COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ryan Suter had a goal and an assist and Craig Smith scored his first NHL goal to lead the Nashville Predators past the Columbus Blue Jackets, 3-2 on Friday night in the opener for both teams.
Matt Halischuk also scored for the Predators, who are 11-5-2 on Columbus’ home ice since 2006-07 and 18-11-3 overall. Pekka Rinne had 32 saves, many of highlight-reel quality while the Blue Jackets were frantically scrambling to catch up before a capacity crowd of 18,247.
Rick Nash and Vinny Prospal, one of the new players on a remade Columbus roster, each had a goal and an assist for the Blue Jackets. Jeff Carter, the former Philadelphia star acquired in a blockbuster deal this summer, had two assists in his first game for the Blue Jackets.
