It shouldn't come a surprise, but Avalanche coach
Patrick Roy said after practice Friday that
Calvin Pickard will start again in goal Saturday against Nashville at the Pepsi Center.
Pickard, who has won his past three starts, made 38 saves Thursday in the Avalanche's 3-2 win against Florida. He was under siege in the third period when he stopped all 24 shots he faced to break Roy's Avalanche record for saves in a period by one.
But Roy said he hasn't lost faith in
Semyon Varlamov, who he said remains the team's No. 1 goalie.
"(Pickard's) confident, he's playing big in his net," Roy said. "But we know we're going to use Varly. I like what Varly's been doing, he works hard at practice. He cares and he wants to do well. He's at the right mindset and I'm confident that eventually he'll be back in net.
"I didn't wake up yesterday or the day before and say, 'Yeah! I'm not going to use Varly, it's so cool.' No, I'm not feeling that way. I love Varly, Varly is our No. 1 goalie and he remains our No. 1 goalie. Unfortunately (for him), Pick's playing well and he's not. But I know Varly will be back."
Defenseman
Eric Gelinas (back issue) didn't practice Friday and won't play against the Predators.
*****
In case you missed it, here's my
JAROMIR JAGR feature. He collected his 1,850th NHL point with a first-period assist in Thursday's game to tie
Gordie Howe for third place in league history.
I talked to
Jarome Iginla on Friday about Jagr, who at 44 is six years older, and about his own play over the past few weeks. He assisted on
Matt Duchene's winning goal Thursday and has 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in the past 13 games.
"I was impressed (with Jagr)," Iginla said. "I thought he was moving even better than last year. It's good to see -- good to see when you're not playing him. He takes really good care of himself. You always know his hands are going to be there, but his legs are strong."
Jagr, who is 6-feet-3 and 230 pounds, was working out at the Pepsi Center after the game.
"I've played against him for a long time and he's a force, a very big guy," Iginla said. "With his reach and stuff, you can see why he's the third highest (scorer) ever. Pretty cool. It's inspiring, fun to watch on the highlights."
Iginla seems to have emerged from the funk he was in earlier. He has 19 goals -- 12 on power plays -- and 20 assists with 16 games remaining.
"You know what? I still feel fine," said Iginla, who is playing on a line with
Mikhail Grigorenko and Duchene. "I think we've had a lot of good chances over the last four or five games and we'll just try to keep getting better and better.
"I've been feeling a lot better. I've had some tough stretches this year for sure. It's exciting to be in this (playoff) push. Every game in the NHL is always fun and the playoffs are the most fun, but these games are the next best."
Iginla said the hunt for a postseason berth has energized him.
"The intensity picks up," he said. "Even the teams that are starting to be eliminated, they relax or whatever and start getting better too. I really enjoy these games. I was in a funk there for a couple months and I found myself in a much different role and I'm excited to be back playing in a role with Dutchie and Grigo and trying to make the most of it."
Roy is impressed with how Iginla handled being demoted and has worked his way back to a top line.
"We put him on the fourth line and we had different conversations," Roy said. "I give him credit for it. He worked really hard at the practices. He's a proud person and his game's much better. I like the way he's been competing, he's around the net, and I think he's the guy that can help this team."
No morning skates Saturday for an afternoon game, so here's the Avalanche lineup:
FORWARDS
Mikhail Grigorenko - Matt Duchene - Jarome Iginla
Gabriel Landeskog - Nathan MacKinnon - Mikkel Boedker
Shawn Matthias - Carl Soderberg - Blake Comeau
Cody McLeod - John Mitchell - Jack Skille
DEFENSE
Francois Beauchemin - Erik Johnson
Nick Holden - Tyson Barrie
Chris Bigras - Andrew Bodnarchuk
GOALIES
Calvin Pickard
Semyon Varlamov
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