Andrew Brunette's team was playing so poorly, it made him ill.

The scoreboard at Bridgestone Arena showed the Nashville Predators trailing 5-1 to the St. Louis Blues. He'd just had to take out starting goaltender Juuse Saros. The team seemed on the verge of losing two points in a tight Western Conference playoff race.

But the coach was feeling bad for Barry Trotz, who just hours earlier on Feb. 2 announced he was retiring from his job as general manager of the Predators.

"I was feeling sick on the bench (for Trotz)," Brunette said. "It could have been 7-1 there, but I was just feeling really sick about that."

But then, with Trotz watching from his box, the Predators stormed back.

Michael McCarron tipped in a shot from Michael Bunting. Filip Forsberg wired home a wrist shot from the right circle. Ryan O'Reilly poked at a loose puck in the goal crease.

Suddenly, it was 5-4 early in the third period.

That set the stage for another dramatic moment for Steven Stamkos. First, a wraparound shot that banked in off Blues defender Colton Parayko that tied the score. Three minutes later, a forced rebound into the net gave the Predators a 6-5 lead.

Nashville (26-23-6, 58 points) held on to win by that score, inching closer to the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

"The players just found another level of desperation, it was all on them," Brunette said. "They really didn't like the way we were playing, they were a little embarrassed. And they started getting a little mad."

Nashville Predators pull off dramatic win for 'Papa Barry'

It was already an unusual day because of Trotz's surprise retirement announcement in the morning. His decision, which he said came down to choosing time with his family over the rigors of NHL general manager duties, stunned many in the organization.

"This was a crazy day all around. Woke up to a couple texts of what was happening," Stamkos said. "Some shocking news."

Trotz broke the news to Brunette and the team prior to the noon news conference, giving them only hours to process the information before taking on the Blues at 7 p.m.

Majority owner Bill Haslam, who was at Trotz's retirement news conference, explained the timing of the announcement was for transparency and to get ahead of the hiring game.

But still, the players had to prepare for an important game knowing that the man who signs their game checks is on the way out.

"Kind of unexpected, but since I've been playing for him, he's been an awesome person," O'Reilly said after the win. "As a group, it was something that gave us all a shock."

Perhaps that's what made the comeback win feel so rewarding. That the team handled the news of the day, then bounced back after a terrible start to earn two big points with their general manager watching.

"We dug in and found a way to make Papa Barry proud," Brunette said.

TROTZ'S EMOTIONS: What made Predators GM Barry Trotz emotional as he talked about retiring

Alex Daugherty is the Predators beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Alex at [email protected]. Follow Alex on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @alexdaugherty1. Also check out our Predators exclusive Instagram page @tennessean_preds.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Predators secure dramatic comeback win for 'Papa' Barry Trotz