Laviolette Believes Experience Will Help Push Preds Through Playoffs

When Filip Forsberg stepped onto the Bridgestone Arena ice back in April of 2015 for Game 1 against Chicago, he was doing so in the postseason for the first time. So was Calle Jarnkrok. Mattias Ekholm, too.
Roman Josi only had 10 playoff games to his name at that point. Six for Ryan Ellis.
The Predators lost to the Blackhawks in that opening round three years ago, disappointed in the result, but ultimately better for it. One year later, the Preds were one win away from reaching the Western Conference Final. In 2017, just two victories more would have eclipsed the summit.

Three playoff appearances in the past three years under head coach Peter Laviolette have seen the Predators get closer than the previous try. So, when Nashville opens their run in the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs on Thursday night against the Colorado Avalanche, they'll be doing so armed with the maturity to handle just about anything that may come their way.
"When you take those experiences [from the past three seasons]," Laviolette said, "this is not an inexperienced group anymore."
Whether those past outings will ultimately help lead to advancing to the second round remains to be seen, but the Preds are sure to rely on what they've been through together - especially just one year ago - for assistance if and when they need it.
After all, Forsberg now knows how to properly prepare for a series. Josi doesn't have to wonder what a Game 7 will be like. And the bench boss no longer worries whether his team will be adequately prepared for what's ahead.
"Those experiences that you take in… they prepare you for the playoff series of the future," Laviolette said. "This team has now been through a lot, and I feel like it can only help in playoff situations."
The Preds will put that theory to the test in just a few days' time against a Colorado team that hasn't beaten Nashville in 10 consecutive games. But in an all-time favorite postseason cliché, you can throw the records out the window.
"[Colorado] appears to be built around speed and skill, and we know that we're going to have to play fast, to be sharp defensively," Laviolette said. "Their top line is one of the best lines in the League and we're going to have our hands full with that… But they're a fast team that has some skill, and that's probably the game that we're going to need to play."

Over the course of the past six months, the Predators put that game plan into play on a number of occasions, leading them to their first Central Division title and Presidents' Trophy win in franchise history. Even when they did hit a skid - which were few and far between - Nashville never stayed in it for long.
It's a testament to those who entered that series back in 2015. They were already on an upward trajectory at that time. Now, they're leading the team.
"The leadership that's in the room, they've done an excellent job," Laviolette said. "[Our success], that's a credit to them. Ultimately, a coach can go in and say anything, but the players are the ones who have to put their gear on and make sure the team is always moving in the right direction, and if it's not moving in the right direction, to get it back there moving quickly in the right direction."
Whatever comes along in the next two weeks - and if they Preds have it their way, the next two months - Laviolette and his players can face it knowing they've probably seen it before. And as the pundits wonder if the top team in the League can handle the pressure of going the distance, there's no question inside that locker room.
The message will be loud and clear.
"For me, this group is looking down a tunnel at something and all that other stuff is noise," Laviolette said. "We're going to maintain looking at what our objective is and where we're trying to go."