmed due to goaltender interference on Pavelski, infuriating Sharks coach Peter DeBoer, who argued at length after the call and was still chugging from the anger spigot when asked about the call.

"The explanation that I got was ... that he made incidental contact with the goalie. That's why they waved it off," DeBoer said. "I guess incidental contact is when you're cross-checked from behind while you are in the air and you have the opportunity to stop.

"That rule has been as clear as mud to every coach in the league all year, so why should it be any different tonight?"

Ironically, San Jose tied it at 14:09 of the second period after a replay review went its way. Right as a power play ended, Joonas Donskoi pumped a wrister by Rinne, but Laviolette challenged on the basis of offsides.

The review confirmed the linesman's call of no offsides on Joel Ward, ruling that he had tagged up at the blue line by the time the Sharks established clear possession in Nashville's defensive zone.

San Jose took its first lead at 6:48 of the third period, five seconds after Barret Jackman went to the box for kneeing Chris Tierney. Burns ripped a point blast over Rinne for his fourth goal and 13th point in nine playoff matches.

However, the Sharks coughed up the puck under steady pressure later in the period and James Neal buried a wrister from the left faceoff circle at 15:39, unleashing a howl lost in a wail of noise from the raucous audience.

From there, the game took on a life of its own, seeming to play the players as midnight morphed into 1 a.m. Seven defensemen logged more than 40 minutes of ice time, led by a staggering 49:42 for the Predators' Roman Josi.

But Fisher, whose line accounted for all four Nashville goals, delivered the one that ended the franchise's longest-ever game.

"We didn't care if we had to play all night," Rinne said.

Jones ended with 41 saves for San Jose, which finished with a 47-45 edge in shots on goal and a 111-102 advantage in total shots.

Colin Wilson continued his postseason magic for the Predators, scoring the game's first goal at :41 of the first period and adding secondary assists on their last two goals. He has four markers and seven assists in 11 playoff games after tallying only six regular season goals.

NOTES: San Jose LW Patrick Marleau's first-period goal Tuesday night was his 62nd career postseason marker, extending his franchise record. ... Nashville D Roman Josi came into Thursday night's game with 25 shots on goal in the playoffs, most among any player this postseason yet to score a goal. ... The Sharks scratched C Dainius Zubrus and C Micheal Haley, along with D Dylan DeMelo and D Matt Tennyson. ... Nashville's scratches were D Petter Granberg, C Cody Bass, C Mike Ribeiro, LW Eric Nystrom, LW Austin Watson, G Marek Mazanec and RW Gabriel Bourque.
Top Game Performances
 
San Jose   Nashville
Brent Burns 2 Points Colin Wilson 3
Brent Burns 2 Goals Mike Fisher 2
Logan Couture 2 Assists Colin Wilson 2
Brent Burns 1 Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Martin Jones .911 Save Percentage Pekka Rinne .936
Martin Jones 41 Saves Pekka Rinne 44
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
San Jose 47 3 1-5 5-5 12 44
Nashville 45 4 0-5 4-5 12 58
Upcoming Games
  • Nashville will play their next game on the road against San Jose. The Predators have a W/L % of .439 after a win and .561 after a loss.
  • San Jose will play their next game at home against Nashville. The Sharks have a W/L % of .511 after a win and .622 after a loss.