Back in their home rink following a 3-2 win Saturday in the Lake Tahoe outdoor game, the Avalanche close out their four-game mini-series with the Vegas Golden Knights on Monday at Ball Arena.
The Avalanche have won the past two games in the series, have a 2-1 edge in the first three games and are looking to make it three of four.
Here are the
GAME NOTES.
The Avalanche (9-4-1) trail Vegas (10-4-1) by two points in the West Division while playing one fewer game.
They’ll wear the Reverse Retro uniforms they debuted Saturday.
“The best in the league in our opinion,” defenseman
Devon Toews said after the morning skate. “They look great, we like wearing them and we’re 1-0 in them, so hopefully we can keep that going.”
The Avalanche also will use the same lineup.
“It’s a big swing game for the series,” coach
Jared Bednar said. “I’ve liked the three games we’ve played against them; we’ve come out on the right end of it twice and if we can find a way to get tonight’s game and go 3-1 it’s a big difference than being 2-2.
“Breaking it down all year, .500 isn’t good enough. If you want to finish at the top of the standings you have to find a way to win these series.”
Vegas coach
Pete DeBoer called the two points up for grabs critical points.
“When you’re playing a team like this, they’re four-point games,” he said. “They’re important points. For me, we want to continue and build on some of the things we did in the second and third period the other night in Tahoe. We want to build on those things and just put in a solid effort on the road here and the results will take care of themselves.”
The Avalanche are allowing 2.07 goals per game, best in the NHL. Vegas is second at 2.20, so expect another close, grind-it-out contest despite the offensive firepower the teams boast.
The Avalanche won the past two games by 3-2 scores after losing 1-0 in the opener. They’ve won five consecutive home games, outscoring the opposition 23-6; Saturday’s game was considered a home game. They’ve outscored teams 20-4 in the past four games at Ball Arena.
Bednar said defenseman
Dennis Gilbert will miss 4-6 weeks to recover from facial surgery. He was injured in a fight with Vegas’
Keegan Kolesar when the teams played last Tuesday.
The lineup:
FORWARDS
Andre Burakovsky -- Nathan MacKinnon -- Mikko Rantanen
Brandon Saad -- Nazem Kadri -- Joonas Donskoi
Gabriel Landeskog -- Tyson Jost -- J.T. Compher
Valeri Nichushkin -- Pierre-Edouard Bellemare -- Matt Calvert
DEFENSE
Devon Toews -- Cale Makar
Samuel Girard -- Ryan Graves
Bowen Byram -- Conor Timmins
GOALIES
Philipp Grubauer
Adam Werner
Colorado Avalanche Blogger •Avalanche Insider • 
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