Avalanche at Devils
The Colorado Avalanche begin a three-game trip to greater New York City on Saturday when they meet the New Jersey Devils after recording their signature victory of the season. Colorado comes off a 7-3 win over defending Stanley Cup champion St. Louis on Thursday, snapping a six-game slide against the first-place Blues and moving to within six points of the top spot in the Central Division.
"Today was a good start in the right direction," Avalanche goalie Philipp Grubauer told reporters after making 24 saves to help Colorado snap a three-game losing streak. "Everybody was going. We need that. ... It was a good statement game for us. We need to keep collecting points and playing the right way. You miss a point here and there, it's going to cost you in the end." Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon is third in the league with 62 points and fourth in goals with 25 after recording a goal and three assists versus St. Louis, and has four tallies along with nine points in his last five games. New Jersey returns home with a season-high three-game winning streak and is 5-2-1 since Taylor Hall was traded after a 2-1 victory over the Islanders in New York on Thursday with the Devils center Nico Hischier telling the media: "We are playing with confidence and we are making plays. From one guy to the last guy, everybody digs in." Colorado has won three straight meetings after a 3-1 victory Dec. 13 behind a goal and an assist from MacKinnon.
TIME: 7 p.m. ET. TV: Altitude 2, MSG
ABOUT THE AVALANCHE (24-13-4): There's a huge drop off in points after MacKinnon as defenseman Cale Makar has 31 - second-most among league rookies - after registering a goal and an assist versus St. Louis. Joonas Donskoi on Thursday scored his 14th goal of the season, matching his career set in 2017-18 and equaled in 2018-19 with San Jose, and is third on the club with 29 points. Nazem Kadri, who has scored three of his 15 goals in the last two games, is scheduled to play his 600th NHL contest Saturday.
ABOUT THE DEVILS (15-19-6): Hischier (24 points) has scored in three of his last four games and boasts six points during that span. Kyle Palmieri recorded six points in his last five games and leads the team in goals (15) and points (28). Mackenzie Blackwood has won three straight starts and is 4-0-1 with a .922 save percentage in his last five contests.
OVERTIME
1. Grubauer is 3-0-0 with a 1.67 goals-against average and .933 save percentage in his career against New Jersey.
2. Devils C Jack Hughes, the No. 1 pick in the 2019 draft, will miss his second straight game with an upper-body injury.
3. The Avalanche are 5-for-9 on the power play in their last two games while the penalty-killing unit has allowed one goal in each of the last four contests.