Vets share lessons learned for playoff-bound Canucks

Ian Cole vividly recalls how he felt before skating out for his first National Hockey League playoff game.

- GEMMA KARSTENS-SMITH

J.T. Miller has seen action in 78 playoff games, including the Eastern Conference final with the Lightning and the Rangers.

“Honestly, I just remember being scared,” he said, punctuating his sentence with a mild expletive. “You’re so scared because you know how important it is. You’re like, ‘Just don’t make a mistake! Don’t make a mistake! Don’t make a mistake!’ ”

The fear didn’t last, but Cole’s playoff career did. The veteran defenceman has made 116 post-season appearances, winning back-toback Stanley Cups with Pittsburgh in 2016 and ’17. Now he’s sharing that experience with his Vancouver Canuck teammates as they prepare for their first playoff run in four years.

“I think the biggest thing that we should focus on is getting our game to its peak, to the very best it can be, before we enter into battle,” Cole said.

The Canucks (45-20-8) secured their post-season berth Saturday, becoming the first Canadian team to book a spot. The upcoming run has been a long time coming.

The Canucks last played post-season hockey in Edmonton at the end of the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign. Six players from that squad are on the current roster. But games in the bubble didn’t provide a typical playoff experience, Ca-