The Nashville Predators are set to face the Vancouver Canucks in the NHL playoffs, meeting in the postseason for the first time since 2011.

When the Predators and Canucks meet for Game 1 of their best-of-7 series on Sunday at Rogers Arena, each side will be looking to win a playoff round for the first time in several years.

The Canucks beat the St. Louis Blues in the first round of the 2020 playoffs, but lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in the second round. The Predators last won a series in 2018, beating the Colorado Avalanche in the first round but losing to the Winnipeg Jets in the following round.

Though the Canucks took the regular-season series 3-0, there's reason to believe this series will go the distance. Both teams have elite skaters, Vezina Trophy-caliber goaltenders, and momentum going into the playoffs.

Here's our scouting report and playoff series prediction.

Roman Josi, Quinn Hughes bring Norris Trophy battle to playoffs

Voting for this year's Norris Trophy will have concluded prior to Game 1, but two of the presumed finalists will be battling on the ice in this series.

Quinn Hughes, the Canucks' dynamic young captain, has been the league's leading Norris Trophy candidate all season. The 24-year-old blueliner has 17 goals and 74 assists in 81 games, leading all Vancouver skaters at almost 25 minutes per game. He's shown no signs of slowing down, scoring 11 points in the Canucks' last 10 games.

TICKETS: Nashville Predators playoff tickets vs Vancouver Canucks at Bridgestone Arena: How to buy

Roman Josi had a quiet start to the season, but is the NHL's highest-scoring defenseman since Jan. 1, scoring 56 points in his last 45 games. He leads all defensemen in goals (23), even-strength goals (15), and shots (268).

Watching two of the league's elite defensemen go head to head in the playoffs makes this series a must-watch.

Juuse Saros, Thatcher Demko: Vezina-worthy goaltending on display

Goaltending can win you a series, even if the rest of your team is struggling. In this matchup, both sides have goalies capable of stealing games.

Juuse Saros enters the playoffs as the Predators' top goaltender. In 2022, he was a Vezina Trophy finalist, finishing third in the race for the league's top goaltender. He finished fourth in Vezina voting last season, securing his place among the best netminders in the NHL.

This season, Saros struggled early. He lost nine of his first 15 starts with an .896 save percentage. But down the stretch, he's been much better, winning 15 of his final 20 games and posting a .916 save percentage. He has a 3-7 record in the playoffs, last appearing in the Predators' series against the Carolina Hurricanes in 2021.

SAROS LEGACY: The Nashville Predators are due in the Stanley Cup playoffs. So is Juuse Saros | Estes

Thatcher Demko is coming off an injury that kept him out of action for a month, but before that he was in conversation for the Vezina Trophy. He finished with a 35-14-2 record with a .918 save percentage. He's looking to improve upon his 2-1 playoff record, last appearing in the Canucks' qualifying round appearance in 2020.

Nashville Predators vs. Vancouver Canucks series prediction

Predators win series in six games over Canucks: Saros steals a road win in Vancouver, flipping home-ice advantage to Nashville. The Predators' top line with Filip Forsberg, Ryan O'Reilly, and Gustav Nyquist has been one of the most consistently dangerous lines in the league. Look for it to continue that dominance.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville Predators vs. Vancouver Canucks: NHL playoffs predictions