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Avalanche Host Wild; Can They Win 14th Straight At Home? |
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On Saturday night the FIRST-PLACE Colorado Avalanche rode a pair of goals each from Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon and 20 saves from Darcy Kuemper to a 5-0 victory over the Arizona Coyotes.
The win improved the 'Avs to 24-8-3 and moved them into first place in the Central for the first time this season. Colorado's .729 winning percentage is the third-best in the NHL.
- With his effort, MacKinnon moved into seventh all-time on the 'Avs franchise goals leaderboard, passing Peter Forsberg.
- It was Kuemper's first shutout of the season and marked a positive sign for the 'Avs between the pipes. Both Francouz and Kuemper have put in solid efforts recently and that's all we can hope for at this point.
- Nazem Kadri also scored a goal in his 700th career game. It was his 24th point in his last 15 games. He remains white-hot and I'm here for it.
- Colorado improved to 7-0-1 in its last eight games and earned at least a point for the 15th time in 16 games (13-1-2).
But that was against Arizona. The Minnesota Wild is on a whole different level.
The Wild are fourth in the Central Division with 46 points and a 22-10-2 record. They are just 5-4-1 in the last 10 games but have won the last three in a row.
Mnnesita is led is coring by Mats Zucarello. Zuccarello has 30 points this season (11g, 19a) in 28 games played this season. The right-winger has eight points during his current five-game point streak.
Colorado won the previous meeting between these two clubs. Gabriel Landeskog had two goals and two assists for the 'Avs in a 4-1 win against Minnesota back in October.
Should be a fun one on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Lastly, the Avalanche are averaging 4.32 goals per game if you're still keeping track at home.
Thanks for reading,
Steve
Colorado Avalanche Blogger • 
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