COLORADO AVALANCHE (49-25-6) AT LAS VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS (43-28-8)
1:30 PM MDT | T-MOBILE ARENA | WATCH: TNT | LISTEN: 950 AM
The Avalanche travel to Las Vegas for their final road contest of 2023-24. Colorado has won six of its last seven road games. The Avalanche come into today’s game two points behind the Jets for second place in the Central Division. Both the Avalanche and Golden Knights have clinched Stanley Cup playoff berths. Vegas has been victorious in six of its past seven home contests coming into this matchup.
Latest Results:
April 13, 2024 WPG: 7 COL: 0
April 12, 2024 VGK: 7 MIN: 2
WINNIPEG WRAP UP
The Avalanche fell to the Jets 7-0 at Ball Arena on Saturday. The Jets tallied four in the first period that saw Sean Monahan, Gabriel Vilardi (power play), Josh Morrissey (power play) and Adam Lowry all light the lamp. Winnipeg added three more in the second period getting contributions from Tyler Toffoli, Monahan again and Lowry once more to secure the 7-0 victory.
AVS ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Nathan MacKinnon posted four shots on goal to reach 400 on the campaign. 4 shots away from 400 shots on goal. He’s just the 10th player in NHL history (16th instance) to record 400-plus shots in a single season. Phil Esposito (four times), Alex Ovechkin (three times), Bobby Hull (twice, Pavel Bure, Brett Hull, Jaromir Jagr, Paul Kariya, Bobby Orr and David Pastrnak as the only other NHLers to hit the 400 mark in a given season.
Alexandar Georgiev appeared in his 62nd game of the season, matching his career-high from 2022-23. Georgiev is expected to get the start again today in Vegas. The Ruse, Bulgaria native registered a 25-save shutout the last time he saw the Golden Knights on Jan. 10 (W, 3-0). Despite being the goaltender of record in the Nov. 4 contest, Georgiev has produced a.923 SV% and a 2.44 GAA in his career against Vegas in nine games.
HISTORY
The Avalanche own a 14-9-1 all-time record against the Golden Knights, with a 7-6-0 mark on the road. Colorado is 5-3-0 in its last eight matchups with Vegas. The Avs split the two contests this season with the Knights, with both teams winning their respective home game. In Vegas’ six seasons of existence Colorado has won four of the six regular season series.
VIVA LAS VEGAS
Vegas defeated Minnesota 7-2 on Friday night at T-Mobile Arena to clinch a berth in the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Golden Knights erupted in the first period with three goals in 5:38, getting contributions form Nicolas Roy (shorthanded), Pavel Dorofeyev and Jack Eichel (power play). Minnesota responded in the middle frame with Marat Khusnutdinov finding the back of the net for the first time in his career. Jonathan Marchessault answered back with his 42nd goal of the season to regain the three-goal lead for the Knights going into the third period. Vegas added to its lead when Tomas Hertl lit the lamp for the first time as a member of the Golden Knights. Ryan Hartman found the back of the net to cut into the lead, but Vegas would add two insurance markers from William Karlsson and Keegan Kolesar to seal the 7-2 win.
STATS TO KNOW
Valeri Nichushkin (2g/0) and Mikko Rantanen (0g/2a) pace the Avalanche this season with two points apiece against the Golden Knights.
Nathan MacKinnon has recorded 22 points (7g/15a) against Vegas in his career. Those 22 points are the ninth-most any NHL skater has tallied against the Knights.
The Avs have outscored the Golden Knights 55-44 in the past 21 matchups.
VALIANT VEGAS
Marchessault leads the Golden Knights in goals this campaign with 42, a career-high.
Noah Hanifin is tied for the tenth-most goals by a defenseman in the NHL this season having accumulated 13 in 2023-24 including two since joining Vegas.
Vegas ranks ninth among all NHL teams this season in hits with 1,948.
NUMBERS GAME
35
MacKinnon ranks tied for first (Auston Matthews and Zach Hyman) in the NHL among all forwards in plus-minus rating this season at +35.
2
The Avalanche are the only team in the NHL with two players from the same team to rank in the top five of power-play points. MacKinnon has recorded 47 points in the category and Rantanen has tallied 40.
1.16
Cale Makar has averaged the most points per-game by a blueliner in the NHL this campaign at 1.16 PPG.
QUOTE(S) THAT LEFT A MARK
“You got to find solutions, you have to dig in and be better. It starts competitively and physicality wise. The playoffs is another notch and they showed that tonight. We got a good taste of what we are going to see.”
- Colorado LW Andrew Cogliano on Learning From Mistakes
