Avalanche at Senators
The Colorado Avalanche attempt to redeem themselves after a disastrous homestand when they begin a three-game road trip Thursday against the Ottawa Senators. Colorado is clinging to the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference after an 0-3-1 stretch at Pepsi Center that concluded Tuesday with a 3-1 setback against Vancouver.
Nathan MacKinnon has notched a point in four of his last six games to pull into a tie with Matt Duchene for the scoring lead on the Avalanche with 43. The Senators also are coming off a 3-1 loss, with Wednesday's defeat at Detroit denying them their first three-game winning streak since they captured four in a row from Nov. 19-25. Zack Smith has scored in each of his last three contests to raise his season total to 12 goals - two shy of his career high set in 2011-12. Ottawa, which trails Pittsburgh by five points for the second wild card in the East, is looking to complete a sweep of the two-game season series after posting a 5-3 victory at Colorado on Nov. 25.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, Altitude (Colorado), TSN5, RDS (Ottawa)
ABOUT THE AVALANCHE (27-25-4): Coach Patrick Roy believes hitting the road may be just what his team needs to snap out of its current funk. "I think it's good timing," Roy told the team's website. "Seems like on the road, we're scoring more, and we take leads and play with more confidence." Francois Beauchemin ranks second on the team among defensemen with 26 points, his highest total since registering that amount in 2009-10 with Toronto.
ABOUT THE SENATORS (25-24-6): Dion Phaneuf made his debut for Ottawa on Wednesday, registering two hits and a minus-1 rating in 21 minutes, 42 seconds of ice time a day after being acquired from Toronto in a nine-player deal. "I enjoyed every minute of it, except the outcome," the 30-year-old, who was paired with Cody Ceci, told The Toronto Star. Captain Erik Karlsson notched an assist against Detroit to reach the 60-point plateau for the third straight season and climb within one of Dallas' Jamie Benn for second in league scoring.
OVERTIME
1. Senators C Shane Prince scored two of his three career goals against the Avalanche in their first meeting this season.
2. Colorado LW Cody McLeod's next game will be the 606th of his career, moving him past Steven Finn for eighth place on the franchise list.
3. Ottawa has won its last two home contests, outscoring its opponents 11-2.