The eleventh-seeded Arizona Coyotes defeated the fifth-seeded Nashville Predators 4-3 in overtime, Friday. It’s the biggest upset of the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs so far.
Brad Richardson scored on a rebound inside the crease for the sudden victory 5:37 into overtime.
The Coyotes won the best-of-five Qualifying Round series, 3-1 series. It’s their first series win since the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
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BRAD RICHARDSON!!!
COYOTES ADVANCE TO THE FIRST ROUND OF THE STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS!!! pic.twitter.com/kYj05aRJiy
— FOX Sports Arizona (@FOXSPORTSAZ) August 7, 2020
Richardson said after the game that “it just feels like a lot of hard work came to fruition here.”
"We went through a lot of crap here. Some teams that needed to mature and grow. It just feels like a lot of hard work came to fruition here." – Brad Richardson
— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) August 7, 2020
Richardson’s series-clinching goal came after the Coyotes couldn’t close out the Predators late in the third period. Former Capitals draft pick Filip Forsberg scored on a one-timer with 31.9 seconds left, sending the game to overtime.
SCORESBERG.
The @PredsNHL force OT in the final minute after Filip Forsberg absolutely blasts the equalizer. #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/FKCE1dd1HD
— #StanleyCup Qualifiers on NBC (@NHLonNBCSports) August 7, 2020
Please ignore this tweet.
Filip Forsberg has 3 goals in this series. Martin Erat had 2 goals as a member of the Capitals.
— /Cam Robinson/ (@Hockey_Robinson) August 7, 2020
Phil Kessel also scored earlier in the game.
The Coyotes were led by their stars as Kessel, Taylor Hall, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, and Clayton Keller all finished the series with four points.
— Shayna (@hayyyshayyy) August 7, 2020
The Coyotes rallied to win despite having their general manager John Chayka quit his job on the eve of the playoffs.
Full game highlights
Screenshot courtesy of Sportsnet
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