NASHVILLE - Colorado's road to Lord Stanley's Cup starts now.
On Thursday, the Avalanche will open the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Arena. This marks the first ever post-season meeting between the two organizations.
"This is obviously what you play for. Growing up as a kid, you watch playoff hockey, you dream of one day playing it, and it's going to be a lot of fun," Avalanche center Alexander Kerfoot said at Thursday's morning skate in Nashville. "The season is so long, but once the playoffs come along everyone gets rejuvenated and there is a little extra hop in your step. It's going to be fun tonight."
After defeating the St. Louis Blues on Saturday for the final wildcard spot in the Western Conference, Colorado drew the Predators - the top team in the NHL. In their four meetings in the 2017-18 season, the Avs finished with a 0-3-1 record against the Preds.
"They've had success against us, but I think especially the last one we played against them, we really outplayed them," Avalanche defenseman Tyson Barrie said. "They were opportunistic. They kind of got the lead and sat back with it a bit in the third. We'll just kind of emulate what we did in that game. If you play the right way, a lot of times you get rewarded, so that's kind of what we're counting on."
Nashville is also looking to make its second straight trip to the Stanley Cup Finals. Last season, the Predators upset top-seeded Chicago, sweeping the Blackhawks in four games en route to the first Stanley Cup Finals appearance in franchise history. They fell to the Pittsburgh Penguins four games to two. Colorado is in Nashville's position this year, hoping for a similar result.
Despite this marking Colorado's 14th trip to the post-season after relocating to the Mile High city, the Avs are relatively young when it comes to playoff experience. On the roster, there are 14 players who have never played in an NHL playoff game.
"I'm more excited than when I was 18," Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon said. "I had just won the Memorial Cup in junior, and making playoffs, it felt so easy. I realize how hard it is now to make the playoffs and be on a good team. I definitely feel more fortunate and more excited."
Colorado will also take the ice on Thursday without starting goaltender Semyon Varlamov, who was injured at the end of the regular season.
Game 1 between the Avs and Preds will start at 7:30 p.m. MST on Thursday. The game will be aired on NBC Sports Network, and can be live streamed at this link: http://bit.ly/2HzVzYl.
Fans are also invited to watch Game 1 and 2 action from Pepsi Center on the Pepsi Vision scoreboard. Parking and tickets are free, and concessions are discounted 25 percent.
