Vancouver Canucks to play Nashville Predators in opening round of playoffs

It’s official: The Vancouver Canucks will play the Nashville Predators in round one of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The matchup was solidified Wednesday, when the Dallas Stars and the St. Louis Blues went into overtime. The game would ultimately end in a shootout, with the Blues falling to the Stars.

A year after missing the NHL playoffs for the seventh time in eight seasons, and after three straight years of upheaval and chaos, the Canucks beat the Calgary Flames 4-1 at Rogers Arena Tuesday to win the Pacific Division and the team’s first banner since 2013.

The Canucks reached 50 wins for only the third time in franchise history. As of Wednesday night, they had 109 points ahead of their final regular-season game Thursday in Winnipeg.

Nashville should be a formidable opponent for the Canucks. The Predators have ridden a strong second half of the season into the Stanley Cup Playoffs, posting a record of 21-7-3 since the NHL All-Star break.

The two teams went head-to-head three times during the regular season, with the Canucks winning all three games. The last matchup between the two, however, was played way back in December, a game won by Vancouver 5-2.

The Canucks will have goaltender Thatcher Demko ready to go for this series after the all-star missed time due to a lower body injury suffered early last month. Listen to CityNews 1130 LIVE now!

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-With files from Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre