After an up-and-down regular season amid a roster overhaul, the Nashville Predators entered the playoffs as one of the teams getting the label of “team no one wants to face.”
After all, the Preds went 21-7-3 from the start of February to the end of the regular season, a stretch that included an 18-game point streak that may or may not have been sparked by a canceled trip to see U2 at the Sphere in Vegas. Armed with a stalwart in Juuse Saros in goal, all-world defenseman Roman Josi, a reinvigorated Ryan O’Reilly and Filip Forsberg and some young depth with upside, there were thoughts of Nashville being a dark horse in a brutally tough Western Conference.