Carolina Hurricanes forward Andrei Svechnikov could only watch on from afar as his team was swept in the Eastern Conference Final in last year's playoffs.
Due to an ACL tear he suffered two months prior, Svechnikov would miss the entirety of the 2023 playoffs and in a series that was all decided by a single goal, he was sorely missed.
"Huge," said Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour on the impact of Svechnikov's absence. "You take one of your best players out of the lineup at this time of the year, that's tough."
But that was last year.
This year, Svechnikov is healthy and ready to make an impact in this year's postseason.
"It was a tough one last year," Svechnikov said. "I couldn't play in the playoffs and help the boys. Obviously, now, it's exciting. It's been a long season even though I've only played about 60 games. We've been waiting for this for the last month."
The Russian winger played in just 59 games this season for Carolina, missing time due to recovering from his offseason ACL surgery, two different oblique injuries as well as illnesses.
However, 'Svech' still managed to average nearly a point-per-game with 19 goals and 52 points and ended the regular season on a four-game points streak.
"I feel in the best shape I've ever been to be honest," Svechnikov said. "I feel confident and light on the ice. Now I have to move this confident game to the playoffs. The last five or six games, I've just felt pretty good about my game. Just have to stick with that."
Even beyond getting on the score sheet, Svechnikov brings more elements to the table as well.
He's one of the Hurricanes' most physical players and his presence alone causes opponents to have to allocate resources towards covering him.
Even if he isn't scoring, he's impactful on the ice and players like him that can wear opponents out both on the boards and in the defensive zone have value.
"Hopefully he continues to be that impact player that he's been here for the last few games," Brind'Amour said. "It certainly makes us a better team."
The fact that he's also an incredibly talented offensive piece is pretty important too though.
"Whatever it takes, I will do it," Svechnikov said.
A healthy Svechnikov will already be a huge boost for a team that made it to the ECF last season, but the Canes weren't satisfied with just that.
They also added Dmitry Orlov in the offseason, traded for both Jake Guentzel and Evgeny Kuznetsov at the trade deadline and look to have a fully healthy Frederik Andersen back as well.
"I feel like every year, you feel [like the team is] better and better, to be honest, but this is definitely a group like we've never had before," Svechnikov said. "We have all the skill and all the talent on the team and we know we can do this. It's just up to us if we will or not.
"We know we can do this. We have the best team, I feel like, but it's just all about us. We have to go out there and play the game we played in the regular season. Continue to play our systems, put the forecheck on them and try to handle those pucks every time."
The first challenge for this group will be a scrappy underdog in a familiar opponent, the New York Islanders, who've gotten hot at the right time under new head coach Patrick Roy.
But as Svechnikov said, it's more about what Carolina does than what New York does, because if the Canes just play their game, with this group, they're going to be unstoppable.