VANCOUVER -- Anthony Beauvillier joined his fourth team in 14 months when he was traded to the Nashville Predators on March 7, and his third since the start of the 2023-24 season.
But arriving in Nashville reunited him with one of his biggest backers, Predators general manager Barry Trotz, who allowed Beauvillier to find a comfort level that maybe had been lacking with moves from the New York Islanders to the Vancouver Canucks to the Chicago Blackhawks before landing in Nashville.
"He made it super easy for me, getting the call from him as soon as the trade happened and making sure everything was OK with me and my family,” Beauvillier said of Trotz. "It's always easier when you come to a place with familiar faces, and he made the transition really easy for me."
That comfort level shined through Tuesday, when Beauvillier scored 1:14 into the first period and added an assist in the Predators' 4-1 win against the Canucks in Game 2 at Rogers Arena to even the best-of-7 Western Conference First Round series.
Beauvillier and Trotz spent four seasons together (2018-22) with the Islanders when Trotz was coach. Beauvillier was a constant presence among New York's top nine forwards.
And Beauvillier always managed to come up big in big spots, especially during the Stanley Cup Playoffs. In the 2020 postseason, he tied for the Islanders lead with nine goals in 22 games to help them reach the Eastern Conference Final, where they lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games. The following season, he had 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in 19 playoff games as the Islanders reached the Stanley Cup Semifinal, losing to the Lightning in seven games. Along the way he scored the final goal ever at Nassau Coliseum, in overtime in Game 6 of that series. The Islanders lost 1-0 in Tampa in Game 7.
"He always seemed to raise his game in the playoffs, so I was hoping that would be the case," Trotz said. "I know it was going to be difficult, but I was willing to take the chance because I knew the player."
Beauvillier has a career average of 0.61 points per playoff game, better than his average of 0.45 points during the regular season.
"Obviously when playoffs come around it's always easier to wake up, easier to get motivated and get going," he said. "Feels like you play for something bigger than yourself.
"That's what you live for, that's why you play hockey. You want to compete for the Stanley Cup and play meaningful hockey. I'm very fortunate to be here, very happy to be with this group of guys. Transition has been super easy.
“It's a great group that we have. Happy to be here and happy to compete for in the playoffs."
That road didn't come easy. The Islanders traded Beauvillier to the Canucks as part of the trade for forward Bo Horvat on Jan. 30, 2023. The Canucks moved him to the Blackhawks on Nov. 28, in part to create salary cap space to acquire defenseman Nikita Zadorov from the Calgary Flames two days later.
Bouncing from team to team in such a short span, Trotz knew time would be needed for Beauvillier to find his confidence again.
"It's tough when you have to assimilate with three different teams," Trotz said. "He had great success with us on the island. We did a lot of winning in the island together in playoff games.”
