Jonathan Marchessault scored his first two goals of the season and the Nashville Predators beat the Ottawa Senators 4-1 on Monday afternoon.
Ryan O’Reilly and Cole Smith also scored for the Predators. Juusi Saros made 31 saves. It was Smith’s first goal in 26 games.
Ridly Greig scored the only goal for the Senators and Linus Ullmark stopped 22 shots.
Greig’s power play goal broke Saros’ shutout and made it 2-1 with 2:03 remaining. Dylan Cozens’ shot/pass was deflected off Greig’s skate for his first goal.
Marchessault and Smith added empty-net goals in the final minute.
Marchessault gave Nashville a 1-0 lead at 7:49 of the second period. After receiving a pass from Michael Bunting, Marchessault drove along the goal line, backhanded his forehand and put the puck between Ullmark’s pads for his first goal.
O’Reilly scored with 5:22 left in regulation when he fired a shot from the slot after the rush. It was his second goal.
The Senators saw a goal called back 6:03 into the second period. Jake Sanderson’s apparent tally was wiped out by goalie interference on Tim Stutzle after a challenge from Predators coach Andrew Brunette.
Ottawa had a 12-6 advantage in shots midway through the period.
The Predators had two breakaway chances during a scoreless first period.
Ullmark stopped Filip Forsberg 1-on-1 and denied Forsberg on the rebound about three minutes into the game with Nashville on the power play.
There were seven penalties in the first period and Nashville had four power plays.
Ottawa’s third defensive pairing, Jordan Spence and Tyler Kleven, both made their season debuts after being scratched in the first two games. This was Spence’s first game with his new team after being acquired in an offseason trade with the Los Angeles Kings.
Brady Martin, the fifth overall pick in the 2025 draft, was a good scratch for Nashville.
–Field level media
