CALGARY — Ryan Ellis had his first career two-goal game as the Nashville Predators held off a late rally to beat the Calgary Flames 4-3 on Thursday night.
James Neal scored his team-leading 15th goal while Filip Forsberg added the other for Nashville (21-17-7). The Predators moved past Los Angeles into the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference with the win.
Kris Versteeg, Michael Frolik and Sean Monahan found the back of the net late in the third period for the Flames (24-21-3).
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Rookie goaltender Juuse Saros made 32 saves for the win in net as Chad Johnson turned aside 17 shots in defeat to fall to 16-11-1 on the year.
Leading 1-0 halfway through the second period, Ellis was set up neatly by Harry Zolnierczyk on a two-on-one. Drawing Dennis Wideman over to him, Zolnierzyk’s pass sprung Ellis in alone and he beat Johnson.
Ellis scored his second at 18:58 on a power play to give the Predators a three-goal advantage. With all sorts of time and no one around him, he walked in from the blue line and with Viktor Arvidsson providing a screen, blasted a slap shot past Johnson.
Calgary didn’t get on the scoreboard until Versteeg’s power-play goal at 16:17 of the third. Frolik scored 17 seconds later and, with Johnson pulled for an extra skater, Monahan jammed in his 14th goal with 48 seconds left.
Calgary is now just two points up on the Predators in the Western Conference standings — holding onto the first wild-card spot. Nashville also holds three games in hand.
Saros, a 21-year-old Finn, has been excellent in a backup role behind countryman Pekka Rinne. He’s 5-3-1 in nine starts.
Two of his better saves came in the first period when Calgary fell behind 1-0 despite outshooting Nashville 14-9. Monahan was stopped twice from the slot on a 49 second, two-man advantage late in the period, once on a snapshot from 20 feet out, the other on a deflection.
Nashville opened the scoring at 4:59 as Calgary yielded the first goal for the sixth game in a row. Mike Fisher’s shot was stopped but the rebound into the slot was buried by Neal for his first goal since Dec. 10.
Notes: The Predators improve to 14-0-4 when scoring the first goal… Flames C Sam Bennett was a healthy scratch for Calgary… Flames LW Micheal Ferland (lower body) returned after missing three games… Referee Tom Kowal was honoured before the game for working his 1,000th NHL game… Fisher recorded his 300th assist.