COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS (23-34-12) AT COLORADO AVALANCHE (44-20-5)
7:00 PM MDT | BALL ARENA | WATCH: ALTITUDE TV | LISTEN: 92.5 FM
Colorado kicks off a five-game home stand Friday night against Columbus at Ball Arena. The Avs’ have won seven consecutive games, their longest streak of the season and it stands as the longest active winning streak in the NHL. The Avalanche swept their four-game road trip and are 9-1-0 in their last 10 matchups. Colorado ranks tied with Dallas and Winnipeg for first place with the most points in the Central Division with 93. Columbus has lost five of their past six games. The Blue Jackets sit at the bottom of the Eastern Conference, having accumulated 58 points this season.
Latest Results:
March 19, 2024 COL: 4 STL: 3
March 19, 2024 DET: 4 CBJ: 3 (OT)
HITTING THE RIGHT NOTE
The Avs completed the sweep of their four-game road trip on Tuesday night against the Blues by a score of 4-3. It was the teams 23rd comeback win of the season, the most in the NHL. The 23 comeback wins are the most registered in a season in Avalanche/Nordiques history. Mikko Rantanen tallied his first of three goals on the night in the first period. The Blues evened the game at one just 2:12 later when Nathan Walker lit the lamp. Alexey Toropchenko gave the Blues a 2-1 lead early in the middle frame. The Avalanche responded quickly with a tally from Casey Mittelstadt. St. Louis regained the lead again with a goal from Brayden Schenn, but Rantanen found the back of the net before the second intermission on the power play to level the game at three. Colorado took the lead for good 4:15 into the final frame when Rantanen completed his hat trick. Valeri Nichushkin and Jonathan Drouin each chipped in two assists.
AVS ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Nathan MacKinnon extended his point streak to 16 games, collecting 10g/22a during that span. The three longest streaks registered this season are: MacKinnon (19 games, Nov. 20 - Dec. 27), William Nylander (17 games, Oct. 11 - Nov. 19) and his current streak (16 games, Feb. 13 - present). The helper was MacKinnon’s 75th of the season, joining Peter Stastny (3x) and Peter Forsberg (2x) as the third skater in franchise history to collect 75-plus assists in a campaign.
Rantanen recorded his seventh career hat trick, tying Owen Nolan and Peter Forsberg for the fourth-most hat tricks in Avalanche/Nordiques history. He has recorded two hat tricks in his last four contests at Enterprise Center (Dec. 11, 2022).
Cale Makar notched his 58th assist this season, tying his career-high set during 2021-22. His helper also elevated him past Noah Dobson for the second most among NHL defensemen this season.
Mittelstadt recorded his 16th goal of 2023-24, setting a new career-high. He has found the scoresheet in four straight outings, recording 2g/2a during that span.
Justus Annunen recorded his fifth win this season and has posted a 4-0-0 record in his last four starts.
HISTORY
The Avalanche own a 42-17-1-5 all-time record against the Blue Jackets, and a 22-9-0-2 mark at home. Colorado is 4-1-1 in the past six matchups with them, outscoring them 23-16. The Avalanche are 9-6-2 since 2009-10 at Ball Arena against the Blue Jackets. Columbus is the only team the Avs have yet to play this season.
DOWN IN DETROIT
The Blue Jackets were defeated by the Red Wings 4-3 in overtime on Tuesday night at Little Caesars Arena. It was the first of five consecutive road contests for Columbus. The Blue Jackets jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period, getting contributions from Zach Werenski and Alexandre Texier. Detroit knotted the game at two going into the second intermission, with tallies from Lucas Raymond (power play) and Moritz Seider. Kirill Marchenko regained the lead for the Blue Jackets 4:26 into the third frame on the power play. Raymond found the back of the net with 13 seconds left to force overtime. Patrick Kane lit the lamp in overtime to secure the extra point for the Red Wings.
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STATS TO KNOW
MacKinnon led the Avalanche in points with seven (0g/7a) in two games against Columbus last season.
Rantanen paced the Avalanche in goals against the Blue Jackets last campaign with three. He also added two assists in those contests.
The regular season series took place in Finland at Nokia Arena. This will be the first matchup in the United States since November 6, 2021.
The Avalanche swept the Blue Jackets last season, winning both games by a combined score of 11-4.
BEST OF THE BLUE JACKETS
Johnny Gaudreau leads the Blue Jackets in points this season with 51 (11g/40a).
Zach Werenski set a career-high on Tuesday with his 38th assist of the campaign. The defenseman is questionable for Friday’s game after blocking a shot on Tuesday.
Yegor Chinikov has posted career-highs in goals (16), assists (13) and points (29) in 2023-24.
NUMBERS GAME
257
Rantanen’s hat trick on Tuesday brought him to 257 career goals. The 257 tallies put him in sole possession of the fifth-most goals scored by a Finnish born player in NHL history.
15
Valeri Nichushkin ranks tied for the third-most power-play goals in the NHL this campaign with 15.
1.17
Cale Makar leads all NHL blueliners in points per game at 1.17 this season.
QUOTE(S) THAT LEFT A MARK
“I think it’s our best hockey of the year, especially on the road. We have been good at home all year pretty much but on the road we have been inconsistent so this was a really good road trip, not easy teams to go against.”
- Colorado RW Mikko Rantanen on the winning streak
