Ross Colton picked the right night to break through.
The former Colorado Avalanche forward posted a goal and an assist Tuesday night, helping the Nashville Predators roll past the Carolina Hurricanes 4-1 and hand Pyotr Kochetkov his first loss of the season. Colton finished the job himself too, burying an empty-netter in the final minute to close out the win.
Nashville didn’t waste much time setting the tone. Nick Perbix put the Predators in front late in the first period, scoring for the first time this season after Filip Forsberg forced a turnover from Sean Walker and slid a cross-ice pass to Perbix, who beat Kochetkov with a wrist shot at 11:32.
The second period brought more of the same from Nashville’s top playmakers. Forsberg and Roman Josi hooked up again early in the frame, with Josi driving down the left side and finishing a cross-ice feed with a tap-in at 3:29 to make it 2-0.
Carolina answered at 10:28 when Jackson Blake scored on the rebound. Josi got a piece of the first try, but Blake stayed with it and beat Juuse Saros with a backhand. The goal stretched Blake’s career-best point streak to seven games, a run that includes three goals and six assists.
The Predators pushed the margin back to two early in the third. Adam Edstrom scored at 5:40 for his sixth goal of the season, setting a new career high.
Then Colton put the finishing touch on it with the empty-net goal that made it 4-1.
Saros turned aside 29 shots for Nashville, while Kochetkov stopped 16 before taking the loss. That defeat ended Kochetkov’s remarkable start, a 10-game winning streak to open the season. He became just the third goaltender in NHL history to win each of his first 10 decisions in a season.
The result also snapped Carolina’s four-game winning streak. Nashville, meanwhile, goes into its next game riding back-to-back wins.
In Other News...
Avalanche Were Dominated In Columbus For One Frustrating Reason
Columbus did not just beat Colorado, it overwhelmed the Avalanche with a season-high seven goals in a home game that snapped the Blue Jackets out of a recent scoring slump. The matchup turned quickly into one of those nights where one team seemed to have every answer, and for Colorado, the frustration was compounded by how effectively Columbus handled the top of the lineup battle.
A big part of that came from the Blue Jackets third line of Charlie Coyle, Cole Sillinger and Mathieu Olivier, which was able to match up against Colorados top line and keep the pressure on throughout the game. Ivan Provorovs return has also given Columbus defense a noticeable boost, and the combination of sturdier play in back and better line matching made the Avalanches trip to Columbus a rough one from the start. [Read more 🡒]
Avalanche Keep Showing A Road Problem Fans Cant Ignore
The Avalanche have done enough at home to stay in the mix at 9-6-1, but the road has become a much harder sell. A 7-2 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets only sharpened the concern, because it was not an isolated off night so much as another example of Colorado getting pushed around away from Denver. For a team built to contend in the Central Division, the gap between what it looks like at home and what it has shown on the road is starting to stand out.
Colorado is also dealing with a broader pattern that goes beyond one bad trip. The defense has had trouble handling several low-scoring opponents, and the power play has not been doing enough to cover for those lapses. Sitting fourth in the division behind the Stars, Wild and Utah Mammoth, the Avalanche still have time to settle things down, but until the road game tightens up, the standings will keep reflecting the same uneasy trend. [Read more 🡒]
Former Avs Made Colorados Latest Road Collapse Even More Frustrating
After a solid win in Chicago, the Avalanches trip to Columbus turned sharply the other way in a 7-2 loss that never gave Colorado much breathing room. The Blue Jackets struck early and stayed in control from there, turning what looked like a chance to build momentum into another reminder of how quickly a road swing can unravel.
What made the night sting even more was seeing familiar faces help drive it. Former Avalanche forwards Val Nichushkin and Charlie Coyle combined for three goals and six points against their old club, while Sam Malinski at least kept his recent scoring touch going with a point of his own. For Colorado, it was the kind of game that leaves more questions than answers as the road trip continues. [Read more 🡒]