Nashville proves it can conquer elite opponents, but O'Reilly stresses disciplined play is the key to sustained success and victory.
This weekend was eye-opening for the Nashville Predators, as they put what they've believed and preached into action and saw a positive result.
Facing a Colorado Avalanche squad that hadn't lost at home all season, in Denver, the Predators snapped that streak with a dominant 7-3 victory, which also saw Ryan O'Reilly score his seventh career hat trick.
Nashville is also the only team to beat Colorado more than once this season.
The next night, facing the Pacific Division-leading Vegas Golden Knights, the Predators were on the wrong side of a blowout in a 7-2 loss.
What O'Reilly took away from the weekend slate was that if his team can stick to its structure, it can beat anyone in the league.
"We know we can play with any team and beat any team in this league, but we have to stick to our structure, our game plan," O'Reilly said. "Keep that execution, especially when we're tired."
O'Reilly said the Colorado win was very emotional and took a toll on the Predators the next night. The Predators played a competitive 40 minutes, down just 2-1 at the end of the second period, but "lost their details" in the third period.
It was a challenging stretch for the Predators, having to play two of the best teams in the league on back-to-back nights, but O'Reilly and the Predators are aware of the schedule they've been dealt with this year.
Less than a month from the start of the Olympics, the Predators are playing at least 3 games a week until the pause and have another back-to-back on Feb. 4 and 5.
Last week, Nashville played four games in seven days.
O'Reilly also added that the Predators have taken advantage of their opponents coming off back-to-backs, the same way the Golden Knights did.
Nashville's 4-3 overtime win against the Edmonton Oilers on Jan. 13 came off the heels of the Oilers' 4-1 win in Chicago the night before.
"The schedule is what it is. Everyone's playing back-to-back games, and we had Edmonton in here the other day, coming off a back-to-back game," O'Reilly said. "We were playing the best players in the league and their speed too, so it's nice that we get them maybe a little tired. It's just the way it goes."
Jan 16, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Nashville Predators center Ryan O'Reilly (90) and right wing Luke Evangelista (77) celebrate a goal scored in the first period against the Colorado Avalanche at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn ImagesFatigue played a factor in the loss in Vegas, and while saying it's not an excuse, O'Reilly added that he believes the Predators wouldn't have "fallen off" the way they did if Saturday's matchup had been a playoff game.
One of the key parts to the Predators' success as of late has been their starts. In their last three games, they have scored the first goal of the game. It's the opposite of where they were: for 10 straight games from Dec. 23 to Jan. 11, they had given up the first goal of the game.
"We're a little simpler to start," O'Reilly said. "We're kind of just engaging in the game right away, where I think earlier in the year, we weren't a very good first-period team. We kind of just tried to feel out what's gonna happen, and now we're a little bit clearer, more precise, and simpler, getting into the game."
Similar to their game against the Oilers, the Predators will face the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday, another team coming off a back-to-back and fighting for a Wild Card spot.
Buffalo narrowly lost to the Carolina Hurricanes, 2-1, on Monday afternoon in Raleigh and is trying to hold off the Toronto Maple Leafs, who are one point behind the Sabres in the final Wild Card spot.
"For us, it's a lot about responding, coming out with that kind of urgency right away," O'Reilly said. "It's gonna be a tough game.
They're (Buffalo) a very good team and they're hot right now."