Predators vs Panthers — Sept. 21, 2025

Scoreboard

Game 1

NSH 5 – FLA 0

Shots: NSH 26, FLA 19

Faceoffs: NSH 63.2%

PP: NSH 1/1, FLA 0/3

Game 2

NSH 5 – FLA 3

Shots: NSH 31, FLA 27

Faceoffs: NSH 65.1%

PP: NSH 2/2, FLA 0/1

Predators Lines & Pairs

Game 1 — Even Strength

Haula – Marchessault – Bunting — Consistently deployed; drove play and produced 2 Haula goals.

Edstrom – McCarron – Rolston — Heavy forecheck; Rolston opened scoring, Edstrom sealed it late.

Lucchini – Roest – Kemell — Young speed line; created rush chances.

Schaefer – Mutter – Norringer — Physical depth trio; Schaefer scored at 12:19 of 2nd.

Game 1 — Defense Pairs

Skjei – Perbix

Gravel – Barron

Wilsby – Ufko

Game 2 — Even Strength

Brady Martin – Matthew Wood – Filip Forsberg — Featured together at even strength; Wood set up Stamkos on PP and scored at 13:24 of 2nd at evens.

Cole Smith – Dylan Gambrell – Daniel Carr — Pressure line; Smith tied game late in 1st.

Ryan O’Reilly – Steven Stamkos – Cole O’Hara — Veteran-driven minutes; O’Reilly sealed it with ENG; Stamkos lethal on PP.

Fedor Svechkov – Joey Willis – rotating winger — Prospect minutes with rotation due to 11F/7D configuration.

Game 2 — Defense Pairs

Roman Josi – Nicolas Hague

Spencer Stastney – Nick Blankenburg

Andreas Englund – Andrew Gibson

Kyle Marino rotated

Expectation Check

Haula–Marchessault–Bunting (Game 1): exceeded — Line chemistry translated to two Haula goals and multiple high-danger sequences.

Wood in top-six (Game 2): exceeded — Three-point night while driving play with Forsberg and aiding PP.

Special teams: exceeded — NSH PP 3-for-3 across both games; PK perfect.

Goaltending depth: met — Combined shutout in Game 1; Saros/Chrona competent tandem in Game 2.

Key bets on veteran-prospect blends paid off. Top-six pace improved, PP execution was crisp, and faceoff dominance drove possession. Defensive structure held at 5v5 with brief lapses in the third period of Game 2.

Player Performances

Game 1

Erik Haula — 2G, 0A, 2P — exceeded: Drove first-game offense with pace; chemistry with Marchessault/Bunting evident.

Jonathan Marchessault — 0G, 2A, 2P — met: Playmaking on both Haula goals; strong puck touches.

Michael Bunting — 0G, 1A, 1P — met: Net-front presence; secondary helper on Haula’s second.

Ryder Rolston — 1G, 0A, 1P — exceeded: Scored early; effective forecheck.

Reid Schaefer — 1G, 0A, 1P — met: Finish from the slot off Gravel’s feed.

David Edstrom — 1G, 0A, 1P — met: Closed the game with late tally; reliable on draws.

Brady Skjei — 0G, 2A, 2P — met: Quarterbacked PP and transitioned play cleanly.

Matt Murray — 12 SV, 0 GA — met: Calm in first half; tracked pucks cleanly.

Justus Annunen — 7 SV, 0 GA — met: Alert relief to finish combined shutout.

Game 2

Matthew Wood — 1G, 2A, 3P — exceeded: Drove top-6 pace, created Stamkos PPG with highlight feed and finished at 5v5.

Steven Stamkos — 1G, 1A, 2P — met: PP one-timer threat remains elite; combined well with Wood/Forsberg on PP.

Filip Forsberg — 1G, 0A, 1P — met: PP finish at 9:39 of 2nd; carried entries.

Cole Smith — 1G, 0A, 1P — exceeded: Clutch equalizer; forecheck tone-setter.

Ryan O’Reilly — 1G, 0A, 1P — met: Dominant on draws; sealed game with ENG.

Nick Blankenburg — 0G, 1A, 1P — met: Primary assist on Cole Smith’s goal; mobile puck movement.

Roman Josi — 0G, 1A, 1P — met: PP distributor on Forsberg’s goal; steady breakout play.

Juuse Saros — 9 SV, 1 GA — met: Started and stabilized game early.

Magnus Chrona — 15 SV, 2 GA — met: Closed game under pressure; two conceded in 3rd but held lead.