First Round Game 5 Preview: Avalanche vs. Kraken

COLORADO AVALANCHE (2-2) VS SEATTLE KRAKEN (2-2)
7:30 PM MT | BALL ARENAWATCH:ALTITUDE/ ESPNLISTEN: 92.5FM/950 AM
The Colorado Avalanche will look to shift the momentum of the series at home against the Seattle Kraken in Game 5 of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Coverage begins at 7:30 p.m. MT on ESPN and Altitude Sports. Colorado and Seattle are tied at two games apiece, 2-2 in this best-of-seven series.

LAST TIME OUT - GAME 4 RECAP

The Colorado Avalanche were defeated by the Seattle Kraken 3-2 in overtime Monday night at Climate Pledge Arena. Forward Mikko Rantanen scored both goals for the Avs, his 27th and 28th postseason goals of his career, passing Gabriel Landeskog (27) and Chris Drury (26) to take over sole possession of sixth place on the franchise's all-time postseason goals list. Rantanen's two goals also brought his career postseason point total to 83, passing Peter Stastny (81) for third-most in franchise history. Forward Evan Rodrigues assisted on Rantanen's first goal to bring his assist total to 3, surpassing his previous best (2) set in 2021-22.
Center Nathan MacKinnon also assisted on Rantanen's first goal, while defenseman Samuel Girard and center J.T. Compher assisted on Rantanen's second. Goaltender Alexandar Georgiev stopped 40 of the 43 shots that came his way.
For Seattle, defenseman Will Borgen and forwards Daniel Sprong and Jordan Eberle all scored, with Eberle netting the game-winner in overtime. Goalie Philipp Grubauer turned away 20 of the 22 shots that he faced.

SERIES SHOWDOWN - SERIES IS TIED 2-2

1st

The Kraken are just the second team in NHL history to score first in each of their first four Stanley Cup Playoff games; the Toronto Maple Leafs did so in their first five playoff games in 1917-18, when they were the Toronto Arenas. Monday's victory was also Seattle's first at home in franchies history.

11

Seattle center Jaden Schwartz recorded a game-high 11 shots on goal Monday evening.

HEAD-TO-HEAD STATS

| SHOTS | 132 | 88 | | HITS | 147 | 131 | | BLOCKS | 67 | 78 | | PIMs | 38 | 26 | | SCORING | 12 | 12 | | SPECIAL TEAMS | 1-10 | 3-16 | | GF/G | 3.00 | 3.00 | | GA/G | 3.00 | 3.00 | | FOW% | 52.9% | 47.1% | | | Avalanche | Kraken | | --- | --- | --- |

LINEUP UPDATES

Avalanche

Darren HelmUnknown
Gabriel LandeskogLower body
Jack JohnsonLower body
Cale Makar\Will not play in Game 5 after being administered a one-game suspension
Valeri Nichushkin Personal reasons
Scratches from Game 4:*Brad Hunt, Kurtis MacDermid

Kraken

Joonas Donskoi * Upper body
Andre Burakovsky* Lower body
John Hayden Lower body
Scratches from Game 4:Cale Fleury, Jesper Froden, Jaycob Megna

GOALTENDING MATCHUP

Goaltender Alexandar Georgiev is now 2-2-0 in the postseason, with a 2.99 GAA and .908 sV%. THe 43 shots he faced were the highest total he's faced this series and the most in his young postseason career.
Goalie Philipp Grubauer is also 2-2-0 in the playoffs, with a 2.76 GAA and .916 sV%. The 22 shots he faced were the lowest in the series so far.

HEATING UP

Rantanen has tallied five goals in the series so far, equaling his career-high for goals in a playoff series set in 2019 (first round) against Calgary.
Avalanche center Lars Eller appeared in his 100th playoff game Monday night.
Justin Schultz became just the fourth NHL defender to earn at least one point in a franchise's first four postseason games.
Defenseman Will Borgen and forward Daniel Sprong's goals were both their first in the postseason.

QUOTE(S) THAT LEFT A MARK

"I thought Georgie was fantastic again tonight. Gave us a chance to hang around in a game that could've been a lot worse early." - Avalanche Head Coach Jared Bednar on netminder Alexandar Georgiev's performance on Monday