Predators forward Greg Johnson crashes rookie Denis Shvidki into the boards.(AP)

"We felt like it was going to be our night, but we kind of got back on our heels," Florida captain Scott Mellanby said. "They kept coming at us and coming at us."

Nashville's Sebastien Bordeleau and Scott Walker scored goals 57 seconds apart in the third period. Bordeleau connected at the left post and Walker scored in a rush up the slot for Nashville, as the Predators erased a 3-1 deficit and outshot the Panthers 20-7 in the third period.

Florida's Pavel Bure was stopped on a breakaway by Nashville backup goalie Tomas Vokoun with 2:43 left in regulation. Vokoun then robbed Ray Whitney and Dan Boyle on the rebounds.

"I got the shot I wanted," Bure said. "Instead of trying to put the puck between his legs I should have just gone around him."

The Panthers, who won 43 games last season, are 0-3-3-2. They are the only team in the NHL without a win this season.

"It's very frustrating," Florida's Peter Worrell said. "Obviously you want to win some games. Tonight we had the opportunity to do it and just couldn't close it out."

Walker has become one of Nashville's most reliable forwards.

"That guy's fearless," Vokoun said. "He's 5-foot-10 and he just goes into the battles. He plays very simple hockey, but very effective."

Igor Larionov scored for Florida on the game's opening shift. Bure sent a shot from the right corner toward Nashville's regular goalie Mike Dunham. It hit Larionov in a crowd of players near the right post and bounced in the goal. Panther goalie Robert Luongo finished with 42 saves.

Dunham, one of the NHL's best goalies in the early season, strained his left knee after stretching far to his right across the crease in the final 10 seconds of the opening period. He was slow to get up, and had to be helped off the ice by teammates Scott Hartnell and David Legwand.

Dunham will be re-evaluated Saturday. Vokoun replaced him to start the second period.

Vitali Yachmenev tied it 1-1 for Nashville on a power-play goal off Roberto Luongo's glove midway through the second. Bure connected just 1:25 later, beating Vokoun from the right circle to put the Panthers back on top 2-1.

Rob Niedermayer made it 3-1 during a Florida two-man advantage.

"The opportunity to win the game was there going into the start of the third period," Panthers coach Terry Murray said. "We lost our composure. They came at us good . . . Luongo did make some very big stops, and that's certainly the positive out of it."

Notes

• Rookie Scott Hartnell played in his 10th game, hours after a news conference in which Nashville general manager David Poile announced Hartnell would stay with the club and not be sent back to junior hockey. Hartnell, a gritty forward who was the team's first choice in the June draft, has become a fan favorite. "I think a lot of us, including the coaches, feel that his contribution to the club has been steady and increasing," Poile said.
• Defenseman Rory Fitzpatrick made his Nashville debut. He was recalled from Milwaukee of the IHL on Thursday.
• Florida's 0-3-2-2 start was the worst in club history. The best was 8-0-4 in 1996-97.
• The game was Nashville's third straight to go into overtime.