The San Jose Sharks defeated the Nashville Predators 3-2 at Bridgestone Arena on April 14, but both teams were eliminated from Stanley Cup Playoff contention after the Los Angeles Kings secured a win over the Seattle Kraken. Macklin Celebrini scored two goals for San Jose, and Igor Chernyshov added a goal and an assist. Goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic made 25 saves for the Sharks, who were aiming to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2019.
Both teams’ hopes ended when the Kings clinched their game, leaving Nashville three points behind with only one game remaining and San Jose five points back with two games left. The loss marked the second consecutive season that Nashville missed postseason play. “It was a great atmosphere,” Nedeljkovic said. “They were fighting for their lives. … We played pretty good tonight from start to finish. We were solid. We were on our toes. I thought we just played a pretty all-around complete game tonight.”
Nashville coach Andrew Brunette reflected on his team’s effort: “I think you feel gutted,” Brunette said. “Everything we went through as a group, we put ourselves in position to play this game tonight. You’re disappointed we didn’t get the result…We played the margins late when you’re down two, and we know how that story usually goes.”
San Jose’s victory was its first against Nashville in sixteen games dating back to December 2019, according to coach Ryan Warsofsky: “(Sharks forward) Barclay Goodrow told me that this morning,” Warsofsky said. “And I kind of remember hearing that stat, so it’s nice to get off that.”
Luke Evangelista scored twice for Nashville while Ryan Ufko had two assists and Justus Annunen made 20 saves in goal for the Predators, who had gone 4-1-1 in their previous six contests.
Looking ahead, Celebrini now has 112 points this season—two shy of Joe Thornton’s franchise record—and his goal tally ties him with Owen Nolan and Patrick Marleau for second-most goals in a single season by a Shark.
