As if playing in Anaheim isn't difficult enough, the Avalanche will meet the Ducks on Friday night after playing in Arizona on Thursday.
Here are the game notes.
And here's my Tyson Barrie feature.
The Avalanche (33-26-11) have won three games in a row, matching their longest streak of the season. They've won six of the past seven games and 11 of 15, but they're still seven points behind Winnipeg for the second wild card position in the West. The poor start (3-6-5) to the season is just killing Colorado.
Semyon Varlamov made 28 saves Thursday in the Avalanche's 5-2 win in Arizona. He's won six in a row and has a 1.17 goals-against average and .963 save percentage in the streak.
Gabriel Landeskog and Ryan O'Reilly each had a goal and an assist, and Freddie Hamilton scored his first NHL goal when he deflected in a Brad Stuart shot. Matt Duchene and Jarome Iginla also scored.
The Ducks (45-20-7) have a 13-point lead over Vancouver for the Pacific Division lead and are battling Montreal and St. Louis for the best record in the NHL. They've won three games in a row. They defeated the Avalanche 3-2 at the Pepsi Center on Nov. 2.
Frederik Andersen will start in goal for Anaheim and defenseman Sami Vatanen is expected to play after missing 15 games with a lower-body injury.
Here's the Avalanche lineup:
FORWARDS Gabriel Landeskog - Ryan O'Reilly - Alex Tanguay John Mitchell - Matt Duchene - Jarome Iginla Cody McLeod - Marc-Andre Cliche - Dennis Everberg Jordan Caron - Freddie Hamilton/Joey Hishon - Daniel Briere
DEFENSE Jan Hejda - Zach Redmond Nate Guenin - Tyson Barrie Brad Stuart - Nick Holden
GOALIES Semyon Varlamov Reto Berra