Wilson's Crossbar Rattle Was the Closest Call in Nashville

The editor's pitch doesn't match the game: the data shows only one iron hit in this game, not two. Tom Wilson of Washington hit the crossbar at 3:10 of the second period. Nashville had none, and no Mavrik Bourque iron hit appears anywhere in the game record. So the story here is one shot, not two.

An iron hit is a shot that clangs off the post or crossbar. It is not a save and not a miss wide, and it was a few inches from being a goal. That matters because this was a one-goal game: Washington 4, Nashville 3. The sides traded the lead through the second period before Alex Tuch scored the go-ahead goal at 10:09 of the third.

Wilson's shot came before Boone Jenner put Washington up 2-1 at 4:15 of the second. The chances were close to even all night: expected goals (how many the chances were worth) came out at 2.7 for Washington and 2.83 for Nashville. Had Wilson's shot dropped under the bar, Washington's lead would have come sooner, and this would not have been such a tight game.