3 reasons it's not over for Predators without Johansen

It's no secret: losing Ryan Johansen deeply hurts the Nashville Predators' chances of advancing to the Stanley Cup Final.

The 24-year-old center underwent thigh surgery to repair a mysterious injury suffered in Game 4, ending a 14-game playoff run in which he led the club with 13 points and drove the bus for an impressive Predators top line.

Related: Poll: Can the Predators beat the Ducks without Ryan Johansen?

That said, it's now a best of three between the Preds and the Anaheim Ducks, and even though Nashville's lost its top offensive player, by no means is the series over.

Here are three reasons why.

1. His linemates

Johansen is just one piece of a truly terrifying top line that features Viktor Arvidsson and Filip Forsberg.

Arvidsson's notched 10 points in the postseason thus far, and has five points in his last three games. Forsberg has accrued 12 points in the playoffs, and has scored a goal in four consecutive contests.

Forsberg may have to shift to center in Johansen's absence, which would limit his time and space as he goes against Ducks shutdown pivot Ryan Kesler. It will be a tough test, but Forsberg and Arvidsson are legitimate offensive threats, and should still be able to generate a strong attack.

2. Kings of the bounce back

In three games following losses this postseason, Nashville is 3-0, allowing a grand total of three goals.

In those contests, goaltender Pekka Rinne owns a save percentage of .955. While his series versus the Ducks hasn't been his best, consecutive poor performances have been few and far between for the Finnish netminder of late.

And although the series is locked at two games apiece, Nashville has mostly controlled play through four contests, out-attempting Anaheim 285-211 in all situations so far.

If the Predators can stick to what they've been doing all postseason long, heading back to Music City with a 3-2 series lead is certainly attainable.

3. The blue line

While Johansen is the Predators' most important piece up front, the foundation of this club is its depth on the blue line.

Roman Josi, Ryan Ellis, and P.K. Subban occupy spots two through four in the defenseman scoring race this postseason, while Mattias Ekholm rounds out the best D corps in the playoffs.

Through 14 games, the Predators are allowing 28.6 shots per game - the lowest mark among teams still playing - and their 1.79 goals against per contest leads the playoffs.

Nashville wasn't able to dig itself out of an ugly first period in Game 4, ultimately dropping the decision in overtime before learning Johansen was out of the picture.

Now the Predators undoubtedly face a tougher road to earn a chance to play for the Stanley Cup, but don't count them out just yet.