Postgame Quotes Nashville Predators vs. Tampa Bay Lightning

Predators Quotes Head Coach Peter Laviolette On the second period of the game… It was good even though they (Tampa) got the first goal. I thought our guys were ready to play right from the start. We got on the march and on the attack right away. We played a really strong second period and then defended the best we could in the third.

On getting a chance to test your team against the other best team in the League… I thought we played a much better game than we did down in Tampa, even though we got the win. When that game was over, we met the next day as a group to talk about the standard of play we want here and that first game was not it. We relied way too much on our goaltender and chances were lopsided in Tampa’s favor. We wanted to play a better game than we played down there and we know they’re one of the top teams in the League. It was a good game and a good match up.

On Mattias Ekholm’s game-saving, goal line clearance… I didn’t see it from where I was sitting and I couldn’t tell what was going on behind the goalie, but I’m sure I’ll see it when I go back and look at it. I know there were a ton of guys swarming to play defense and that there’s a lot of offensive talent on the other squad. We made a couple of mistakes in the neutral zone and that cost us one of the goals. Give them credit because they came with speed and filled the holes, but for the most part I believe our guys did a great job.

Left Wing Filip Forsberg On tonight’s game… It was a tight game. They’re a really good hockey team over there. I think we played really good for two periods, and then in the third period we kind of sat back a little too much. We gave them too much time. They have some fire power over there, and they can hurt you. But we battled through it – guys worked hard and did an unbelievable job at the end. Pekka (Rinne) tonight saved us. This game was 3-2, but I think it was a better game than the one we played against them earlier.

On things going right for his line tonight… It’s been good. We want to contribute every night on the score sheet. We had a couple good looks last game, but it didn’t go our way. We had two big goals in the second there to get the team going and that’s what were here for.

On Nashville’s play in the second period… The first 15 minutes of the second period we played really good hockey against a really good team. Obviously, we could have scored some more goals, but they had some pretty good saves. I think that’s how we have to play.

Defenseman Mattias Ekholm On his play at the end of the game… I could have lived without the last one, but it was the way it happened, and I was just trying to keep it out of the net, and it worked out. It was a good night for us; we played a fast-paced game. It was two great teams going at it, and we got the last punch. We were battling hard all night.

On playing a top team in the League like Tampa Bay… We have 82 games in the year and all of those won’t be as special. But, when it’s one versus two or we’re playing a really good opponent, I feel like everybody is bringing their A-game. Tonight, in the second period, I thought we were humming really well and could have easily scored a couple more goals. They had some chances in the third where they could have scored too. It was just two good teams going at it and it was huge for us to get the win.

On if the second period was the most relentless they’ve played all season… For sure one of them. I thought we were doing all the right things offensively. The best way to play defense is to play in their zone and that’s what we were able to do for a lot of time. Not saying they didn’t have chances, but I thought the chances we got were quality chances and we could have scored some more goals.

Goaltender Pekka Rinne On Mattias Ekholm’s save at the end of the game…. I ended up making a save, and then it hit somebody’s back and went over me, and Ekholm was right there to bail me out. It was a huge play by him. We knew we were going to get pressured hard there at the end with their skill and six guys on the ice. But our guys did a great job – we blocked a lot of shots and made it hard for them.

On playing a top team in the League like Tampa Bay… I thought we were really good early on in the game, and for the most part controlled the events on the ice; I thought we had way more chances. They had a big push back in the third bit evened out. Whenever you play a top team like that, they’re going to get some chances and I thought we measured up against them really well.

Lightning Quotes Head Coach Jon Cooper On when the game started to flip in favor of the Predators… It flipped when we went down 3-1. It was really unfortunate we had that goal taken back. It’s a lot harder to come back in the third when you’re down one goal instead of two. We did everything we could to win that hockey game or at least tie it up, we just couldn’t find a way.

On not being able to hold onto the lead… It was two different games tonight. They dictated the pace in the first half and we dictated the pace in the second. We both scored three goals, but one of ours was called back.

Defenseman Victor Hedman On how they were able to push back at the end of the second period and the response they had after being down by two goals… I think the game had two faces. They probably dominated half of the game while we dominated half of the game. We scored an equal amount of goals while one of ours got disallowed. Two good teams going at it, high paced, we were all over the ice, two great goaltenders, it was a fun game to play.

On what they need to do to continue their lead after scoring the first goal… It’s always tough. We know they’re going to come out hard in this building. It just took us a while to get going. You can’t expect to come back every time. It was close again today, a lot of good looks in the third period and one off the post. I’m very pleased with the way we came back, again.

On if he got any explanation on the goal that was disallowed… It’s a bang-bang play. If I was on Nashville’s team, I probably wanted the penalty. That’s how it happens sometimes. It’s just the mojo in the game and frustration sets in. They get a big goal and it gets loud. It’s tough, but that’s hockey sometimes. We’ve been on both sides.

On how the goal felt for him after coming back from his injury… I don’t really care about that. I think my legs got going a little better today. I felt like I got back to what I do best – skating a lot, getting low defensively, shooting pucks a little more. It felt like tonight was a good step in the right direction.

Goaltender Louis Domingue On if he had any flashbacks to last season’s game vs. Nashville when they were battling at the end and eventually tied it up… Definitely. It was a lot similar. You have to hand it to our guys. They battle hard and never quit on that game. It would’ve been easy with the momentum they had and the fans were really involved in that game. It would’ve been easy to just fold and sit back, but we really pushed. It was a playoff type game. We were right in it and I thought we deserved to tie or win that game. It was a really interesting game. I’m really happy with our effort tonight.

On how he felt physically overall and throughout this stretch… It felt great. It’s fun to be playing again and getting a couple of games in a row like that. It’s a lot easier. It’s crazy how it makes a difference to be playing. You just get in the rhythm, you just don’t think. It was a lot of fun. I definitely feel sharper. It’s different. I just don’t think. I just execute my game plan that I applied in practice. I just continue building on my games. I feel really comfortable.