Eurolanche

Avs Host Leafs In Pre-Holiday Rematch

The Colorado Avalanche hosts the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night in what will be the team's last home contest before the holiday break and the final match of a two-game season series with the Leafs.

It's also the first half of a back-to-back set for the Avalanche, which plays the Chicago Blackhawks in the Windy City on Friday night. Colorado is 2-2-0 in the first game of a back-to-back this year and 2-2-0 in the second.

Last Time Out

The Avalanche closed out a two-game road trip with a 2-0 loss to the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday night, the sixth time this season Colorado has been shut out. Semyon Varlamov made 31 saves, but the Avalanche couldn't muster any offense to support him, putting just 18 shots on net.

Toronto lost to the Anaheim Ducks 3-2 at home on Monday night. Anaheim took a 2-1 lead early in the third period, but Nazem Kadri tied it up midway through the frame. The Leafs allowed a power-play goal at 13:08 of the period, ultimately falling 3-2. Toronto outshot Anaheim 35-28, but allowed two power-play markers in the loss.

Last Time They Met

Semyon Varlamov's spectacular effort led the Avalanche to a 3-1 win just 11 days ago in Toronto. Varlamov's 51 saves was his third 50+ save effort of his career. The Avs were 2-for-4 on the power play with Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon each scoring man-advantage goals and Blake Comeau potting a shorthanded empty-net tally late in the third period to seal the win.

What to Watch For

A Shot Mentality

The Avs enter Thursday's contest looking to find more of a spark offensively. Colorado ranks 28th in the league in shots per game with 28.1 and last in goals with 65.

"I think offensively, it feels like we're looking for the perfect play a little too much. I know at times it feels like you're throwing away pucks when you're throwing them at net, but when you have 15 shots after the first two periods, you're not going to lose anything by throwing pucks at the net," Avalanche captain Gabe Landeskog said after Colorado's 4-1 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Sunday. "We got to start having more of a shot mentality. We've talked about it before, but right now we're being a little too stubborn as far as choosing our shots. We got play more toward the net and throw some more pucks at the net."

Special Teams

The Avalanche scored two power-play goals in the last clash with Toronto, but has not tallied a man-advantage goal at home since Dec. 1 against Columbus. Colorado's power play ranks 22nd in the league with a 15.7 percent success rate, but hasn't clicked at Pepsi Center, where it ranks 28th with conversion coming just 12 percent of the time. Toronto's penalty kill ranks 13th in the NHL and has been successful in 82 percent of times shorthanded.

Player to Watch

Colorado: Center Matt Duchene

Duchene ranks second in the league in faceoff win percentage, having won 62.2 percent of his 286 faceoffs taken. That puts him on pace for his best season yet in faceoff win percentage.

Toronto: Center Auston Matthews

Avalanche fans will get their first look at the rookie phenom who was drafted No. 1 overall in 2016. Matthews ranks second among the league's rookies with 15 goals and 24 points.

The Details

Puck drop for Toronto's only visit to Pepsi Center this season is at 7 p.m. MT, and tickets are still available. The game can be seen live on Altitude TV and fans can listen on Altitude Sports Radio AM950 or online at ColoradoAvalanche.com.

--by Danielle Bernstein for ColoradoAvalanche.com--