Three Thoughts: Preds Dominate Early in Game 4 Victory

The Predators built a 3-0 lead over the Avalanche on their way to taking Game 4 by a 3-2 final score and bringing a 3-1 series lead in Round One back to Nashville.
Fil-thy Forsberg:
Dominance. That's what the Predators exhibited to start Game 4.
But after a 5-on-3 power-play opportunity wasn't converted and Avs goaltender Jonathan Bernier made a desperation save on Mike Fisher, the possibility that the Predators were going to end the first period without a goal seemed to be rising.

That was until the final five minutes of the opening period, when Filip Forsberg showed his other-worldly goal in Game 2 was anything but a fluke.
Forsberg kept accelerating through the neutral zone and went around Avalanche d-man Duncan Siemens, regained the puck behind the defender and tucked a shot behind Bernier for a 1-0 Predators' lead. That's two highlight-reel goals in the series for the Swedish forward.

Forsberg made sure the visitors' strong start didn't go unrewarded and gave the Predators the opening goal of a game for the first time in the Round One series.
Calle Returns:
Forward Calle Jarnkrok returned to the Predators' lineup for Game 4, marking his first action since March 13.
Jarnkrok set a career high in points (16g,19a-35pts) despite missing the final month of the season. Even more than this scoring touch, the Preds have seemed to miss No. 19's versatility and speed in the lineup, especially in the bottom-six forward group.
Nashville Head Coach Peter Laviolette often calls Jarnkrok one of the "smartest players he's ever coached" and the forward seemed to give the fourth line an immediate lift on Wednesday night.
Skating with Fisher and Ryan Hartman, Jarnkrok's quick skating paired well with Hartman and his cerebral play helped the fourth line clear the defensive zone on several occasions.

But Seriously, That Start:
It was masked in the final score, but the Predators were the better team in the second half of Game 3.
After falling behind 4-0 in the game's first 25 minutes, Nashville scored three times in the latter half of the contest and hinted they had another gear waiting to open Game 4.
"In the regular season, too, we never went off the road for too long," Laviolette said between Games 3 and 4. "We never went too far and we never went too long off the road, so that's a good thing. We play every other day, so we know we have a chance to fix things, get a sweat today and move forward."
A focused and strong beginning to Game 4 helped Nashville score the first three goals of the game and eventually to take a 3-1 series lead. Penalty trouble for Nashville allowed the Avalanche back into the game in the third period, but outside of that, this is likely the Preds' best performance in the playoffs to date.