Predators look to clinch playoff berth Tuesday against Jets

The Predators will have an opportunity to clinch a playoff berth when they host the Winnipeg Jets at Bridgestone Arena on Tuesday.

Nashville took a big step toward qualifying on Sunday, beating the New Jersey Devils 3-2 in a shootout after scoring a game-tying goal in the third period.

The Preds (45-29-4) reduced their magic number to one point, but were unable to clinch a postseason berth because St. Louis beat Anaheim 6-5 in a shootout on Sunday.

Nashville missed the playoffs last season after previously having made eight straight trips to the postseason.

“[Clinching at home] would be a ton of fun,” Predators forward Luke Evangelista said on Bally Sports’ post-game show. “The fans back in Nashville, you know how rowdy they get. They’ve been supporting us all year. We’ve got the best atmosphere in the league, so hopefully if we’re able to clinch in front of them next week, it’ll be a big [celebration] on Broadway. So, we’re excited to get back and play in front of them.”

Assuming the Preds do clinch, they will almost certainly be one of the Western Conference’s two wildcard teams. It’s unclear which opponent the Preds would face in the playoffs. Dallas, Vancouver, Colorado, Winnipeg and Edmonton all remain possibilities with a week left in the regular season.

It was Evangelista, playing in his 100^th NHL game, who scored the goal — his first in nine games — that allowed the Predators to go to overtime.

Nashville goalie Juuse Saros slammed the door on the Devils in overtime, turning away a three-on-one and two-on-none rush. He then stopped all three Devils shots in the shootout.

“Yeah, he’s been our backbone, not only tonight, but just all season,” Evangelista said. “Hell of a goalie, just an absolute battler. Defies all the odds, and like you see at the end there, just a clutch save at the end of overtime. Another guy we’re really blessed to have. He’s been awesome for us all year.”

O’Reilly scored the lone Preds’ shootout goal, beating goalie Jake Allen, his former teammate in St. Louis, with a slow-motion approach capped by a short wrist shot.

“It’s kind of weird, obviously, for the amount of time I played with [Allen],” O’Reilly told media. “He kind of knows my normal moves, so I kind of thought I’d do something a little different on him and just try to see what I could get. And lucky for me it got past him.”

Filip Forsberg assisted on each of Nashville’s goals, giving him 600 points (282 goals, 318 assists) in 694 career games. He’ll seek to clinch the ninth playoff appearance of his career on Tuesday.

This story was first published by our sister publication Nashville Post.