April 1st, 2015, the Regina Pats shut-out the Swift Current Broncos 4-0, sending both the club and it's fans home from the Credit Union iPlex and into the offseason without a playoff victory.

That night, the Pats put the finishing touches on a four game sweep of Swift Current in the opening round of the 2015 WHL playoffs.

It was also the last playoff game Broncos defenceman Max Lajoie and the team have taken part in.

"My first year we got swept, which wasn't the best feeling not getting a win, and last year not making the playoffs was really upsetting," he said.

"I'm really excited to play in the playoffs this year."

Lajoie and the Broncos will return to the playoffs on Friday for the first time since the defeat to Regina as they get set to battle the Moose Jaw Warriors.

Seeking their first playoff series victory since the 2007-08 season, Lajoie says he and the team are feeling confident about their chances against the East Division's second seed.

"The mojo in the room right now is really good," he said.

"The guys are really confident and we are having fun. We know what we need to do to get through these playoffs so we just want to do that."

Over the course of the regular season the Broncos went 2-4 against their Trans-Canada rival, picking up a 6-1 win on December 27th and most recently, a 2-1 victory in front of a sell-out crowd at the iPlex last week.

For Lajoie, he says they know what they have to do to be successful against the Warriors having played them six times this season and twice last week.

"Just being on them every game. We have to make sure to hit them and keep up with their speed, but not give them too much respect because we know we can beat them," he said.

"We gotta give them some wacks, hit them when we can and just make sure we make their game hell, and we are really excited to do that."

Under the direction of first year Head Coach Manny Viveiros, the Broncos not only returned to the playoffs this season, but also increased their point total from 58 in 2015-16 to 88 in 2016-17.

The point total is the most Swift Current has accumulated in a season since 2007-08.

"I think there has just been a commitment to the team and we've been doing what we have to do every game," Lajoie said in regard to the teams improvement.

"I know some games we were off, but we just had to keep working hard, and I think that is what we did which helped us improve a lot."

One of the biggest adjustments the team has made during the season was their penalty kill.

A struggling aspect of their game for most of the season, the Broncos have killed off 82.22% of opponent's power-plays over their last 13 games, and 87.17% of opponent power-plays if you eliminate the 10-5 season finale loss to Moose Jaw.

"We have worked on it a lot," Lajoie said about the penalty kill.

"We have watched a lot of video, we practised it, and it has come a long way. It wasn't the best, but I think we have improved a little bit so I'm really excited to get that going in the playoffs too."

Games one and two of the best of seven series will be played Friday and Saturday in Moose Jaw, with games three and four in Swift Current on Tuesday and Wednesday.