Philip Tomasino sat hunched over in front of his locker stall, violently yanking the white laces from his black CCM skates.

Scores of sweat pored from the Nashville Predators center's pores. He'd just come off the ice after the team's morning skate before Saturday night's loss against the Arizona Coyotes.

That Tomasino wasn't among the last players in the locker room was the good news.

That meant the 22-year-old who once was traded for 10 players in the OHL most likely would be playing that night, which he did.

That meant the 2019 first-round draft pick likely wasn't going to be among healthy scratches, who are last off the ice. Again. Like he had been six times during the first 13 games of the season.

"I was scratched a few times my first year," he said. "I think I'm used to it by now. Obviously it's not ideal to be in that situation, but it is what it is, right?"

Philip Tomasino always trying to prove himself

Not being a healthy scratch doesn't mean Tomasino's approach or mindset is going to change.

"I want to prove that I belong, you know?" he said. "I don't want to be in that situation again. That's the message that I need to continue to prove to our coaches, show them that.

"I know I belong here."

He just wasn't showing it during the first four games of the season.

Tomasino managed two shots on goal and one assist in that span. He didn't win a faceoff in four attempts. He soon found himself dressing in a suit and tie before games rather than his uniform.

He continued this routine for four games in a row, returned for one game, then sat two more.

"They're never happy, or I'd be worried if they were happy about the conversation," first-year Predators coach Andrew Brunette said of how he handles scratching players. "It's most important that you communicate it to them, not have to guess."

Tomasino: 'Good for me to go through'

Tomasino hardly was used to being scratched before coming to the NHL.

He had five goals and 13 assists in 31 games last season while playing 15 minutes, 36 seconds per. He did not make the team out of training camp.

He had 11 goals and 21 assists in 76 games in 2020-21 while playing 11:32 per. He did not make the team out of training camp.

He made the team out of training camp this season. And ...

Tomasino flashed a sign of life Thursday when he scored his first goal of the season during a loss against the Winnipeg Jets.

"I thought he competed as hard as he has this year," Brunette said. "You start competing like that, one goes in, maybe you say: 'If I work this hard every game you'll get an opportunity to score again instead of, I want to score and work hard comes second.'

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"The compete and the work comes first, the skill comes second. He's had a little bit of a hard time. ... Hopefully that's a good springboard for him."

As far as Tomasino is concerned, such growing pains are part of the process.

"It's been tough, but I think it's been good for me to go through," he said.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville Predators' Philip Tomasino has plenty to prove after scratches