After Pekka Rinne made several spectacular saves in the extra periods, Nick Spaling took Suter’s entry pass and fed the puck cross-ice to Halischuk. He quickly snapped a shot over a sprawling defender and the glove of Luongo, giving the Predators the win that got them back into the first second-round series in team history.
“I was just trying to get it off as hard and quick as I could,” Halischuk said. “Tried to pick my spot and luckily it went in.”
Rinne made it possible with several acrobatic game-saving stops in extra time, finishing with 18 of his 32 stops after regulation.
“He was definitely their best player,” said Canucks defenseman Kevin Bieksa, who had an empty net taken away by a headfirst dive from Rinne with 2:14 left in the first overtime. “We had plenty of chances to win it in overtime and plenty of chances to go up 2-0, and he stood on his head.”