The Vancouver Canucks are making final adjustments to their lineup ahead of the playoff opener against the Nashville Predators. During a recent practice at Rogers Arena, coach Rick Tocchet made some notable changes to the team’s lines.

One significant adjustment was the placement of Sam Lafferty on the right wing alongside Elias Pettersson and Nils Höglander. Additionally, Phil Di Giuseppe was given an opportunity on the fourth line with Teddy Blueger and Ilya Mikheyev.

Tocchet explained that Lafferty’s size and speed made him a good fit to start the series with Pettersson. While there was no confirmation that Di Giuseppe would play over Vasily Podkolzin, the coaching staff considered the importance of experience in a playoff opener.

Based on the recent practice session, Podkolzin and Nils Aman are likely to be the extra forwards at the beginning of the series. On the defensive end, the Canucks are expected to start with Quinn Hughes and Filip Hronek as the lead pair, Carson Soucy and Tyler Myers as a duo, and Nikita Zadorov and Ian Cole together.

The team concluded practice with power play drills, maintaining the first unit with Quinn Hughes leading the charge.