Colorado Avalanche (8-1-5) @ Edmonton Oilers (6-5-4)
8 p.m. MT | Rogers Place | Watch: Altitude2, KTVD-20, Altitude+ | Listen: Altitude Sports Radio (950 AM)
The Avalanche travels to Canada for a two-game road trip starting with a contest against the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday. This is the first of three meetings between the teams, as they’ll play in Denver on March 10th and in Edmonton on April 13th.
Latest Result (COL): TBL 2, COL 3
Latest Result (EDM): EDM 3, DAL 4 (SO)
Defended Home Ice
Victor Olofsson scored two goals to help the Avalanche defeat the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday at Ball Arena. Ross Colton scored against his former team while Scott Wedgewood stopped 22 of the 24 shots he faced for Colorado. The Lightning opened the scoring at 1:37 of the first period when Nikita Kucherov scored a wraparound goal. At 13:51 of the opening frame, Olofsson tied the game on the power play with his fourth goal of the season when he finished off a rebound from the right doorstep. Olofsson gave the Avs a 2-1 lead with his fifth goal of the season at 4:08 of the middle frame via a one-timer from the slot. Colton doubled Colorado’s lead at 5:21 of the middle frame with his second tally of the season via a backhand shot on a partial breakaway. Brayden Point cut Tampa Bay’s deficit in half with a backhand shot off the rush at 3:32 of the third period. In the win, the Avs’ special teams shined by scoring a power-play goal and killing off all three penalties it took.
Leading the Way
Nate the Great
MacKinnon is tied for third in the league league in goals (10) and tied for sixth in points (20).
All Hail Cale
Cale Makar leads NHL defensemen in points (18) and assists (14) while being tied for second in goals (4). Among all skaters, he’s tied for fourth in assists.
Marty Party
Martin Necas is tied for eighth in the NHL in goals (9).
Series History
In 134 previous regular-season games against the Oilers, the Avalanche has a record of 73-49-12. The teams have met three times in the playoffs, with the Avs winning the 1997 Western Conference Semifinals in five games and the 2022 Western Conference Final in four contests.
Defeat in Dallas
The Oilers lost to the Dallas Stars 4-3 in a shootout on Tuesday at American Airlines Center. In the first period, Vasily Podkolzin put the Oilers on the board first at 3:40 before Leon Draisaitl doubled Edmonton’s lead at 7:07 with a power-play goal. In the middle frame, Mikko Rantanen put Dallas on the board with a power-play goal at 9:10. Connor McDavid gave the Oilers a 3-1 lead at 7:51 of the third period. Rantanen scored his second goal of the contest to make it 3-2 at 8:37 and Miro Heiskanen tied the game at 12:20. In the shootout, Jason Robertson scored for Dallas in the first round, Draisaitl tallied for Edmonton in the second and Wyatt Johnston won the game for the Stars in the third.
Opportunistic Against the Oilers
MacKinnon has posted 35 points (11g/24a) in 28 regular-season games against the Oilers in addition to five points (3g/2a) in four playoff contests.
In 12 regular-season contests against Edmonton, Makar has registered 11 points (3g/8a) along with nine points (2g/7a) in four playoff games.
Artturi Lehkonen has recorded 18 points (8g/10a) in 28 regular-season games against the Oilers in addition to six points (2g/4a) in four playoff games.
Edmonton’s Elite
McDavid leads the Oilers in points (21) and assists (17) while being tied for third in goals (4).
Draisaitl leads Edmonton in goals (10), is second in points (17) and fourth in assists (7).
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is second on the Oilers in goals (5) and assists (11) while being third in points (16).
A Numbers Game
90.5%
Colorado has killed 90.5% of the penalties it has taken, which is the second-best mark in the league.
699
MacKinnon has posted 699 (269g/430a) even-strength points and is one point from becoming the second player in franchise history to post 700 and joining Joe Sakic, who posted 961.
2.50
Colorado is allowing 2.50 goals per game, which are tied for the third fewest in the NHL.
Quote That Left a Mark
"I don't think we had our best jump. But we played with a real good conscious. We were committed on the defending side. We just weren't quite as quick on either side of the puck, offensively or defensively. So, [I'm] pretty proud of our guys because it seemed like it was a little bit of a grind tonight."
-- Avalanche Head Coach Jared Bednar on Tuesday’s win against the Lightning
