The Colorado Avalanche had a chance to rest up and get healthier, and it is paying off for them.
Colorado has played just two games in the past 10 days, and that extra time allowed forward Jonathan Drouin to heal from his upper-body injury. Drouin should be in the lineup when Colorado hosts the Winnipeg Jets in Denver on Tuesday night.
The Avalanche hosting a game on New Year’s Eve is a regular occurrence. They’ve been scheduled at home on this date every full season since the 2011-12 campaign, with the 2021 contest against Dallas being postponed.
Colorado is feeling confident after an inconsistent start to the season. The Avalanche have won four in a row and nine of their past 12, with eight of those nine wins coming with Scott Wedgewood or Mackenzie Blackwood in net.
Colorado has a stronger goaltending tandem since acquiring Wedgewood and Blackwood in separate deals and the lines are stronger with Artturi Lehkonen and Drouin back in the lineup.
Drouin has played just five games this season due to upper-body injuries but fully practiced on Monday. He has not played since Nov. 23.
“He adds a lot, especially to our power play,” Nathan MacKinnon said of Drouin. “More of a guy who can make plays from every position. He can play all five positions, and I think it’s important to have a guy like that, especially in the middle. He’ll bring a lot of speed and dynamic play to his line, too. He’s just a good player.”
MacKinnon leads the NHL in points (60), Mikko Rantanen is fourth in the league with 53 and Cale Makar leads all defensemen with 45.
Winnipeg hasn’t had the luxury of rest like the Avalanche. Tuesday night will be the third game in four nights for the Jets, including Monday’s 3-0 home win over the Nashville Predators.
Winnipeg has won four in a row and nine of its past 12 games (9-2-1).
The Jets don’t have the reigning MVP like Colorado’s MacKinnon but they do have talent, led by winger Kyle Connor’s 51 points and Mark Scheifele’s 44. Both players have 22 goals. The Jets also have one of the best goaltenders in the NHL in Connor Hellebuyck, who leads the league in goals-against average (2.00), save percentage (.930), wins (24) and shutouts (five).
Hellebuyck was in net for the past two games so it is likely backup Eric Comrie will be in net against the Avalanche.
No matter who is in the crease, Winnipeg is confident in its ability to win tight games, like its 1-0 victory over Colorado on Nov. 7. The Jets also can execute a rally, as they did when they fell behind Ottawa by two goals on Saturday night before scoring the final four of the game.
“I think that’s one of the things where this group has really grown over the last few years, is that as we get down two we don’t panic, we don’t start cheating, we don’t start trying to do things that are away from sort of our structure,” Jets coach Scott Arniel said.
–Field Level Media
