Preview: Blues vs. Avalanche

When: Sunday, Feb. 23 at 5 p.m. CT
Where: Enterprise Center in St. Louis, MO
Watch: FanDuel Sports Network
Listen: 101 ESPN, Blues App
Tickets: Online at ticketmaster.com

QUICK HITS

BLUES The St. Louis Blues (25-26-6) will end their back-to-back set on Sunday when they face Central Division foe the Colorado Avalanche for the second time this season.

The Blues fell 4-3 in a shootout to the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday night. Although the Blues fell short, they’ve secured four points in their last four games, with three of those contests extending into extra time. All five of the Blues' games in February have been decided by a single goal.

Robert Thomas lit the lamp twice against Winnipeg, capturing his 100th and 101st career goals. This marked Thomas’ third multi-goal game and his 11th multi-point game this season.

Following the loss, Thomas emphasized the importance of capitalizing on scoring opportunities heading into Sunday.

“Going up against one of the best teams in the league, to make a statement coming out of the break, and we had a chance and multiple chances even in overtime to close it out," Thomas said. "So, got to look at the positives. We have two great teams tonight and tomorrow night, and we need to come out with a good start [Sunday] and something to build on tonight.”

The Blues will aim to close out the weekend on a high note with a win against the Avalanche on Sunday before closing out the homestand Tuesday against the Seattle Kraken.

AVALANCHE The Colorado Avalanche (33-23-2) will also play their second half of a back-to-back on Sunday in St. Louis after falling 2-1 to the Nashville Predators on Saturday.

Despite having the edge over the Predators in shots 32-17 and hits 24-15, the Avalanche were unable to come out on top.

Since the Blues and the Avalanche last met on Jan. 31, the Avalanche have posted a 3-2-0 record, with seven of their 12 total goals in February coming in the second period. In these last five games, the Avalanche have outscored their opponents 154-128.

The Avalanche currently hold the first Western Conference Wild Card spot with 68 points.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

BLUES Pavel Buchnevich had a three-point affair on Saturday night, recording a goal and two assists. Buchnevich’s goal came on the power play, marking his first special teams goal this season. He has six points (one goal, five assists) in his last five games, and he is fourth on the team in points with 37 (12 goals, 25 assists). In 571 career games, Buchnevich has 435 points (173 goals, 262 assists).

AVALANCHE Nathan MacKinnon has stuffed the stat sheet this season, leading the NHL and the Avalanche with 87 points (21 goals, 66 assists) in just 58 games. During the League’s two-week break for the 4 Nations Face-off, MacKinnon represented champions Team Canada and was awarded MVP of the tournament with four goals in four games. In his 849-game career, he has a total of 986 points (356 goals, 630 assists).

BLUE NOTES

• Robert Thomas is on a five-game point streak (three goals, five assists).
• Zack Bolduc leads all rookies in the NHL with a plus-10 rating.
• The Blues have 1,388 hits this season, which ranks fifth in the NHL (1. Florida, 1,658)
• The Blues will celebrate Ryan Suter's 1,500th games played milestone with a pregame ceremony before the opening face-off.