Takeaways from Predators' Block Party Game 2 Win Over Canucks – Hockey Writers –

With a 2-0 series deficit against the Vancouver Canucks staring them in the face, and 18,960 fans at Rogers Arena, the Nashville Predators adjusted their game a bit to play a perfect road playoff game. The result was a 4-1 win and an example of grind-it-out, slow-motion hockey that might not please many fans, but it got the job done. Now the Predators will be able to take Smashville home in Game 3 and 4. Here are some takeaways from Tuesday's Game 2.

Rappers Have a Block Party

Block parties are usually fun affairs, where residents get together under the sun to relax and drink. Not the happiest of hockey teams when the Predators have a party blocking almost every shot the opposing team takes at the goaltender. Game 2 was definitely the game where the joy was taken out of the Canucks.

Nashville didn't have a player in the top 25 in blocked shots during the regular season, but one wouldn't have guessed watching what happened Tuesday night. As a group, the Predators made 30 successful blocks, an impressive number above the league average. In fact, it was well above the league average which has also increased in recent seasons. Defenseman Alexandre Carrier had six of his own, followed by Ryan McDonagh and Colton Sissons with four each. To end all these games, Sissons netted the club's third goal to make it 3-0 in the middle of the half. It's a great night at the office. Filip Forsberg once again showed his exciting skills with a goal that made it 2-0 and put the Canucks in a deep hole.

In contrast, the Predators' attack was opportunistic and nothing more. How else could it be explained if the team only got 16 shots on net in Vancouver? There is also an old saying that in order to be good one must be lucky. One says that one must make one's own luck. Was former Canuck Anthony Beauvillier's opening marker at 1:14 lucky? With that kind of deviation, yes. But it set the tone and Nashville, to their credit, controlled the game all night. It must be an amazing feeling to be one of the league's best netminders – in this case, Juuse Saros – and get a night off in the postseason.

Bad Omens for the Canucks

On the other side of the spectrum were the Canucks who really tried to create opportunities. In a few cases, their scoring chances were good. However, something was off. Look no further than when Elias Pettersson got the puck on the right side of the Nashville zone late in the first half with the Predators goalie unable to pounce in time to make the save. The Swede fired into the side netting. Everyone present knew that a great opportunity had been blown and so did Pettersson, who looked up at the sky with a mixture of disbelief and shame. Pettersson had a great season overall (34 goals and 55 assists in 82 games) but has been on the mend since mid-March. In 13 games – including last season – he has three shutouts, and that includes a March 19 game against the moribund Buffalo Sabers where he got a goal.

Related: Canucks' Demko Out for Game 2 and Possible Series

JT Miller had a good chance in the second half to score one goal and his stick broke. Miller's other moment came on the power play late in the second half. This time he got his shot, and a deflection, so the puck bounced off the goal.

No one can predict what will happen from one moment to the next. However, there are competitions where one can feel that it will not be a club night. Given Nashville's defensive brilliance and the uncharacteristic mistakes and unfortunate bounces Vancouver made and suffered, the potential outcome looked bleak as the game wore on.

Time for the Canucks to step up

It is said all the time at this time of year. Playoff hockey is different than the regular season. That much should be obvious. But in a series like this one, that means the Canucks, who have spent much of the campaign driving their fans and neutral spectators crazy, need to kick their game into high gear.

Assuming future championships are played out the way Games 1 and 2 were, the longer this series goes the more favored the Predators will be. For a team that was in the middle of the pack in goals against (3.02) and a team in the bottom 10 in shots against (2,507), it gave the Canucks nothing. If you think about it, the biggest moment of the first two contests combined was 12 seconds into the first game when the Canucks scored from 2-1 down to 3-2 up. And that was at home. Now Rick Tocchet's team must find a way to get past the Predators' defense and face away from the comfort of Rogers Arena.

The Canucks are 0 for 6 on the powerplay so far, have scored five goals (one on an empty net), and have 39 shots in total. No version of Vancouver wins this series if stats like these hold up. People talked about the club's lack of experience after the season. However, they now have two games under their belt. Two great lessons in what happens when one misses valuable opportunities and how it feels to run the postseason mill.

It's time to board a plane to Nashville and leave the bad vibes behind.