Josi piles up points, Rinne earns a win for the Central Division at the NHL's annual showcase event

From an individual perspective, Roman Josi and Pekka Rinne did more at this year’s NHL All-Star Game than any Nashville Predators had in previous All-Star appearances.

Collectively, they also were a part of the Central Division’s first victory in the four years the event has been played as a three-on-three tournament. Each was a factor in the Central’s 10-4 semifinal triumph over the Pacific Division.

"It was a lot of fun," Josi said via the team’s website. "It was kind of two opposite games — the first one, we were up quick, and this one we were down quick, but it was a lot of fun, a great experience.”

Josi notched six points (one goal, five assists) in two games. That topped Shea Weber’s record for the most points by a Predators player in a single All-Star event (Weber had four assists in 2011) and made him the second from Nashville with at least one goal and one assist. James Neal had two goals and one assist in 2016 when Nashville hosted the affair.

Josi had four points (one goal, three assists) in the victory over the Pacific in the first semifinal. He scored on his only shot of the contest and finished with a plus-4 rating, tied with Chicago’s Patrick Kane for the best in that contest.

Rinne played the first half of the semifinal victory, stopped nine of 10 shots he faced and was the winning goaltender, a first for Nashville. The only other Predators goalie to get a decision in the All-Star Game was Tomas Vokoun, who took the loss for the Western Conference in 2004.

In the championship, a 10-5 loss to the Metropolitan, Josi contributed two assists. Rinne played the second half, which the Central trailed 5-0 when he came on, and allowed four goals on 10 shots.

"The greatest thing is seeing the other players, and you don't really get to do these kind of things otherwise," Rinne said. "Just to showcase our great players [around the League], it's fun to be a part of it."

Nashville resumes regular season action Friday at Florida (6 p.m., Fox Sports-Tennessee). Its next home game is Saturday against Dallas (7 p.m., Fox Sports-Tennessee).





