Colorado and Vancouver have posted very similar offensive numbers so far this season. The Avs average 2.21 goals per game (27th in the league) while the Canucks average 2.20 (28th in the league).
Nathan MacKinnon's 15 points and 10 assists are team highs for the Avalanche, while Matt Duchene and Rene Bourque are tied for the club lead in goals with seven each.
Bo Horvat (seven goals, seven assists) leads the way for Vancouver with 14 points, while Daniel Sedin's 13 points (six goals, seven assists) rank second. Both Daniel and Henrik Sedin as well as Sven Baertschi and Horvat have recorded seven assists on the season, a three-way tie for the team lead.
Faceoffs have been a strength for both teams, with each ranking in the top 10 in overall faceoff win percentage. Colorado's 51.8 rate of success on the draw is fifth, while Vancouver's 51.6-percent success rate ranks sixth. In the offensive zone, the Avs have a league-leading 55.9 percent rate of success while the Canucks' 53.9 percent is tied for fifth.
Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar noted after practice on Friday that the team took too many needless penalties in Wednesday's 6-3 loss to Edmonton, something it will try to rectify against the Canucks on Saturday. With more than 127 total minutes spent on the PK so far this season, the Avalanche ranks sixth in the league in time spent on the penalty kill. At just under 91 minutes, the Canucks have spent the least amount of time on the kill than any team in the NHL.