By the third bomb, P.K. Subban couldn’t contain himself.

Facing the St. Louis Blues in Game 1 of the second round, Subban delivered in just the kind of high-stakes contest he was acquired for. His first power-play blast was tipped by Colin Wilson on the lip of the crease, but most of the rink likely figured the goal was Subban’s when No. 76 slowly dropped to one knee and delivered a few deliberate fist pumps. The second tally was unmistakably his — another cannon from the point that cleanly beat Blues goalie Jake Allen. This time, Subban went with his signature move, pulling a pretend arrow from the quiver as he lazily glided through centre ice. While both celebrations met P.K.’s ornate standards, a certain spontaneity was lacking. That changed when Subban fired yet another rocket, this one caroming off Allen, then Preds forward Filip Forsberg before finding the net. All pre-packaged material was tossed as Subban snatched out his mouth guard, tilted his head back and let out a primal howl.

That three-point performance kicked off a six-game series win for the Preds, cementing the franchise’s first-ever trip to the Western Conference final. But even in the moments immediately after the berth was secured, there wasn’t a whiff of outward exuberance in the press box from David Poile, the only GM in the team’s history.

While the composed non-reaction is in line with Poile’s famously measured nature, he shares more genetic coding with Subban than most realize. The player’s go-for-broke mentality is central to Subban’s identity, but the fact the GM is fully capable of pushing in his chips as well often gets overlooked. A hockey lifer of the highest order, Poile has relied on a trusted network to build this trailblazing Predators squad. The man, like the team he runs, has absorbed his share of blows, with 2017 representing just his second conference final trip in 35 years as a general manager. No less staggering, however, is the fact that in all that time, through countless negotiations and excruciating decisions, Poile has seemingly failed to make a single enemy. That’s why, beyond the all-in citizens of a suddenly hip and exploding city, there are folks far and wide in the hockey world ready to high-five Poile and his Predators.