They Said It: Preds Players, Head Coach John Hynes on Missing Playoffs

For the first time since 2014, the Nashville Predators will miss the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Nashville's postseason dreams were still alive following a 3-2 shootout win over the Calgary Flames on Monday. However, with a win over the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday, the Winnipeg Jets claimed the final Western Conference Wild Card spot in 2022-23 and eliminated the Predators from playoff contention.
As the team prepares for its final two home games of the season on Thursday and Friday, Colton Sissons, Tyson Barrie, Ryan McDonagh and Head Coach John Hynes spoke with media Wednesday morning at Bridgestone Arena and shared their reflections on the season, lessons learned, thoughts on the future of the team and more.

On being eliminated from playoff contention:

Sissons: "It sucks. It's very disappointing. We've put in a lot of hard work and perseverance the last three or four weeks to give ourselves a shot right until the end, and that sucks."
Barrie: "It's a tough situation. Obviously it would have been nice to keep our chances alive and keep fighting here, but it is what it is. It's not an easy league to make the playoffs, and I think the feeling around here is guys are proud of the way that we finished the season and hung around and made it tough on those guys."
McDonagh:"It's extremely difficult. You put in a ton of work starting in the offseason to prepare yourself and start the season off on the right foot. We had a lot of ups and downs this year - guys playing through injuries, getting hurt and coming back… You want to set yourself up for a chance to compete for the Cup. But we obviously came up a little bit short this year, and it's difficult for everybody."
Hynes: "It was certainly disappointing just because of how it played out with a win against Calgary, and I think the last 15 to 20 games here the team was really competing hard and trying to find different ways to to win hockey games and stay in the race. To not be able to continue that with two games left was disappointing, I think it's also important that we finish strong here. We still have a lot of guys in the lineup, and [we're] making sure that we try to continue with the mindset that we had. As I've said to the team a lot, we've got to be where our feet are. We were in the playoff race; we were right there. Unfortunately, last night that was taken away from us, but now we've got to make sure that we will be where we are now and we want to make sure that we finish strong in the last few games."

On lessons learned this season:

Sissons:"Playoffs aren't guaranteed. It doesn't matter what your lineup looks like on paper heading into the season. You have to go out there and get the job done night after night, and we didn't do that this year. And you miss the playoffs when that happens. We have a lot of good players in our system still here, and there's some new additions. I don't think it'll take us too long to be playoff contenders again."
Barrie: "If you're five, six points ahead right now, you're probably in [the playoffs]. So as meaningless as some of those mid-season or early-season games feel, all the points count the same. So you've got to be ready every single night."
McDonagh:"You've got to look at a lot of different things - how you're playing individually, how you're playing as a team and how everybody's holding each other accountable for their play. What are you doing to give yourself the best chance to win every night? We definitely missed opportunities there at the beginning of the year and it certainly cost us a chance to give ourselves a shot to make the playoffs. So all those things you look at, you dissect, you reflect, you talk with your group and you talk with players about it. Like I said, how do you get that next step moving forward?"

On key takeaways about the team:

Sissons:"There's a ton of character in this room that I think a lot of people outside the locker room didn't give [us] credit for. Current guys, veteran guys that have been around, needed to step up big time and obviously all the youth coming in did a tremendous job, too. So I'm proud of the amount of pride that we've had in here, and the character really shined through. It would have been easy for us to use all the excuses in the world with the trade deadline and injuries, but we didn't do that. So I'm proud of that."
Barrie:"[There was] a lot of learning for me coming in [at the trade deadline], but you can just see the commitment and the willingness to do things the right way and play as a team. Obviously we're missing a lot of key guys. A lot of these young guys stepped up with lots of opportunities, and I think they turned a lot of heads and we didn't take many nights off over the course of the stretch. And I think that's pretty impressive… It's been great. It's been really enjoyable. We've got some great personalities and some great leadership in there. It's been a team that showed up every night and kind of laid it all out there and played hard for each other, so it's been easy as a leadership group to lead a group of guys that's not taking any nights off."
McDonagh: "We've got a lot of great pieces still here, and I think this is a group that is going to take this the right way, not making the playoffs. That's what you have to do - you have to approach the summer in the right fashion, look at yourself individually, how you need to be better and be better prepared and improve. And then as a team, how do you take that next step going forward?"
Hynes: "The leadership of the team over the last few weeks has been really good. I think you have to give credit to the older guys that have been in the lineup through this whole stretch… Whether it's how those guys have played on the ice or the way that they've been on the same page with the coaching staff in promoting the right messages as leaders having the right attitude. One of the phrases we've said with our guys is we've got to be where our feet are. When you're in certain situations, you can't hope for something different or not want to be in it. It's kind of just like, okay, these are the circumstances we're in. What's the best way to go about our business? How are we going to make this right? How are we going to do things the right way and give ourselves the best chance to be successful? And those guys have done a really good job… The younger guys that have played well and they have done a good job, but there's also been a lot of mentorship since they've been here about how to navigate through playing against [tough teams like] Carolina, the intensity level of the schedule, how they should use their days off, different circumstances where those veteran players have been very beneficial."

