By Seth Lake

When the No. 4 seeded Nashville Predators take the ice against the No. 5 seeded Detroit Red Wings in Game 1 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals on Wednesday night at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, it will be the seventh meeting between the two teams this season and third meeting of the teams in the NHL postseason.  Both teams are familiar with each other, their personnel, and their systems.

Detroit Red Wings Defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom (5), Of Sweden, Skates By Nashville Predators Left Wing Gabriel Bourque,

Gaustad, picked up by Nashville at the trade deadline, will play a key role for the Predators in the series.

Having finished ahead of Detroit in the standings for the first time in franchise history this season, the Predators will have the advantage of playing at home for the first two games of the series where they went 26-10-5 during the regular season. With each team featuring an aggressive forechecking style of play, a strong team defense, and an all-star caliber goaltender, Nashville head coach Barry Trotz will look to the details of the game to prepare the Predators to win the series.  (more…)