Avalanche at Coyotes
The Colorado Avalanche are scary enough 5-on-5, but when they get the NHL's No. 1 power play going with the likes of Mikko Rantanen, Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog displaying their immense talents, watch out. Colorado, which is 9-for-13 with the man advantage over its last five games, completes a stretch of three straight road contests Friday against the Arizona Coyotes.
"Execution has been there," Avalanche coach Jared Bednar told reporters. "Our guys are hungry to score on the power play. We got a lot of talent, especially now that both units are contributing." Rantanen, MacKinnon and Landeskog have combined for 13 points (four goals) in the last two games - a 7-3 victory over Los Angeles on Wednesday and a 4-3 overtime win against Anaheim on Sunday - including three goals and seven assists on a power play that's clicking at 32.9 percent. Arizona lost to Vegas 3-2 in overtime on Wednesday, falling to 2-4-2 after a promising 7-5-0 start to the season. The Coyotes, however, will provide Colorado's power play with a stern challenge as they lead the league in penalty-killing at 91.9 percent.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, Altitude2 (Colorado), FS Arizona Plus
ABOUT THE AVALANCHE (11-6-4): MacKinnon (team-high 14 goals, 31 points) was runner-up to New Jersey's Taylor Hall for the 2018 Hart Trophy and Rantanen is well on his way to becoming a finalist this season. The 22-year-old Finn, who was the 10th overall pick in the 2015 draft, leads the NHL with 34 points and 26 assists while Landeskog (13 goals, 23 points) is on pace for a career season. Colorado also is getting support from its secondary lines as Carl Soderberg (seven goals, 15 assists) notched two assists on Wednesday, giving him two goals and five assists in his last six games.
ABOUT THE COYOTES (9-9-2): Derek Stepan scored twice on Wednesday, including once with a man advantage to provide a boost to the NHL's sixth-worst power play (15.6 percent). Stepan and Brad Richardson share the team lead in goals with six, while Clayton Keller and Michael Grabner have five apiece. Keller leads the team with 13 points after recording an assist on Wednesday for his first point in four contests.
OVERTIME
1. Arizona RW Josh Archibald is eligible to return after serving a two-game suspension for an illegal head shot on Nashville's Ryan Hartman on Nov. 15.
2. Rantanen was fined $2,000 by the league Wednesday for embellishment - his second offense - during a Nov. 14 game versus Boston.
3. The teams have split the last 10 meetings, with the Avalanche prevailing in the last encounter in Arizona 6-2 on Dec. 23, 2017 for their sixth victory in their last eight games at Gila River Arena.