Colorado Avalanche (11-9-0) @ Florida Panthers (12-7-1)
4 p.m. MT | Amerant Bank Arena | Watch: Altitude, Altitude+ | Listen: Altitude Sports Radio (92.5 FM)
On the heels of winning the first two games of their road trip, the Avalanche head down to sunny Florida to face the Panthers on Saturday. This is the first of two meetings between the teams, as they’ll meet again in Denver on January 6.
Latest Result (COL): COL 2, WSH 1
Latest Result (FLA): FLA 1, CHI 3
Nabbing a Win in Our Nation’s Capital
The Avalanche beat the Washington Capitals 2-1 at Capital One Arena on Thursday. Mikko Rantanen and Miles Wood were the goal-scorers for Colorado. In net, Alexandar Georgiev made 28 saves, earning the No. 1 star of the game. The Burgundy and Blue picked up their fifth win when trailing first, which is tied for fourth-most in the NHL. At 14:19 of the second period, the Avs played some “Pinball on the Potomac” while on the power play when Rantanen’s backhand pass deflected off a Capitals player and into the net. Rantanen’s goal was his 13th of the season, which is tied for fourth-most in the NHL. The second Avs goal was a gritty one, as Wood redirected Cale Makar’s shot at 3:29 of the third for his second tally of the season. Despite a heavy late push from Washington to try and tie the game, the Avs, led by Georgiev, held strong and earned the win.
Frequenting the Leaderboards
Nathan MacKinnon leads the league in assists (27) and is tied for first in points (34).
Makar leads all NHL defensemen in goals (8), assists (20), and points (28). Among all skaters, he’s tied for fifth in assists and tied for seventh in points.
Rantanen is tied for fourth in the NHL in goals (13) and tied for seventh in points (28).
History
In 42 previous regular-season matchups, the Avalanche own a 23-12-7 record against the Panthers. Additionally, Colorado swept Florida 4-0 in the 1996 Stanley Cup Final to win the franchise’s first championship.
Windy City Woes
The Panthers lost to the Chicago Blackhawks 3-1 at the United Center on Thursday. Chicago’s Teuvo Teravainen opened the scoring at 2:46 of the first period before Craig Smith doubled the Blackhawks’ lead at 10:07 of the second period. Sam Reinhart put Florida on the board at 10:41 of the middle frame but Nick Foligno sealed Chicago’s win with an empty-net goal at 19:00 of the third period.
Scoring in Sunrise
MacKinnon has posted 16 points (8g/8a) in 20 previous meetings with the Panthers.
In 12 games against Florida, Rantanen has recorded 15 points (5g/10a) including 10 points (2g/8a) in his last six contests against them.
Jonathan Drouin has registered 14 points (3g/11a) in 21 meetings with the Panthers.
Panthers’ Producers
Reinhart ranks first in goals (15), tied for first in assists (15), and first in points (30) among Panthers players this season.
Sam Bennett is second on the team in goals (9) and tied for second in points (18).
Aleksander Barkov is second on the team in assists (15) and tied for second in points (18).
A Numbers Game
9
Avs Head Coach Jared Bednar’s 352 wins rank 9th all-time among active head coaches.
99
Makar’s 99 multi-point games are the most by a defenseman in franchise history and tied for 74th among blueliners in NHL history.
+154
MacKinnon’s +154 plus/minus rating since the start of the 2017-18 season is first in the league among active forwards.
Quote That Left a Mark
"We gave up some high-danger chances. And [Georgiev] made some big saves on those. So he was my No. 1 star tonight for sure."
-- Mikko Rantanen on Alexandar Georgiev’s performance against the Capitals
