"Pekka Rinne has said numerous times throughout the years that he prefers games in which he faces plenty of shots over those when his workload is minimal.

His impression of the Nashville Predators' 3-1 victory over the St. Louis Blues on Saturday was somewhat predictable, therefore.

"It was a party," Rinne said with a wide smile after he made a season-high 42 saves. "It's always fun. It keeps you in the game and you kind of get that flow going. … It gets easier.

"… You just have to be ready each night. It doesn't matter what kind of game."

It was clear from the start what type of game the sellout crowd at Bridgestone Arena was going to see. The teams came in separated by a point in the Central Division and Western Conference standings (St. Louis was one up on Nashville) and wasted no time getting to work.

The Blues registered 11 of the first 14 shots — all within the first nine minutes, but the Predators scored first on Martin Erat's power play goal at 6:59. Nashville dominated the second half of the period and reached the first intermission with a 16-14 edge in shots and — more importantly — a 2-0 edge in goals."