Carter with the hat trick. (Photo: Bridget Samuels/flickr)

Tonight’s game against the Los Angeles Kings was the last game to be played between the Predators and Kings during the regular season this year, and what a game! The Nashville Predators have taken the game the only other two games these teams have played and were certainly hoping for a sweep from tonight. Well, that dream did not come true. And it did not come true in spectacular fashion.

To be honest, the first period of the Predators – Kings game was less than entertaining. Rather, the boys in gold and the boys in black saved the action for the second period.

The Kings’ Jeff Carter put home his first goal of the night on the power play five and a half minutes into the second, providing the fans something to scream about and the Preds something to chew on. And the Preds chewed, keeping the Kings at bay through the end of the period.

It was the third period of the game that really knocked Nashville off the season sweep. Seriously, this period went downhill FAST.

It all started with a puck to the face for Preds defenseman Kevin Klein, as just seconds later Kings forward Jeff Carter put in his second goal of the night at 4:30 in the third. Just nineteen seconds later, Carter completed his hat trick with an unassisted goal on Rinne, making the game 3-0.

Ouch.

Of course, the Predators must do everything in spectacular fashion. And so, LA once again scored, and once again this goal was on the power play. After this goal from Mike Richards, the Kings let up on the Predators for a few short minutes. The Kings’ King made it 5-0 with a goal at eleven minutes in, finally prompting Preds’ coach Trotz to pull Rinne and put Mason in net.

But Gabriel Bourque was having none of the negativity of a 5 goal deficit; at thirteen minutes into the third period, Bourque ripped the puck home to put the Preds on the board at long last. But to no avail. The LA Kings finished out the season series with a 5-1 win and the Preds now head home to prep for hosting the Edmonton Oilers on Friday night.