Islanders Escape Nashville With a Shootout Win
The New York Islanders earned this one. They needed a shootout to leave Nashville with a 4-3 win, but they had the better looks for most of the night. Their chances were worth nearly five goals, while Nashville's were worth about four. That comes from expected goals, which measure how dangerous each shot was: 4.91 for New York, 3.99 for Nashville. The Islanders also outshot the Predators 29-23.
The chances came from the right places. Bo Horvat played 26:04 and scored on a line with Simon Holmstrom and Kyle Palmieri. Holmstrom set up a goal, and both he and Palmieri rang shots off the post. Anthony Duclair and Brayden Schenn also scored, and Matthew Schaefer logged 32:16 with an assist.
Nashville stayed in it because of Juuse Saros. He made 26 saves and stopped nearly two more goals than an average goalie would have on those shots, a figure known as goals saved above expected (+1.91). At the other end, Semyon Varlamov made 20 saves. Ryan O'Reilly scored but also hit the post, one of three shots off the iron on the night.
