"It was really good, I think it was good to step away from the game for a few days," said head coach Jared Bednar. "Review some of the good and some of the bad that has been going on with our team and search for some solutions to try to get back on track here. I think it was a good time to reflect and also a good time to sort of decompress and get away from the game for a little bit.
"Hopefully it was the same for all of our players. Guys seemed like they had a good time and a good break, and they are back focused. We had a bunch of guys skate yesterday and full team today, and I liked our practice. I think it was a good break, came at a really good time for us."
The Avalanche has 52 points with a 22-2-8 mark this season and sits in the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference.
Its opponent on Saturday, the Canucks, also has 52 points in the race for the playoffs but has played one extra game. The outing will mark the fourth of a season-long, five-game homestand for the Avs, who are 1-2-0 through the first three contests.
"All things considering, we are in a decent spot, not as good as where we should have been from our start, but we are in a playoff position and we control our own destiny," said Nathan MacKinnon. "We play all the teams we need to beat lots, so it is going to be a big challenge but we are excited."