November 29 & December 1, 2007

If any phrase has captured the essence of the Predator’s this season, “resilient” would be it. Never was this more apparent than when the Predators went on a Canadian road swing that led them to the hockey hotbeds of Ottawa and Montreal.

Playing in Ottawa on November 29th, the Predators began their road trip in frenzied fashion—with Dan Hamuis scoring the game’s first goal on a power play just 44 seconds in. From that point on, the two teams traded chances, playing most of the game tied or within one goal.

It wasn’t until early in the third that Nashville went up 5-3 on Martin Gellinas’ third goal of the season. Ottawa dug in and scored twice to tie it up—the second of those goals coming with under a minute left to play in regulation.

It looked as though the game was headed to overtime until J.P. Dumont stole the puck from Ottawa forward Dean McAmmond and found Martin Erat in the left face-off circle. With Jason Arnott screening goaltender Martin Gerber, Erat got off the shot and found the back of the net, sealing a wild 6-5 Predators’ victory in Ottawa.

The next game found the Predators in Montreal, down 4-1 midway through third period—with Jed Ortmeyer’s shorthanded goal in the third being the lone Predators’ tally. But in a span of just 6:47 David Legwand, Greg DeVries, and Radek Bonk each scored to tie the game 4-all. Bonk’s goal came within the final minute of regulation, forcing the overtime.

Overtime proved to be frantic and exciting, with the teams trading chances, playing end-to-end, and even hitting some posts along the way—though neither team was able to score.

The Predators eventually prevailed in a shootout that saw the teams employ all six skaters. A pair of quick wrist shots by Bonk and Erat lifted the Preds to 2-1 in the shootout, capping a resilient comeback effort with a 5-4 win in Montreal and giving the Predators a pair of exciting road wins.