Martin Erat scored the game-winner in the shoot-out, deflecting a shot off goalie Brian Boucher.

Danny Briere, Claude Giroux and Mike Richards failed to connect in the shoot-out for the Flyers, who fell one point behind sixth-place Montreal in the Eastern Conference.

"I thought we played a good game; we just ran into a hot goalie" in Pekka Rinne, Briere said after collecting a pair of assists. "But I like the way we put pressure on him. We were in their zone most of the night, and if we keep that up, good things will happen."

The Flyers, who absorbed their fourth straight road loss, outshot the Predators, 45-30.

Defenseman Chris Pronger's power-play goal tied the score at 3 with 5 minutes, 42 seconds left in regulation.

Richards, behind the net, fed a pass to Pronger as he cruised down the slot and beat Rinne for his 10th goal of the season.

About three minutes earlier, Simon Gagne's seventh goal in nine games got the Flyers within 3-2. Gagne scored after Nashville thought Jason Arnott was tripped. The Predators did not have a power play all night.

Boucher, who played well in a relief role, made two key stops in overtime to send it to a shoot-out.

"Obviously, you want to win, but we battled back and it was a good road point," Boucher said.

The Flyers' season may hinge on how quickly Leighton's left ankle heals.

After a mild collision out front with 10:15 left in the first period, Leighton fell back awkwardly and was visited by trainer Jim McCrossin. Boucher, who hasn't started a game since Dec. 21, replaced Leighton and allowed one goal the rest of the way.

"I just went out to get the puck and it got away from me, and I kind of went back on my leg and felt my leg pop, my ankle," said Leighton, who is 16-5-2 since being claimed off re-entry waivers from Carolina on Dec. 15.

Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren said Leighton suffered a high ankle sprain and was day-to-day "for now."

Leighton will have an MRI exam to determine the severity of the injury. He said he felt fine standing up but was in pain when he crouched.

When Leighton went to the bench, the Flyers trailed, 2-1. Twenty seconds later, Jerred Smithson made it 3-1 when he scored on his own rebound.

After Jeff Carter's 11th goal in the last 12 games gave the Flyers a 1-0 lead 1:21 into the game, Nashville quickly answered.

Leighton, who made his 15th straight start, couldn't find the puck near his skates, and Steve Sullivan knocked it loose and into the net with 15:27 left in the first period. About 21/2 minutes later, Erat scored from the slot, putting a shot inside the right post after taking a nice feed from Arnott.

After the deficit reached 3-1, the Flyers applied lots of pressure on Rinne, but he stopped 16 of 17 shots in the first period.

After dropping a 3-1 decision to the New York Rangers on Sunday, coach Peter Laviolette canceled Monday's practice.

"I hope it gives us some energy," Laviolette said before the game. "We were zapped in New York. We didn't have the pop we needed."

They had plenty of opportunities tonight, but Rinne - an eighth-round selection in the 2004 draft - was superb heading into the final 10 minutes. Not only did Rinne make 36 regulation saves, but he allowed few rebounds.

Kimmo Timonen, playing his first game in Nashville since it dealt him to the Flyers in 2007, was ahead of the pack on a second-period power play. But Rinne smothered his right-circle shot, frustrating Carter, who was all alone and ready to pounce on a rebound.

Contact staff writer Sam Carchidi at 215-854-5181 or scarchidi@phillynews.com.