Juuse Saros of Forssa, Finland recorded his 14th career National Hockey League shutout on Saturday. Saros made 28 saves as the Nashville Predators beat the Dallas Stars 1-0 in overtime at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, TN.
Saros made 12 saves in the first period, 11 saves in the second period, and five saves in the third period. Defenseman John Klingberg of Gothenburg, Sweden led the Stars in shots on goal with four.
Erik Haula of Pori, Finland recorded the only goal in the entire game. He scored the game-winning goal in overtime at 3:32 of the extra period from Mattias Ekholm of Borlange, Sweden to give the Predators the victory.
This was the third shutout for Saros this season. He previously made 31 saves in a 2-0 Predators win over the Detroit Red Wings on March 23, and then 41 saves in a 3-0 Predators win over the Chicago Blackhawks on April 3.
Saros rebounded nicely in the win over the Stars after giving up six goals in a 7-4 loss to the Florida Panthers on April 27. Even though Saros gave up six goals in the defeat, one must realize he had to make 49 saves, which was a career-high. The previous most number of saves that Saros made in a game also came in 2020-21 against the Panthers. On March 20, Saros made 47 saves in a 2-0 Predators loss, in a game that saw Chris Driedger of Winnipeg, Manitoba picking up the shutout.
For the season, Saros now has a record of 19 wins, 10 regulation losses, and one loss in extra time. He has a goals against average of 2.28 and a save percentage of .928.
This was also a big win for the Predators as they are now three points up on the Stars for the final playoff spot in the Central Division. With a record of 28 wins, 22 regulation losses, and two losses in extra time, Nashville now has 58 points, while Dallas has 55 points.
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