On the impact of goaltending on the team's success:

Hynes:"The goaltending has been the backbone of the team all year long. You don't have an opportunity to win in the league if you don't have strong goaltending. In saying that, I think when one of your star players is a goaltender, that's how the team is set up. So I think [Saros] has really come through, but he's a star player on our team. There's other players that have star players at other positions that are huge contributors to their team. For us, we happen to have one in goal. So he's been a backbone. I think Kevin Lankinen has come in and been everything we've wanted in that position. He's a young, hungry player, very coachable, and has a great relationship with [Saros]. He prepares himself when he's not starting to be able to come in and play. Down the stretch, Kevin's played some really good hockey for us. I think he's had a lot of tough starts against some tough teams where we didn't shelter him. He had to go in and play. And it was really good to see him come through in those moments because I think ultimately he has a goal eventually in his young career to be a full-time NHL starter, and I think he's done a really good job of that. Professionals as they are, both of those players will be ready to play."

On the impact of late-season injuries:

Barrie:"I think there's a couple [of injuries] where if they don't happen I think we're probably in a little bit of a different spot. I think we've got some guys on the IR right now that are our game breakers and game changers, and [if we had] a couple of those guys in the lineup, I'm sure we would have been able to get a few more points and put us where we need to be. It's part of the game, though. It's obviously frustrating and more frustrating, probably, for those guys who are watching and aren't able to be out there with us. But I'm super proud of the guys in there, and we've got a few more games and we'll finish it off the right way."
McDonagh:"We moved some guys out [at the trade deadline], and some young guys came up and got an opportunity. We had a pretty good stretch there where we stayed in the mix, and it's exciting in that aspect to know that there's some youth that is coming up and can play some good hockey. With the injuries down the stretch, I don't think I've had an experience like that where guys were just dropping. And not for one or two games - you're talking huge chunks and big injuries. So there were a lot of moving parts and different guys playing. But if we were healthy or if we were to get healthy mixed in with some new guys, who knows what happens here?"

On the importance of veteran leadership:

Hynes:"[Seeing] two new guys in McDonagh and Barrie and what they were like under adverse circumstances where it really became their team because a lot of the other veteran players were out - they had to have a bigger voice, a stronger voice, a more consistent voice. Looking at a guy like Colton Sissons, the situation required him to step up and maybe step out of his comfort zone a little bit and how he spoke in the room and the guidance that he provided. He took a step in his leadership. I also think when you look at [Saros] as one of the few veteran players left in the lineup - not only his play on the ice, which we all know is exceptional - but just also being around the team, his voice in the room, the confidence that he brought, think those are all really good growth experience to see two players that have been here for a while really step up and grow in leadership and really get to know and work hand in hand with the newer players."

On the team's future:

Sissons: "I'm really excited. We've got some great young players that stepped up in huge roles for us down the stretch here, and that'll be huge for their development, too."
Barrie:"I think the NHL is a league that's not easy to break into, and there's a lot of learning curves and nerves that go along with it. So for guys to get as many games in bigger roles as they did this year, I can't think of a better way to come into the league. So I think it'll play an important role for us next year."
McDonagh: "If you're a young guy, you might play a handful of years in the minor league system just waiting for a call up. Sometimes teams don't get a lot of injuries and you have to wait a while, but they certainly piled up this year with numerous guys getting an opportunity and everybody just ran with it. Everybody just came in and was doing whatever was asked of them in their role and trying to help the team win. So that was good. Nobody was selfish about it… These are guys' dreams to play in the NHL, so they wanted to seize the opportunity. And they did that in the right fashion with the right team approach, which was fun to be a part of."
Hynes:"[The young players] were hungry. They were competitive. A lot of the moments didn't get too big for them. I thought there were some games and times in games that were real learning lessons, but I think they were quick to adapt. And I think you saw the emergence of some players, some younger guys that played important roles for us and were able to execute and come through at key times and high-stakes moments, and I think that's a really good development not only for the players, but for the team."

On the final two home games of the season on Thursday and Friday:

Sissons:"There were a lot of nights we expected to win and didn't, and conversely [some nights] went the other way, too. So we could spend our energy looking in the past, but it's not going to do us any good moving forward. We have two big games at home that we want to perform well in front of our fans and have some fun and end the season on a high note."
Barrie:"[We'll approach them] with the same mindset. We've got a lot of young guys in there and guys who are looking to show what they can do and prove themselves. I think our identity as a team is to go out and work, and I don't see that changing. So it'll be a lot of the same."
McDonagh: "It's difficult… [We are] certainly still playing with pride. Some guys have had some great seasons; specifically, [Juuse Saros] has been unbelievable. So I think there's one thing we should hang our hat on - to put forth a good effort for him because he's given us every chance every night to win and try to make this push here to make the playoffs. So I think that's what our focus will be, playing hard for our goalies. Both of them have been unbelievable."
Hynes: "It's been a good run, a tough run. It's been exciting for a lot of the players. I think that they feel positive about what they're doing, what we're doing. And now you want to finish that… We've got to make sure that we master the task of the next two games the right way - playing at home, playing in front of our fans, playing with a good effort. In this league, you're always playing for something. Someone's always watching. It's your last chance to make a last impression in an NHL season, whether guys are going to go to Milwaukee or guys' seasons are going to be done, it's your last chance to make that impression - whether it's to our organization or another organization. When you're in this league, which is the best league in the world, you should never take a game for granted or an opportunity for granted. And that's the way we're going to go about our business."