As expected, Calvin Pickard will start in goal tonight when the Avalanche play Nashville at the Pepsi Center. He'll remain in Colorado for at least two weeks because Semyon Varlamov will be sidelined that long with a groin injury again. He underwent an MRI Monday.
Here are the game notes.
Pickard was recalled Monday from Lake Erie in the AHL, as was center Paul Carey. The Avalanche decided this morning to recall forward Borna Rendulic to give them 12 healthy forwards and 20 players. He's expected to arrive in time to make his NHL debut against the Predators and become the first Croatian-born player to play in the league.
"We made the decision for the best interest of our team," coach Patrick Roy said of promoting Rendulic, who signed as a free agent in May. "We don't want to take chances with all the bad luck we've had (with injuries). It'd be smart to play with 20 players. He's been playing really well, been really solid according to (Monsters coach) Dean (Chynoweth)."
Rendulic, 22, is a 6-foot-2, 200-pound right wing. He had four goals and three assists in 21 games with Lake Erie, his first season in North America. He spent the previous three seasons in Finland and had 11 goals and 21 assists in 57 games last year with HPK. He'll play on the fourth line with Carey and Nick Holden, who could see some time on defense.
Unlike most goalies, Pickard doesn't have a problem with interviews the morning of a game he starts and said he is just as excited about this recall as he was the first two this year.
"I'm comfortable playing at this level and I'm excited about the confidence they have in me," said Pickard, who has a 6-4-3 record with a 2.57 goals-against average and .920 save percentage in 13 games with Lake Erie. "We have to get this thing back on the right track. I was playing good hockey down in Cleveland, the team is jelling."
Pickard is 3-4-0 overall with a 2.49 average and .922 save percentage in seven games with the Avalanche. He went 3-2-0 with a 1.99 average and .936 save percentage in five games after his Nov. 18 recall from Lake Erie when Varlamov was out with his second groin injury and backup Reto Berra was struggling. He won three consecutive starts in Cleveland after being reassigned Dec. 2.
Carey, 26, had six goals and seven assists in 21 games with the Monsters. He had no points in two games with the Avalanche earlier this season.
The Avalanche (9-12-6) are opening a tough three-game homestand with the Predators (17-7-2), Winnipeg (14-9-5) and St. Louis (18-8-2) . They've lost three games in a row, are last in the Central Division and just 5-6-2 at home.
"It feels like a rollercoaster this season," said center Nathan MacKinnon, who has gone nine games without a goal. "We've had a few good moments and then it feels like we're back to square one. We're hoping that we can finally put together a little stretch here."
The Predators are opening a three-game road trip that includes stops in Arizona and San Jose. They lost 3-1 to Chicago on Saturday and haven't lost two games in a row this season.
Pekka Rinne will start in goal. He's won seven of his past nine decisions and has limited teams to two goals or fewer in those games.
Left wing Filip Forsberg leads the Predators and all NHL rookies in goals (11) and points (25). He's had two or more points in a game eight times.
"He's been a point-a-game guy this season and that's impressive," said Avalanche captain and fellow Swede Gabriel Landeskog. "It's good to see that he's doing well and I look forward to playing against him."
Here is the Avalanche lineup:
FORWARDS Alex Tanguay - Matt Duchene - Ryan O'Reilly Gabriel Landeskog - Nathan MacKinnon - Jarome Iginla Cody McLeod - Maxime Talbot - Daniel Briere Nick Holden - Paul Carey - Borna Rendulic
DEFENSEMEN Jan Hejda - Erik Johnson Nate Guenin - Tyson Barrie Karl Stollery - Zach Redmond
GOALIES Calvin Pickard Reto Berra