Daily Primer Oct. 21: Crosby, MacKinnon to square off

The Colorado Avalanche continue their brief two-game road trip Monday night. They're hoping to begin a new winning streak.

After suffering their first defeat of the season Thursday night in a 4-2 loss to the Detroit Red Wings at Pepsi Center, the Avalanche responded by hitting the road and earning a 4-2 win against the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday. Colorado, which now stands at 7-1-0 on the season, will visit Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday (7:30 p.m. ET, NBCSN, TSN2, RDS2, ROOT). Pittsburgh, which is also 7-1-0, has its winning streak intact; the Penguins have won four in a row.

Here's a look at Monday's action:

San Jose Sharks at Detroit Red Wings -- San Jose is also looking to start a new winning streak. The Sharks won their first six games of the season before dropping a 4-3 shootout decision to the Dallas Stars on Thursday. San Jose responded Saturday with a 6-3 win against the Calgary Flames behind a four-point performance (two goals, two assists) by Joe Pavelski. The Sharks have outscored their opponents 39-16 through eight games. Detroit, now a member of the Eastern Conference, is off to a 6-3-0 start. The Red Wings are beginning a three-game homestand after losing to the Phoenix Coyotes 5-2 on Saturday.

Colorado Avalanche at Pittsburgh Penguins -- The pride of Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia, is set to go head-to-head at Consol Energy Center. Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, who brought the Stanley Cup to his hometown in the summer of 2009, is set to face rookie center Nathan MacKinnon, who idolized Crosby growing up and was the No. 1 selection at the 2013 NHL Draft. The game will be televised nationally in both the United States and Canada.

Calgary Flames at Los Angeles Kings -- Calgary has lost the first two games of its five-game road trip; the Flames dropped a 3-2 decision at Anaheim last Wednesday before a 6-3 loss at San Jose on Saturday. Veteran forward Mike Cammalleri (upper body) has joined the team and skated Sunday, but he's not guaranteed to play against the Kings. Los Angeles will be seeking its third straight win. After beating Nashville in a shootout Thursday, the Kings opened a four-game homestand with a 5-2 win against Dallas on Saturday. Anze Kopitar has yet to score a goal, but he has eight assists in nine games.