RELATED: [Predators will play Jets in Western Conference Second Round]
"I think we're going to try and avoid the 6-5 games like we had in the regular season," forward Adam Lowry said Monday. "It's going to be a tight-checking series. I don't think you can expect games to be 6-5 every night. Like I said, both teams can score, both teams can defend. It's going to be a good series."
The Jets will face the Predators, who won the Presidents' Trophy as the NHL's top team, in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time after defeating the Minnesota Wild in five games. It was the first series win for the Jets.
"It's going to be a good test," Lowry said. "[They were the] best team in the regular season. We've had some tight games against them. We know they have a lot of depth, both up front, on the back end and one of the best goalies in the League. We're looking forward to that challenge."
The series will feature a goaltending matchup between Connor Hellebuyck of the Jets and Pekka Rinne of the Predators, two Vezina Trophy finalists (Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning is the other). Hellebuyck had a 1.93 goals-against average and .924 save percentage in the first round, including back-to-back shutouts in Games 4 and 5. Rinne had a 2.60 GAA and .909 save percentage against the Colorado Avalanche, including a 22-save 5-0 shutout in the series-clinching Game 6.
However, Jets coach Paul Maurice said the series is not about the goalies but rather the goal-scorers.
"It's on the shooters," Maurice said. "You've got two guys with spectacular numbers and when they meet each other, you've got a lot of people that can score on the ice, so everybody's going to have to be good. The team that wins the series is going to have more guys going."
The Jets will place extra emphasis on stopping Predators defensemen P.K. Subban (16 goals, 43 assists, 59 points) and Roman Josi (14 goals, 39 assists, 53 points), who combined for 112 points in the regular season. The two had five assists in the first round.
"That's been a pretty constant thing we've focused on all year," Winnipeg defenseman Tyler Myers said. "Staying above the puck, keeping things simple. When there's a play to be made, we've always encouraged our group to make them when they're there. Simple plays can be the most effective sometimes and they've obviously shown they have a very active back end, and we'll have to be aware of it for sure."
