Game 5 Projected Lineup: Avalanche at Sharks
The second-round series is tied at 2-2
by Ron Knabenbauer @RonKnab / ColoradoAvalanche.com
SAN JOSE, Calif.--The Colorado Avalanche could make changes to its lineup for Game 5 of the club's second-round series against the San Jose Sharks, head coach Jared Bednar said following today's morning skate at SAP Center.
Bednar said he had yet to make a final decision on his lineup and that he was still "working through a couple things."
Colorado's top line of Gabriel Landeskog, Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen is expected to remain intact after the trio combined for a goal and two assists in the 3-0 victory on Thursday. The three players were on the same line for most of the year, but they finished the regular season and began the playoffs on separate units before being reunited for the start of Game 4.
Goaltender Philipp Grubauer is expected to start for the 10th straight contest for the Avalanche after posting a 32-save shutout last time out.
Below is the Avalanche's projected lineup for Game 5 based on the forward combinations and defensive pairings from Thursday. They are subject to change.
Forwards
92 Gabriel Landeskog - 29 Nathan MacKinnon - 96 Mikko Rantanen
22 Colin Wilson - 37 J.T. Compher - 13 Alexander Kerfoot
83 Matt Nieto - 34 Carl Soderberg - 11 Matt Calvert
57 Gabriel Bourque - 17 Tyson Jost - 18 Derick Brassard
Defensemen
28 Ian Cole - 6 Erik Johnson
16 Nikita Zadorov - 4 Tyson Barrie
49 Samuel Girard - 8 Cale Makar
Goaltenders
31 Philipp Grubauer (starter)
1 Semyon Varlamov (backup)
Healthy Scratches: 10 Sven Andrighetto, 12 Patrik Nemeth, 24 A.J. Greer, 25 Logan O'Connor, 27 Ryan Graves, 39 Pavel Francouz, 47 Dominic Toninato, 44 Mark Barberio, 54 Anton Lindholm, 91 Vladislav Kamenev
San Jose Sharks forward Joonas Donskoi could return to the lineup after missing the past five games with an undisclosed injury.
San Jose head coach Peter DeBoer said the right wing is a game-time decision. Donskoi would likely replace Lukas Radil in the lineup if he does suit up.
Forward Joe Pavelski is still day-to-day with his injury and won't play this evening, according to DeBoer. The Sharks captain has missed every game of the series after getting hurt in Game 7 against the Vegas Golden Knights in Round 1.
Goalie Martin Jones will start in net after making 25-of-27 saves in Game 4 on Thursday.
Below are the forward combinations and defensive pairings for Game 5, courtesy of SanJoseSharks.com.
Forwards
28 Timo Meier - 39 Logan Couture - 14 Gustav Nyquist
9 Evander Kane - 48 Tomas Hertl - 52 Lukas Radil
20 Marcus Sorensen - 19 Joe Thornton - 62 Kevin Lablanc
18 Michael Haley - 23 Barclay Goodrow - 68 Melker Karlsson
Defensemen
44 Marc-Edouard Vlasic - 88 Brent Burns
4 Brenden Dillon - 65 Erik Karlsson
47 Joakim Ryan - 61 Justin Braun
Goaltenders
31 Martin Jones (starter)
30 Aaron Dell (backup)
Scratches: 7 Dylan Gambrell, 51 Radim Simek, 72 Tim Heed, 40 Antti Suomela
Injury Report: 8 Joe Pavelski (undisclosed), 27 Joonas Donskoi (undisclosed)