Arizona Coyotes defenseman Niklas Hjalmarsson, in white, chases after the puck with Nashville Predators left wing Kevin Fiala, front, and center Ryan Johansen in the second period of Thursday night’s game in Nashville.
NASHVILLE – Arizona Coyotes captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson made sure Adin Hill took home a souvenir from his first NHL shutout.
Nick Schmaltz had a goal and an assist, Hill made 29 saves and Arizona beat the Nashville Predators 3-0 Thursday night.
Clayton Keller and Brad Richardson scored the other goals in Arizona’s second straight victory. Schmaltz’s two points were his first since being acquired Sunday in a trade with the Chicago Blackhawks.
As the final horn sounded to end the game, the puck was deep in the Nashville zone. Ekman-Larsson skated the length of the ice to retrieve it for his rookie goaltender.
“You are putting a guy in that position, and he wasn’t nervous at all,” Coyotes coach Rick Tocchet said of Hill. “You’re playing in a tough building, one of the best teams in the league, and he did a nice job.”