Today the Colorado Avalanche depart the friendly confines of home and embark on a four-game Canadian road trip during the coldest part of the year — pack your mittens.
A change of scenery is welcome, however,
as the Avalanche weren’t as successful as they’d hoped to be in a just concluded seven-game home stand where they went 3-2-2 ending with their ugliest loss dropping 7-3 to the Philadelphia Flyers. Colorado still leads the league by a wide margin, nine points to be exact, but the winning habits are starting to slip as boredom sets in along with some injury absences.
Enter the Toronto Maple Leafs who the Avalanche lost to 4-3 in overtime less than two weeks ago. This matinee matchup sets the perfect stage for revenge as the Avalanche hope to get back on track to close out the month and head into the Olympic break on a high note.
Colorado Avalanche (34-6-9)
The Opponent: Toronto Maple Leafs (24-18-9)
Time: 11:30 a.m.
Watch: ALT, NHL Network
Listen: Altitude Sports Radio KKSE-FM 92.5 FM
Colorado Avalanche
As several injuries have started to crop up, there’s been some lineup shuffling. Last game Colorado got back Joel Kiviranta but suddenly Ross Colton was day-to-day with a lower-body injury. Devon Toews might return on this road trip but he’s not likely for today, therefore Jack Ahcan is still on the roster. The extra forward merry-go-round still continues as Taylor Makar is still with the team and is expected to play in Toronto.
Projected Lineup
Victor Olofsson — Nathan MacKinnon — Martin Necas
Artturi Lehkonen — Brock Nelson — Valeri Nichushkin
Taylor Makar — Jack Drury — Gavin Brindley
Zakhar Bardakov — Parker Kelly — Joel Kiviranta
Sam Malinski — Cale Makar
Josh Manson — Brent Burns
Jack Ahcan — Samuel Girard
Mackenzie Blackwood
Isak Posch
Toronto Maple Leafs
Another team licking their wounds going into this matchup is Toronto as they had an embarrassing outing of their own at home on Friday night. The Mitch Marner homecoming didn’t go as planned in a 6-3 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights. Toronto hopes to stay relevant in the Atlantic division playoff race but are slipping into the abyss. The return of goaltender Anthony Stolarz from injury was supposed to buoy the team, we’ll see if there’s any positive momentum in this contest. William Nylander could return soon as well, the team has kept quiet about their star’s rehab progress.
Projected Lineup
Matias Maccelli — John Tavares — Matthew Knies
Bobby McMann — Auston Matthews — Max Domi
Easton Cowan — Nicolas Roy — Nicholas Robertson
Steven Lorentz — Scott Laughton — Calle Jarnkrok
Morgan Rielly — Brandon Carlo
Oliver Ekman-Larsson — Jake McCabe
Simon Benoit — Troy Stecher
Joseph Woll
Anthony Stolarz
Goaltenders
Both Scott Wedgewood and Mackenzie Blackwood are back in action after they each suffered minor injuries earlier this month. However, Wedgewood has stayed back in Denver for the time being as his wife delivered a baby a few days ago and Isak Posch was recalled to serve as backup. Blackwood’s last two starts since his return haven’t gone well but he will get a chance at redemption along with the rest of the team in today’s contest. For the Maple Leafs, perhaps the same is true as Stolarz’s return didn’t go so well and it’s Joseph Woll’s turn in net. With no morning skate it will all become clear in warmup.
