Blandino said he has spoken

OTTAWA -- The Ottawa Senators were on the verge of a massive comeback, only to fall short in overtime. Aaron Colvin Jersey . After overcoming a three-goal deficit the Senators forced the game to overtime only to watch it slip away as Seth Jones scored the winner 3:49 into the extra period as the Nashville Predators defeated the Senators 4-3 Monday night. Ryan Ellis broke in alone on goaltender Robin Lehner and Jones was there to bang home the loose puck. "It was a tough one to slip away and we almost gave it away," said Jones. "We need all the points we can get right now so it was nice to pull away with two." The win allowed the Predators (27-28-10) to snap a four-game losing streak. The Senators say they take solace in earning the single point, but at the same time know they need to be better if they hope to stay in the playoff race. "The way the game was looking going into the third period it looked pretty bleak for us to get that one point so well take the positive," said Ottawas Marc Methot. "It would have been nice to get two, but were happy with the resiliency we showed at the end." Nick Spaling, Craig Smith and Eric Nystrom also scored for Nashville. Pekka Rinne faced 37 shots. This was Rinnes first victory in four starts since returning from injury. Jared Cowen, Methot and Jason Spezza scored for the Senators (28-25-12). Craig Anderson allowed three goals on 29 shots before leaving the game early in the third. Lehner faced 13 shots in relief. Senators coach Paul MacLean said he didnt have an immediate update on Anderson, but didnt believe it was anything serious. Holding a 3-0 lead the Predators nearly let the game slip away in the third as the Senators scored twice in a span of 2:39. "I thought we played real well, especially the first two periods," said Nashvilles Mike Fisher. "We thought we were the better team, but then gave them a little life in the third and the crowd came alive for them and before you knew it, it was 3-3." Spezza tied the game with 67 seconds remaining in regulation. The newly acquired Ales Hemsky, who had three assists, found Spezza at the side of the net and the Senators captain banged it in. "We knew we had to make a push in the third and it showed a lot of character for us to get a point," said Spezza. "We kept coming and coming, but it sure would have been nice to pull that one out in overtime." The comeback started midway through the third, as Cowen was able to find the puck through traffic in front and push it past Rinne. Spezza picked up his second assist of the night as he found a surging Methot to make it a 3-2 game at the halfway mark. The Predators three unanswered second period goals appeared to make this game look all but decided. "We normally do a better job of locking these games down," said Predators head coach Barry Trotz. Anderson could hardly be blamed for any of the goals as he was the victim of two redirections and a giveaway. Andersons night came to an end at 4:10 of the third after he was hit in the head by teammate Milan Michalek. On the first goal Spaling tipped a Michael Del Zotto point shot at the eight-minute mark of the second. Less than two minutes later Colin Wilson won the faceoff in the Senators end and got the puck to Jones on the point. The blue liner then passed it to Mattias Ekholm, who took a shot that Smith re-directed in front. The Predators made it 3-0 on Nystroms unassisted goal. Methot went to clear the puck and it landed directly on Nystroms stick for the easy finish on Anderson. A scoreless first period was highlighted by the damage inflicted by Shea Webers powerful shot. First, Anderson dropped to the ice after taking a Weber shot in the shoulder and minutes later Cody Ceci took a shot to the head that left him with a lacerated right ear. He did not return to the game. "You never want to see anyone go down like that," said Weber. "Hopefully hes doing all right because thats nothing you ever want to see." Following the game Ceci tweeted, "Thanks for all your concerns just a cut and a little shaken up should be back at it soon enough." Notes: The Senators were without LW Clarke MacArthur as he has a hand injury, but is expected to return for Saturdays game against Montreal. D Patrick Wiercioch, was a healthy scratch for the Senatorsa LW Gabriel Bourque and D Victor Bartley were healthy scratches for the Predatorsa.The CIS Mens Basketball Champion Carleton Ravens were honoured before the game and took part in the ceremonial puck drop. Justin Reid Texans Jersey . In Englands first game since its worst-ever World Cup showing, Roy Hodgsons side rarely looked like scoring against unambitious opposition and the breakthrough in the friendly only came when Raheem Sterling was tripped in the penalty area. Keke Coutee Texans Jersey . Its the second of three meetings between these teams this season.  Vancouver was a 2-1 winner on home ice December 22nd.ENGLEWOOD, Colo. - The NFLs officiating chief has cleared Broncos receiver Wes Welker of any wrongdoing for his hit that knocked Patriots cornerback Aqib Talib out of Sundays AFC Championship. "It was a legal hit," Vice-President of Officiating Dean Blandino said on the NFL Network on Wednesday night. On Monday, New England coach Bill Belichick blasted Welker for the hit, calling it "one of the worst plays" hed seen in nearly four decades of coaching. Without mentioning his former player by name, Belichick said it "was a deliberate play by the receiver to take out Aqib, no attempt to get open." He added, "Ill let the league handle the discipline on that play." There will be no discipline for Welker; Blandino said there was simply no infraction of the rules. Welker, coming from the right, collided with Talib, who was running from the left to stay with his receiver, a split-second before Peyton Mannings pass went off the hands of receiver Demaryius Thomas a few yards away in the first quarter Sunday. No flag was thrown. Talib left the game with a knee injury and didnt return, and Manning threw for 400 yards in Denvers 26-16 win that sent the top-seeded Broncos to the Super Bowl. "The first potential foul would be for offensive pass interference; a receiver cant block downfield before the ball is touched, so the timing is important," Blandino said on his weekly appearance on the NFL Network. He noted that as "contact occurs, the ball is touched almost simultaneously. We dont have a foul for pass interference." "The other thing, is it unnecessary roughness? Under the current rules it isnt," Blandino said. "Its not late; Talib wasnt out of the play." Given that an injury occurred, Blandino said he expects the leagues competition committee to examine the play in the off-season "and determine if there needs to be a change. Tyrann Mathieu Texans Jersey. But under the current rules, this is a legal play." Welker, who had a cool relationship with Belichick before leaving New England as a free agent last off-season, hasnt been available for comment this week as the Broncos wont practice until Thursday. But after the game, Welker said, "it was one of those plays where its kind of a rub play and I was trying to get him to go over the top, and I think he was thinking the same thing and wanted to come underneath and we just kind of collided. ... It wasnt a deal where I was trying to hit him or anything like that." Broncos coach John Fox responded to Belichicks stinging criticism on Monday by saying Welker is a "a great player, high integrity. I can say that we were not doing anything with intent." At 5-foot-9 and 185 pounds, Welker is 4 inches shorter and 20 pounds lighter than Talib. Hes also wearing a special helmet to guard against further head injury after missing the final month of the season with his second concussion. Hes also never been known as a dirty player. Patriots safety Steve Gregory said he didnt think Welker would deliberately try to hurt a player, saying, "I dont think anybody plays that way, especially at this level of football with two great football teams in the Broncos and ourselves." Blandino said he has spoken with Belichick this week about the play "and obviously there is a difference of opinion there and something that well continue to look at during the off-season." ___ AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org ___ Follow AP Pro Football Writer Arnie Melendrez Stapleton on Twitter: http://twitter.com/arniestapleton