Eurolanche

Preview: Avalanche - Oilers

Season series: Edmonton Oilers forward Taylor Hall had a hat trick and a four-point game in an 8-2 rout of the Colorado Avalanche on Dec. 5, 2013, but the Avalanche responded to take the next two games by a combined 8-3 score. Defenseman Tyson Barrie scored a power-play goal in each of the Colorado wins.

Oilers team scope: Edmonton defenseman Keith Aulie was suspended for two games Thursday after he received a five-minute major and game misconduct for an illegal check to the head of Calgary Flames forward Matt Stajan in a 4-3 overtime loss on Wednesday. Forward Tyler Pitlick sustained a lacerated spleen and remained in Calgary for evaluation. Forward Anton Lander was recalled Thursday from Oklahoma City of the American Hockey League. Forward Benoit Pouliot, who sustained a broken foot against the New Jersey Devils on Nov. 21, could return to the lineup. "I feel great and I think my conditioning is really good," Pouliot said. "It's just a matter of getting up to speed." Edmonton defeated the Los Angeles Kings 3-2 in a shootout Tuesday and has at least a point in consecutive games for the first time since the end of November.

Avalanche team scope: Coach Patrick Roy is tweaking his lines, according to the Denver Post. Matt Duchene will center Gabriel Landeskog and Daniel Briere. Nathan MacKinnon moves to right wing on a line with John Mitchell and Maxime Talbot. "We'd like to see him challenging the defensemen more (wide)," Roy told the Post regarding MacKinnon. "It's something we're talking a lot about, and he knows he needs to challenge." Ryan O'Reilly scored with 19.9 seconds left in overtime and Colorado began what could be a critical stretch to its season with a 4-3 win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday. The Avalanche, last in the Central Division after winning it last season, started a three-game homestand and a run of five of six at Pepsi Center. Rookie forward Borna Rendulic, the first Croatian-trained player in the NHL, scored his first career goal. "You can tell he's a smart player. You can put him anywhere and he can have success," O'Reilly said.

-- by Brian Hunter for NHL.com --