Avalanche at Flyers
Semyon Varlamov still may be perspiring on Saturday as the Colorado Avalanche play the opener of what officially is billed as a two-game road trip against the Philadelphia Flyers. A former Vezina Trophy finalist, Varlamov rebounded from getting eviscerated by Vegas to set an Avalanche record for regular-season saves with a career-high 57 in his team's 5-3 win over Carolina on Thursday.
"I feel not bad, actually," the 29-year-old told reporters. "Sometimes you face 30 shots and you're exhausted after the game. You never know how your body is reacting." Colorado lost both encounters versus Philadelphia last season without Varlamov on the ice, but owns a 7-6-1 mark on the road in the all-time series. Captain Claude Giroux notched a trio of assists in the Flyers' two wins over the Avalanche last season and scored and set up a goal in the team's 2-0 win over St. Louis on Thursday. The 29-year-old Ontario native has collected 13 points (six goals, seven assists) in his past 10 games while fellow forward Sean Couturier boasts 14 (eight goals, six assists) of his team-leading 17 points in that same stretch.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, Altitude 2 (Colorado), NBCSN Philadelphia
ABOUT THE AVALANCHE (7-5-0): Nathan MacKinnon has turned his season around with five points (two goals, three assists) in his past two games after mustering just one (a goal) in his previous six. The top overall pick of the 2013 draft, MacKinnon has been limited to just a goal and an assist in seven career encounters versus Philadelphia. Carl Soderberg scored and set up a goal on Thursday to improve his four-game total to four points (one goal, three assists).
ABOUT THE FLYERS (7-6-1): Michal Neuvirth turned aside all 33 shots he faced versus the Blues as he, like Varlamov, rebounded from an abysmal performance (five goals) in his previous outing. The 29-year-old has yielded two tallies or fewer in four of his five starts this season, with impressive work being supplied by 20-year-old Ivan Provorov as he presides over a relatively green defense. Provorov tied a franchise record with 10 blocked shots on Thursday and logged 27:08 of ice time, marking the fourth straight game that he has eclipsed 27 minutes.
OVERTIME
1. Philadelphia RW Jake Voracek did not have a shot in his last contest and has been held off the scoresheet in each of his last three after recording three straight multi-point performances.
2. Colorado will visit the New York Islanders on Sunday before embarking on a six-day trip to Sweden for the NHL's Global Series.
3. Flyers RW Wayne Simmonds, who notched his 200th career assist on Thursday, scored three goals in two games against the Avalanche last season.