“I didn’t like our game most of the night,” coach Todd McLellan said. “We were casual early in the game. Our passing was horrendous. There was nothing crisp about our game.”<\/p>\n
But second-period power-play goals from Alex DeBrincat and James van Riemsdyk gave the Wings a 2-1 lead. Ben Chiarot’s third-period goal tied the game 3-3, but again, the Wings weren’t good enough defensively and didn’t have the necessary urgency throughout the game.<\/p>\n
“The third period starts, and we gave up (four goals) in every different fashion you could think of,” McLellan said. “Four-on-four, faceoff coverage, off a rush, off a defensive zone breakout. There isn’t really another element you can get beat.<\/p>\n
“You guys can use all your notes from a week or 10 days ago when I said until this team figures out they have to value checking and defensive play, and I’ll keep telling you the same things and lo and behold, here I am again, so back to the drawing board.”<\/p>\n
Nashville (7-12-4) came into the game sitting last in the overall NHL standings. Steven Stamkos scored into an empty net at 18:45 for his fifth goal, capping the scoring.<\/p>\n
“Not good enough,” said forward Lucas Raymond of the result. “You come into the third (period) in a good spot at home, with all the opportunity to go out and get a win and we didn’t get it done.<\/p>\n
“Our intensity wasn’t there throughout most of the game. We weren’t strong over pucks and that really showed in the third period. Not nearly good enough.”<\/p>\n
Nashville also scored two quick goals early in the third period, 15 seconds apart, to take a 3-2 lead. Chiarot tied it 44 seconds later capping a flurry of goals.<\/p>\n
Chiarot fired a shot from the point that goaltender Justus Annunen never saw, being screened by 6-foot-8 Elmer Soderblom, for Chiarot’s third goal at 3:04. That took some of the sting out of Nashville’s two-goal jolt to begin the period.<\/p>\n
“Now it’s a brand-new game and bang, bang again and you can’t keep digging yourself, burying yourself,” McLellan said. “You keep putting sand on your head and when you can’t breathe, now you want to dig your way out and it doesn’t work.”<\/p>\n
More: ‘I hate the Lions’: Red Wings player has no divided loyalties for Thanksgiving clash<\/a><\/p>\n Romeo’s Nick Blankenburg (Michigan) and Roman Josi scored 15 seconds apart early in the final period. Blankenburg took a pass from O’Reilly, drove down the slot, and slid the puck past Talbot for Blankenburg’s third goal, at 2:05. On the next shift, Josi tucked in his own rebound, his second goal at 2:20.<\/p>\n DeBrincat tied the game 1-1 with his 12th goal \u2014 and eighth in eight games \u2014 at 5:30 of the second period. DeBrincat cut to the center to the ice and snapped a shot over Annunen, also stretching DeBrincat’s goal streak to three consecutive games.<\/p>\n The Wings took the lead on van Riemsdyk’s third goal, and second in two games \u2014 after not scoring in 16 games.<\/p>\n The goal was vintage van Riemsdyk and similar to Tuesday’s goal in New Jersey. Hanging around the net-front, van Riemsdyk scooped up Patrick Kane’s shot outside the crease and lifted a backhander over Annunen at 16:34 of the second period.<\/p>\n But the Wings couldn’t pull away, and eventually gave everything back and then some, to the Predators in the last 20 minutes.<\/p>\n “You kind of go through the night and every time there was a crucial battle, we kind of lost it,” defenseman Moritz Seider said. “That’s sometimes how it goes but it can’t go the second or third game. We have an identity, and we need to bring that, especially at home.<\/p>\n “Be way harder to defend, play with a little swagger, and really up our intensity.”<\/p>\n Nashville’s Michael Bunting opened the game’s scoring in the first period with a power-play goal. Blankenburg’s shot from the high slot hit Bunting, who was battling for position net-front, and the puck trickled wide of Talbot, Bunting’s fifth goal.<\/p>\n Just as the Wings went about fixing things after Monday’s loss in New Jersey<\/a>, there are new problem areas defensively. New issues continue to develop, or never really seem to go away.<\/p>\n “Every time we get something (to fix) and we grab onto it, we give something else back, and it’s not a sign of a good team,” McLellan said. “Good teams hold their lessons and build.”<\/p>\n tkulfan@detroitnews.com<\/p>\n @tkulfan<\/p>\n
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