After dropping Game 2 at home on Tuesday, the Vancouver Canucks are now in Nashville for Games 3 and 4 of their first-round matchup against the Predators. And fans there are gearing up for a unique playoff tradition that gives new meaning to Bridgestone Arena’s nickname: Smashville.
At the start of every playoff round, Preds fans take sledgehammers to a car decked out in the opposing teams name and colours. And the Canucks car is now outside the arena, ready to be smashed before Friday’s game.
“I’m curious how beat up it will be,” said Harman Dayal, a Canucks reporter with The Athletic who is in Nashville to cover Games 3 and 4.
“That’s part of the fun of playoff hockey, right? Every fan base, every team has its own traditions.”
Predators fans are also known to throw catfish on the ice during playoff games, and they relentlessly taunt visiting netminders with deafening chants after every Nashville goal.
“I covered a game in the regular season between Vancouver and Nashville in December, and I can tell you that Bridgestone Arena is absolutely rocking,” said Dayal. “You don’t typically think of Nashville as one of the pure hockey markets in the NHL. But those fans are passionate, they are loud, and it’s going to be a hostile, intimidating environment for the Canucks.”
The Canucks will have to face the Predators without number one goalie Thatcher Demko, who made the trip to Nashville but will not suit up. Backup Casey DeSmith will be between the pipes, like he was for Game 2.
“DeSmith spoke after practice about how helpful it is just for him to still have Demko’s support, and how close they have been,” said Dayal.
“I think Demmer coming on the trip – and he’s doing this thing in therapy and stuff – but I think it’s important he’s around,” said Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet.
“And Demmer wants to be around, so I think that really helps.”
The Canucks will have Tyler Myers back in the lineup Friday. The defencemen missed Game 2 with the flu. He skated with the team during Thursday’s practice in Nashville, where the focus was on getting pucks through the persistent Predators screen.
“Sometimes it just comes down to will and hunger to the get the puck to the net,” said Myers.
“I just thought Nashville’s will to defend was better than our will to score, let’s face it,” said Tocchet. “I think there is position and plays there, but it’s really a will.”
The Canucks will have some fan support in Nashville.
“We landed here Wednesday night and our cab driver was asking me if Canadians have this week off, because he has heard of a lot of people from Vancouver coming in,” said Dayal.
But mostly, Bridgestone Arena will be full of pumped-up Predators fans, fresh off smashing a car, and looking for more Canucks destruction on the ice.
“It’s one to one, it’s two evenly matched teams,” said Tocchet. “It’s going to be an exciting game, and we have got to embrace the excitement.”
