Avalanche coach Patrick Roy said after the morning skate that defenseman Tyson Barrie has a hip flexor injury and will miss Thursday night's game against Detroit at the Pepsi Center.
Here are the game notes.
Stefan Elliott will replace Barrie, whom Roy said he expects to play Saturday in Minnesota when the Avalanche open a two-game road trip that ends Sunday in Winnipeg.
Elliott will play his first game since his Jan. 29 recall from Lake Erie in the AHL. He had 12 goals and 14 assists in 40 games with the Monsters and played in the AHL All-Star Game.
Roy said Elliott will be paired with Barrie's usual partner, Nate Guenin, and play on power plays. The Avalanche have failed to score on 19 consecutive power plays in the past seven games and are 3-for-40 in a 14-game stretch.
While the Avalanche (22-18-11) have gone 3-0-1 in the past four games and are battling for a playoff spot in the Western Conference, the Red Wings (29-12-9) are on a 7-1-0 roll and two points behind Tampa Bay for the best record in the East.
"We're playing well, we're playing with confidence right now," Avalanche center Matt Duchene said. "We're finding ways to win or to get points even when we probably don't deserve to, which is good. That's what we did last year. It's what good teams do whether or not you play your best every night. Finding ways to win is important and we've been doing that."
The rivalry between the Avalanche and Red Wings is long gone, but it "brings back a lot of memories" Roy said.
"Making it even more interesting, now people know we're going to play them in the outdoor game at Coors Field (next year)," he said. "This is an important stretch in our season. They're playing well, they have a lot of depth in their lineup. It will be a good test for our team."
Here's the Avalanche lineup: FORWARDS Alex Tanguay - Matt Duchene - Jarome Iginla Gabriel Landeskog - Ryan O'Reilly - Nathan MacKinnon Cody McLeod - John Mitchell - Dennis Everberg Max Talbot - Marc-Andre Cliche - Daniel Briere
DEFENSE Jan Hejda - Zach Redmond Nate Guenin - Stefan Elliott Nick Holden - Brad Stuart
GOALIES Semyon Varlamov Reto Berra