Kukla's Korner Hockey

Kukla's Korner Hockey

The Nashville Predators Could Not Get It Done Last Night

05/11/2018 at 7:45am EDT

from Joe Rexrode of The Tennessean,

Nashville knows today for the first time what it’s like to be favored to win it and fall short. Winnipeg might soon know what it’s like to have it. They both know what a Stanley Cup Final-quality series looks like because the Predators and Jets just churned out seven games worthy of a mid-June finish.

The seventh, Thursday at a Bridgestone Arena that never before had seen a Game 7, was another electric Nashville night gone dark, a 5-1 decision for the Jets. There are Predators to blame and there’s time ahead to assign it, with plenty left over to revisit the silliness of a playoff system that would match the top two teams in the regular season in the second round....

Save enough energy for this hard truth: Rinne came up small in a huge moment. There’s no other way to say it, as painful as that is for Predators fans to digest considering the player and person he has been for them. He showed his character again after the game, standing in and taking questions from a media throng, shouldering the blame even though he was far from the only member of this team who didn't bring a Game 7 performance to this Game 7.

“I feel very much responsible for our season ending at this point," Rinne said. "Tough to swallow, tough to understand. I can’t point out anything. Felt good, and no injuries and totally healthy. But total ups and downs throughout the playoffs. The biggest moment of the season, it’s a terrible feeling. You let your teammates down, and that’s what happened tonight.”

read on

Below, watch the Sportsnet crew break down the game.

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About Kukla's Korner Hockey

Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.

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