CHICAGO (AP) — Pekka Rinne made 29 saves and scored an empty-net goal, and the Nashville Predators beat the sloppy Chicago Blackhawks 5-2 on Thursday night for John Hynes’ first win with the team.
Hynes became the third coach in franchise history after Peter Laviolette was fired on Monday. Hynes dropped his debut when Nashville lost 6-2 to Boston on Tuesday night, but the Predators held off the Blackhawks in the final part of the third after nearly blowing a three-goal lead.
Matt Duchene, Viktor Arvidsson and Colin Blackwell also scored for Nashville, which had dropped five of six. Nick Bonino also picked up an empty-net goal before Rinne’s shot from behind the Predators’ net went in with 22 seconds left.
The 37-year-old Rinne was mobbed by his teammates after his first goal and 14th career point in the NHL.
Dominik Kubalik scored for the third straight game, but Chicago dropped to 1-2 on its four-game homestand. Alex DeBrincat added a power-play goal in the third period, and Corey Crawford finished with 25 saves.
