Semyon Varlamov will start in goal tonight against St. Louis when the Avalanche attempt to reach the .500 mark for the first time -- again -- at the Pepsi Center in the final game before the Christmas break.
But coach Patrick Roy said rookie Calvin Pickard, who will be the backup against the Blues, would start Saturday against Chicago. Roy didn't reveal the team's plans for after the Blackhawks game -- "we'll see after that," he said -- but the guess here is Pickard will be sent back to Lake Erie in the AHL.
Here are the game notes.
"Varly was very excited to play," Roy said this morning. "He looked very sharp in the practice this morning and in the other practices and worked hard with (goalie coach) Francois (Allaire). It's a good situation for us. Calvin's played really well and we hope that Varly will be sharp tonight."
Varlamov hasn't played since Dec. 5 in Winnipeg, a 6-2 Avalanche loss. He was replaced by Reto Berra in the third period and missed the past six games with a groin injury. He's missed 17 of the Avalanche's first 33 games because of groin injuries and the hope is he'll be healthy for the rest of the season.
"Varly is our No. 1 goalie," Roy said. "He played so well for us last year and he's having a good year so far. It's a matter of we'll see how he's going to play tonight with his timing. He needs to play and tonight is a good test for him."
Varlamov led the NHL and set a franchise record with 41 wins last season when he had a 2.41 goals-against average and .927 save percentage. He has a 4-6-5 record this year with a 3.22 average and .909 save percentage. The Avalanche are last in the Central Division with a 12-13-8 record after finishing first a year ago.
The Avalanche went 3-0-2 in the past five games with Pickard in goal, 2-0-1 on the just-completed road trip when he stopped 109 of 112 shots for a 0.96 goals-against average and .973 save percentage.
Pickard is 6-3-2 in his past 11 games and 6-5-2 overall with a 2.06 average that is seventh in the NHL and a .939 save percentage that is second to Winnipeg's Michael Hutchinson's .940.
Blues coach Ken Hitchcock called those save percentages "an unwordly number."
The Avalanche are carrying three goalies and eventually will have to make a decision between Pickard, who is on his third recall from Lake Erie, and Berra, who hasn't started since being pulled in the first period Nov. 25 against Arizona.
"We'll see how things are going to go," Roy said. "(Pickard) made a great impression. Now we know that we have solid goaltending throughout the organization and we know if something happens to Varly we have two guys who are ready to step in and win hockey games."
Said Gabriel Landeskog: "Picks has given us a chance to win every night, but we know that Varly is our starting goalie. He's been the backbone of our defense since he came here, especially the last couple years. I think he's earned the respect of being one of the top goaltenders in the league. Any time you have a chance to put one of those guys in the net I'm sure you're going to want to and give Picks some rest because he played a lot lately."
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Roy said that forward Patrick Bordeleau sustained a fractured kneecap in the third period in Buffalo on Saturday and will miss 8-10 weeks. It was Bordeleau's first game after recovering from offseason back surgery.
So rookie Dennis Everberg will remain on the fourth line. Berra and defenseman Nick Holden are the scratches.
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Here is the Avalanche lineup:
FORWARDS Max Talbot - Matt Duchene - Nathan MacKinnon Gabriel Landeskog - Ryan O'Reilly - Daniel Briere Alex Tanguay - John Mitchell - Jarome Iginla Cody McLeod - Marc-Andre Cliche - Dennis Everberg
DEFENSEMEN Jan Hejda - Erik Johnson Nate Guenin - Tyson Barrie Brad Stuart - Zach Redmond
GOALIES Semyon Varlamov Calvin Pickard