Looking to find more balanced scoring, Avalanche coach Jared Bednar will move Gabriel Landeskog from the top line, replacing him with Tyson Jost, to begin Thursday's game in Columbus.
The GAME NOTES.
Jost will be at left wing with Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen, with Landeskog skating on a line with rookies Alexander Kerfoot and J.T. Compher.
Bednar tinkered with the lines Tuesday in Chicago, a 2-1 overtime loss.
Also, Sven Andrighetto will replace Nail Yakupov in the lineup, skating on the fourth line with Dominic Toninato and Gabriel Bourque. Andrighetto missed 28 games with a leg injury he sustained Dec. 31 against the New York Islanders.
Semyon Varlamov will make his 10th consecutive start.
The teams are battling for playoff spots in their respective conferences.
The Avalanche have 77 points, same as Los Angeles, which has the second wild card in the West based on head-to-head play; the Kings won the only previous meeting with two games remaining between them.
The Blue Jackets have 73 points and have the second wild card in the East. They are two points ahead of Florida.
Backup Joonas Korpisalo will start for Columbus. He made 37 saves Tuesday in a 4-1 win against Vegas.
The Avalanche lineup:
FORWARDS Tyson Jost -- Nathan MacKinnon -- Mikko Rantanen Gabriel Landeskog -- Alexander Kerfoot -- J.T. Compher Matt Nieto -- Carl Soderberg -- Blake Comeau Sven Andrighetto -- Dominic Toninato -- Gabriel Bourque
DEFENSE Nikita Zadorov -- Tyson Barrie Patrik Nemeth -- Samuel Girard Duncan Siemens -- Anton Lindholm
GOALIES Semyon Varlamov Jonathan Bernier