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Careless Penalties Give Jets Shutout Win Against Predators

Originally posted on NHL Trade Talk | By Jordan Manning | Last updated Dec 31, 2024 1:08 PM ET

Three things are evident in life: birth, death, and the Nashville Predators taking careless penalties. Yesterday’s game against the Winnipeg Jets was a total disaster. What started as a pretty even match quickly turned into a lopsided mess.

Going into the game, with a record of 26-10-1, the Jets looked like the clear favorites to win the matchup. Their record looks astounding when compared to the Predators’ mediocre stat line of 11-18-7. The Predators could have made this a contest if not for repeated infractions that cost them.

Jeremy Lauzon Playing Too Aggressive as of Late

Whether it be the trek the team is on currently or the increased levels of rage on the ice, Jeremy Lauzon has struggled to keep his cool. Out of the five Jets’ power plays, Lauzon managed to sit in the box for three of them. Most of these, if not all of them, were careless tripping penalties that could have been easily prevented.

To put the nail into the coffin, the Jets capitalized on his careless actions and brought their lead to 2-0 late in the third period. While Lauzon is known to get under the opposition’s skin, he is beginning to dig himself into the skin of the Nashville fanbase. One fan tweeted that Lauzon should be left “on the tarmac” on their flight to Minnesota to take on the Wild.

Lauzon has 3 minor penalties tonight. The last time he had 3 or more in a game was on 1/9/23 (4) which is a career-high for him. https://t.co/MRVWMVTGeY
— Nick Kieser? (@KieserNick) December 31, 2024

The Predators Lost Motivation as the Game Progressed

As mentioned previously, the Predators played a pretty even game with the Jets in the first period, splitting the shots even 9 to 9. With the period ending in a stalemate, Smashville hoped for more pressure in the second period to take the lead. This wasn’t the case, however, as the Jets outshot the Predators 17 to 16 and managed to take the lead thanks to Dylan DeMelo.

In the third period, we didn’t even attempt to pursue the puck. Luke Evangelista iced the puck two times in a span of ten seconds, giving the Jets a perfect opportunity to put pressure on an already exhausted Predators team.

Too-Many-Men Penalties Becoming Frequent in Nashville

Tonight marks the seventh time the Predators have been given a too-many-men penalty call. Already on the penalty kill, the Predators decided to switch up lines and accidentally released Mark Jankowski too early, resulting in a penalty.

With the Predators being the Predators, they allowed the Jets to score not one but two powerplay goals. Gabriel Vilardi scored both in a span of one minute. It isn’t Predators hockey without the camera panning to Head Coach Andrew Brunette chewing his new pack of gum. It is only a matter of time before the former Predators forward loses his job as Head Coach in Nashville.

The Predators have just begun a five-game road trip, with their next stop being in Minnesota tonight at 8:00 pm Eastern.

This article first appeared on NHL Trade Talk and was syndicated with permission.

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