Dan Braverman | October 18, 2018 For pro athletes, the ability to focus and prepare is a key to their success. When four-time 20-goal scorer Tomas Tatar found out he'd been traded at the dawn of 2018-19 training camp, his mind had already shifted into gearing-up-for-the-season mode.

" Your thoughts are so all over the place. You're trying to figure out what to do first: where to live, how you're going to move your stuff. There are a lot of thoughts going through your mind when a trade happens," said the seven-year NHL veteran, who reached out to some of his Vegas Golden Knights teammates and soon-to-be Montreal counterparts to help guide him through the whirlwind that followed. "You're leaving one group, you're getting to know another one. That's just how life works, meeting new friends and new people in your life. "

Every player knows trades are part of the game, but no athlete ever expects to get that call a few days before training camp is set to kick off.

"It is different. It always is, when you're moving all your stuff from Vegas to Montreal. You're living in a different country, in Canada. There are different rules. You just have to adjust," shared Tatar, who came to Montreal with Nick Suzuki and a 2019 second-round pick in exchange for Max Pacioretty. "Obviously, it would be way nicer if that happened a little earlier, but it isn't the worst timing. We still had plenty of time until the season. I think the time I did have was enough to adjust here in Montreal." There's no place like (your adoptive) home Despite the timing of the trade, the fact that Tatar, Detroit's second-round pick (60th overall) in 2009, was moved to Montreal made his transition a smooth one - both in terms of the market and the locker room. "It's been great. The guys have been really nice to me. I'm getting to know them more. I'm just getting in touch with the city. I never realized how beautiful the city of Montreal actually is," praised Tatar, who played all but 20 of his 427 career NHL games as a member of the Red Wings prior to joining the Canadiens. "When we played here before, we were pretty much in and out. Now I can get to know Montreal a little better. So far, it's great."

Hailing from Ilava, a small town in the northwest of Slovakia with a population in the mid-5,000s, Tatar is already familiar with a few things in his adoptive home. "It's really like a European city, which I'm happy about. Over the course of the season I always get a little homesick, but it seems like here in Montreal, that won't happen," shared Tatar, who represented his country at the 2014 Olympics, four IIHF World Championships, and the World Junior Championships in both 2009 and 2010. "The city reminds me a lot of home." The shifty winger landed in Montreal just in time for the first day of training camp, and he brought a gust of fresh air along with him to his new NHL home - along with a penchant for lighting the lamp. After spending seven years in Hockeytown with Detroit followed by a short stint in the NHL's newest hotbed in Vegas, Tatar is accustomed to playing under a spotlight, but he's looking forward to taking things up a notch with hockey's most storied franchise.

" It's always fun to play for an Original Six team. It's something amazing, and it's an honor, for sure. You just feel the hockey around you; you take it in a little bit of a different way than with other teams," he described. "It's the No. 1 priority here. I think the players know that; they want to give the fans everything they have. Guys are really happy they have the opportunity to play here. " Lessons learned Despite the promise and positivity Tatar brings, he's not far removed from a short but trying period in his career. After he was traded to Vegas at last season's trade deadline, the 27-year-old managed just four goals and a pair of assists in the final 20 games of the season, and suited up for just eight postseason contests during the Golden Knights' deep playoff run. Tatar has previously admitted that making the transition after being traded for the first time in his career was more difficult than he had expected. While things didn't go as planned for him in the desert, he left Vegas armed with some of the most important lessons he's learned as an NHLer. "I would do some things differently, that's for sure. After being traded for the first time, you learn some stuff. Especially at the trade deadline, it's just everything is moving, the season is continuing, you don't have much time to settle. But it was a great experience, and in the end, we went to the [Stanley Cup] Finals," said Tatar, who scored the opening goal in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals against the Winnipeg Jets. "It was an amazing run. Now is a little different, to be traded before camp started, because you're starting from a baseline. You get to know guys before camp, so I would say it's a lot easier. With the experience I had before, it's a little different for me this time. I feel more comfortable than I was before. It's a new chapter and a new start." One familiar face who helped roll out the welcome mat when he arrived was Tomas Plekanec, who was previously one of Tatar's biggest rivals on the international stage and in Original Six showdowns between Detroit and Montreal. Habs fans should have no fear, however; old enemies can become fast friends when they're both wearing bleu-blanc-rouge.

"Pleky is Czech, I'm Slovak, you get to play against each other a lot. He's highly competitive, which is great for a team," underlined Tatar. "He's a great teammate. When you're battling against guys who are highly competitive, this kind of stuff happens on the ice. It's just good hockey. " Those first meetings are always funny. You smile, but as soon as you find out more about him...he's a great guy. I get to sit next to him in the locker room, too, which is funny. We're becoming good friends. " Scoring success In his conference call with media following the trade to Montreal, Tatar made a rather bold statement, saying he would like to show that he could potentially score 30 goals this season. But the claim wasn't completely out of left field. In 2014-15, Tatar lit the lamp 29 times and added 27 assists. And though he prefers to credit his teammates for the haul, Tatar believes with the right ingredients in place, he's capable of repeating the feat.