2010 Compuware NHL Premiere Series – Nashville Predators win 4-3 against the Tampa Bay Lightning
This Sunday, the St. Pete Times Forum saw the Tampa Bay Lightning play host to the Nashville Predators. The game took place in front of 15,000 fans that came to support their teams. This game was the 111th game
of the 2010 Compuware NHL Premiere Series. The Tampa Bay Lightning and the Nashville Predators were both playing in their 8th game of the season so far and their performance has been a bit unsteady according to ink on paper.
The game started on a high for both teams as there were 3 goals during the 1st period. Nonetheless in the end it were the Nashville Predators who managed to win the match 4-3.
1st Period
The Tampa Bay Lightning were early out of the blocks as they started off firing shots at the opposing goal on a regular basis. The plays that were leading up to the shots were far better than usually and for that reason fans applauded
their cherished teams and urged them to score to a goal.
The home team was able to respond to the fans call as they scored in the 7th minute to take the lead. The goal was scored by Sean Bergenheim from 22 feet shot that went flying into the goal. The goal gave the home
team confidence as they moved on in search of another goal.
But in the 12th minute they were caught on a counter and the Nashville Predators scored to level the scores. The goal was scored by Captain Shea Webber from 40 feet through a flick shot that was perfectly placed.
The away team started to come up with better plays than the away team and with the regular attacks they scored once again to take the lead. The home crowd was silenced when Sergei Kostitsyn scored from a decent shot from 19 feet in the 17th minute.
The period ended with the Nashville Predators in the lead with the score 2-1. During the course of the period, the Nashville Predators scored 2 goals out of the 10 goal attempts they made and the Tampa Bay Lightning scored 1 goal out of
the 13 goal attempts they made.
2nd Period
The 2nd period started on a high for the home team. The team talk seemed to work and the backing of the home fans brought energy into the team. They got close to scoring in the 6th minute,
when the goal keeper was caught by surprise but the shot went just wide of the goal.
The home team dictated the proceedings for most of the period but they lacked the finishing which was the main reason for their downfall. Though they beat the away team in defence and offence but they couldn’t score.
However, the Nashville Predators were content on not letting the lead slip and they changed their strategy for the second half of period. They started to attack the opposing team with loads of confidence. The confidence in attacks paid
off when they scored to establish a 2 goal lead in the 18th minute. The goal was scored by Cody Franson from close range displaying excellent finishing abilities.
The period didn’t see more goal as the score was 3-1 in favour of the Nashville Predators at the end with the away team scoring 1 goal out of the 10 goal attempts and the Tampa Bay Lightning failing to score out of the their 16 goal attempts.
3rd Period
Both teams started the 3rd period attacking each other and determined to score and win the game. They didn’t think about the consequences of going on the attack with full force. All they had in mind was the fact
that they had to score.
The home looked the more determined and managed to score in the 15th minute to take the score to 4-1. The goal was scored by Colin Wilson from 31 feet through a powerful shot. With the Nashville Predators sitting
in a comfortable position they didn’t attack and were content on sitting back and enjoying the possession.
This immediately went against them as the home team scored in the 16th minute to pull one goal back and take the score to 4-2. The goal was scored to Martin Louis from 12 feet. The Tampa Bay Lightning scored once
again in the 16th minute to cut the lead to just 1 goal. The goal was scored by Adam Hall from 9 feet through a wrap around shot.
The game didn’t see more goals after this as the match and period ended with the score 4-3 in favour of the Nashville Predators.
"Our goalies are awesome," Franson said. "Our goalies have been a real backbone for us."
"I think our biggest thing was just trying to stay positive," Franson said of the Lightning's late rally. "We started gripping our sticks more than we needed to. Obviously, it's tough when they get two quick ones like that. It causes a
little extra urgency. But that's where we have to stay composed."
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