Preds Get Back to Work, Looking Ahead to Games Following Shutdown

John Hynes is back to running drills in person instead of supervising from a computer screen.
Nashville's head coach, as well as the rest of his staff - assistants Todd Richards, Dan Lambert and Dan Hinote, as well as Goaltending Coach Ben Vanderklok - are all back to "full go," as Hynes said Monday afternoon, following a practice session for the Predators to start the week, a stark contrast to where the team was approximately 10 days or so ago.

Hynes didn't have an update on the status of Nashville's playing roster on Monday due to what the bench boss called "a lot of moving parts," but the Preds did recall forward Mathieu Olivier from Milwaukee to the newly reinstated taxi squad on Monday as the League looks to combat the possibility of a team's roster becoming too depleted in the weeks ahead.
Update: On Monday evening, the Predators updated the status of a number of players - [that information can be found here.]
Despite all that, the Preds were simply happy to be back at the rink following what turned out to be an extended holiday break.
"We've played a lot of good hockey here, and our team has shown a lot of mental freshness the last couple days in practice," Hynes said. "To the players' credit, I think one of the things we do talk about is just controlling what we can control. The guys did have a good break - there are certain guys that are at different points - and as I said, there's a lot of moving parts as far as who's ready and who's not ready coming through. But what we talk with our group about it's not who's out, it's about the players that are in and making sure that we're physically ready to play and mentally ready to play, and I think the guys have done a good job of trying to control what we can control. That's been our focus."
The Preds had embraced that mindset long before the League shut the team down on Dec. 18 due to a continued number of positive tests, and yet the team was still finding a way to be successful.
The timeline is worth revisiting, and things began to take a turn all the way back in New York City on Dec. 12 as Preds forward Ryan Johansen missed that night's game against the Rangers due to a positive COVID-19 test. Over the next four days, a total of seven of Johansen's teammates and five Nashville coaches also took their place on the NHL's COVID-19 list as games on Dec. 14, 19, 21 and 23 were ultimately postponed.
Players - and coaches - were recalled from Milwaukee, and despite all of the circumstances, the Predators won back-to-back outings against Colorado and Chicago on Dec. 16 and 17, respectively, to extend their current win streak to seven games.
Even as the Predators practiced in Nashville on Monday, they were originally supposed to be in Dallas preparing to play against the Stars, but the NHL had also postponed all games set to take place on Dec. 27 as well as players and teams tested back in following the holiday break.
Now, the Preds are set to fly to Washington on Tuesday in advance of a date with the Capitals on Wednesday, and although anything is possible in an ever-changing world, the group is ready to get back to work while doing whatever is necessary.
"We just try to live by what everyone recommends," Preds defenseman Mattias Ekholm said. "It's something that the whole world and the whole society is dealing with, and all we really can do is do our part and do all the things that the government, our medical staff are telling us to do, and that's going to help it. But as we've seen, it's hard to contain this virus and it's something that we're probably going to have to deal with years to come as a society. I know everyone in our locker room and around our group wants to end this as much as anyone else wants to, so we're just trying to do the right thing."
Hynes, who was able to enjoy the Christmas break with his family after testing out of protocol with an asymptomatic case, has also dealt with the recent disappointment of no longer being able to attend the 2022 Winter Olympics after the NHL and NHLPA announced they would not be allowing players and staff to participate. Hynes was set to serve as an assistant coach for Team USA at the Games, but he's put everything in perspective as it relates to hockey and life as a whole.
"It is disappointing [to not participate], but on the other side of it, we're still in a pandemic and I think that it's important for all of us to be able to roll with the punches," Hynes said. "There's going to be good and bad, and [you] really [have to just] control what you can control and try to make the best of every situation. Although it's disappointing you can't go the Olympics, on the other side, you're here, there'll be a little bit of a break mentally, but it's all Preds all the time, and I think that's also a positive thing.
"But as we continue to move forward, as we go through this, there's going to be more things that are thrown at all of us in hockey and in life. It's just trying to do the right things, staying positive making, the best of every situation, control we can control, and I think that's my mindset. It's been our team's mindset, and we want to continue to move forward in the right direction with the right mindset."
And as for the more immediate future, Hynes and the Preds are eagerly preparing for a back-to-back se to close out the 2021 calendar year with a Wednesday-night tilt in Washington before facing the Blue Jackets in Columbus on Thursday. No matter the situation, including what will soon become an 11-day layoff between games - there's a win streak to extend.
"[Controlling what you can control has] been our message, and we feel like coming off the break, we've had the opportunity to have some good meetings and some good practices," Hynes said. "We feel like whoever is going to be in the lineup against Washington will certainly be ready to play at the level we need them to."