NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Brady Skjei and Filip Forsberg each scored twice and the Nashville Predators snapped a six-game losing streak with a 6-4 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday night.
Jonathan Marchessault had a goal and two assists, Tommy Novak also scored and Ryan O’Reilly had a career-high four assists for the Predators. Justus Annunen made 25 saves.
Alex Tuch had a goal and two assists, Bowen Byram and Rasmus Dahlin both had a goal and an assist and Dylan Cozens also scored for the Sabres, whose season-best four-game winning streak came to an end.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 17 saves.
Nashville led 2-0 halfway through the first period on goals by Novak and Skjei, but the Sabres answered later with goals from Byram and Dahlin.
The Predators regained the lead with 5:29 remaining in the second on Forsberg's first of the game. Skjei struck again 42 seconds later from the slot for his first two-goal game as a Predator.
Forsberg and Cozens traded third-period goals.
Sabres: Buffalo couldn’t extend its winning streak despite playing against a Predators team that played in Chicago on Friday night.
Predators: Nashville is far outside of the playoff picture, but they did end a long losing streak with a victory before the long break.
Buffalo appeared to tie the game 5-5 with 6:58 remaining in the third on a goal by Zach Benson, but the Predators challenged and a video review determined the play was offside and the goal was taken off the board.
With his first-period goal, Byram recorded his 100th career NHL point. He later added an assist for his 101st.
Following the 4 Nations Face-Off, the Sabres host the New York Rangers and the Predators host the Colorado Avalanche, both on Feb. 22.
AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL
FILE - Buffalo Sabres goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (1) watches during an NHL hockey game, Jan. 15, 2025, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus, File)
FILE - Nashville Predators center Jonathan Marchessault looks to pass during an NHL hockey game, Jan. 18, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)
FILE - Nashville Predators left wing Filip Forsberg (9) warms up before an NHL hockey game, Dec. 21, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
ISTANBUL (AP) — The head of Turkey's main opposition party visited jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu on Tuesday after six nights of massive protests calling for his release.
Imamoglu, arrested on March 19 on corruption charges, is seen as the main challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s 22-year rule. His arrest has been widely viewed as politically motivated and sparked demonstrations, some turning violent, across the country. The government insists Turkey’s judiciary is independent and free of political influence.
Ozgur Ozel, the leader of Imamoglu's Republican People’s Party, or CHP, arrived at Silivri prison, west of Istanbul, in a convoy of vehicles Tuesday morning.
After a two-hour meeting, Ozel told reporters that he was “ashamed on behalf of those who govern Turkey of the atmosphere I am in and the situation that Turkey is being put through.”
He described Imamoglu and two jailed CHP district mayors he also met as “three lions inside, standing tall, with their heads held high … proud of themselves, their families, their colleagues, not afraid.”
Ozel announced the night before that Tuesday evening would be CHP's final rally outside Istanbul’s City Hall, calling for people to join in. He also said the party would appoint a member to the municipal council to act as mayor in Imamoglu's place, staving off the possibility of a state-appointed replacement.
Meanwhile, Turkish authorities have been cracking down on journalists as protests have grown.
The Media and Law Studies Association, a civil society group, said eight journalists who were detained “for covering protests in Istanbul,” banned by authorities, had been brought to the city’s Caglayan Courthouse. They are accused of “violating the law on meetings and demonstrations," the group said.
The journalists were among 206 people prosecutors have recommended for imprisonment pending trial in relation to the protests, including left-wing activists rounded up at their homes in raids early on Monday.
Media workers’ unions have condemned the arrests as an “attack on press freedoms and the people’s right to learn the truth.”
Meanwhile, the head of the CHP's Istanbul branch, Ozgur Celik, shared a letter he had received from the prosecutor’s office ordering the removal of poster of Imamoglu. He said he would not comply.
“You will see more of Mayor Ekrem on the balconies of houses, in squares, on the streets and on the walls,” Celik posted on X.
Demonstrations in Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir, as well as smaller cities and towns across Turkey, have been largely peaceful with protesters demanding Imamoglu’s release and an end to democratic backsliding. However, some turned violent, with officers deploying water cannons, tear gas and pepper spray and firing plastic pellets at protesters, some of whom have hurled stones, fireworks and other objects at riot police.
The governors of Ankara and Izmir on Tuesday extended bans on demonstrations to April 1 and March 29 respectively. The ban in Istanbul currently runs to March 27.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said early Tuesday that police had detained 43 “provocateurs” over what he said were “vile insults” hurled at Erdogan and his family at protests. Some 1,133 protesters were detained between Wednesday and Sunday, he said earlier.
Ozel and Imamoglu's social media accounts posted condemnations of insults hurled at Erdogan's mother.
Imamoglu has been jailed on suspicion of running a criminal organization, accepting bribes, extortion, illegally recording personal data and bid-rigging — accusations he has denied. He also faces prosecution on terror-related charges and has been suspended from duty as a “temporary measure.”
Alongside Imamoglu, 47 other people have been jailed pending trial, including a key aide and two district mayors from Istanbul. A further 44 suspects in the case alleging widespread graft at Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality were released under judicial control.
Although Turkey is not due for another election until 2028, there is a reasonable possibility that Erdogan will call for an early vote in order to run for another term.
Imamoglu has been confirmed as the candidate for the CHP and has performed well in recent polls against Erdogan. He was elected mayor of Turkey’s largest city in March 2019, in a major blow to Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party, which had controlled Istanbul alongside its predecessors for a quarter-century.
University students sit next to anti riot police officers during a protest after Istanbul's Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was arrested and sent to prison, in Istanbul, Turkey, Monday, March 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Huseyin Aldemir)
Riot police fire tear gas pellets to disperse protesters in Istanbul, Turkey, Monday, March 24, 2025, during a protest after Istanbul's Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was arrested and sent to prison. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)
People shout slogans next to anti riot police officers during a protest after Istanbul's Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was arrested and sent to prison, in Istanbul, Turkey, Monday, March 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)
