The Panthers (11-13-4) have produced points in each of their last three games, including a 6-4 victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday, to climb within four points of the Boston Bruins for third place in the Atlantic Division entering tonight's action.
"Whether you're playing the Winnipegs of the world or the Colorados of the world, it's about us," Panthers Coach Bob Boughner said after Saturday's morning skate. "We can't change what we do, what we have success with…. We've just got to be good defensively and keep putting pucks behind and working off our forecheck and doing the things we're doing offensively right now."
Panthers center Aleksander Barkov, who left Thursday's game in the second period with an upper-body injury, won't play against Colorado. Boughner said the 22-year-old will likely return to the lineup during the team's upcoming five-game road trip, either Monday in Detroit or Tuesday in Chicago. In 28 games this season, Barkov ranks third on the team in points (27) and second in goals (10).
"So far, so good," Boughner said of Barkov's recovery. "It's not as serious as it could have been."
With Barkov out, Vincent Trocheck will take his place between Jonathan Huberdeau and Nick Bjugstad on Florida's top line. The 24-year-old center is tied with Huberdeau for the team lead in points (29) and ranks first in goals (12). Having shared the ice with both Huberdeau and Bjugstad at time during his five seasons with the Panthers, Trocheck expects a smooth transition into his new, temporary role.
"They're easy to play with," said Trocheck, who has anchored the team's second line for the past two seasons. "I've played with Huby and Bjugy enough. I've played on the same team as them for five years now. I know what they're capable of. I know how they play. It shouldn't be too difficult of a transition.
The Avalanche (12-13-2) enters tonight's action having lost lost four games in a row and six of seven overall. They've been outscored 18-7 during their current four-game skid, including a 5-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday.
"We need to win this game," Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said. "We didn't play well on our homestand. We went into Tampa the other night, did a lot of good things, but we still had some mistakes. I think we can clean up some areas."
Nathan MacKinnon leads the Avalanche in assists (22) and points (32) and is tied with captain Gabriel Landeskog with 10 goals each. Colorado's top line of MacKinnon, Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen has combined to score 28 of the team's 82 goals this season.
"It's hard to take lines like that out of play," Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad said. "We've got to limit their chances as much as possible. That's our job as a top pairing, me and [Keith Yandle]. It's our job to take away their opportunities and space, squeeze them as much as we can."
