Avs Hit The Road To Face Blackhawks

The Colorado Avalanche heads to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday for the third meeting in a four-game series between the clubs this season. This is the last time the Avs will play in Chicago in 2017-18 as the series concludes on March 30 at Pepsi Center.
Colorado is 1-0-1 when facing Chicago this season and 48-30-9 overall against the Blackhawks in 87 meetings since 1995-96, including a 22-18-4 record as the visiting team.
The Avalanche is 39-25-8 during the regular season and currently holds the first wild-card position in the Western Conference. Chicago is 30-34-9 this campaign and 17-15-4 in contests in its friendly confines.

Last Time Out

The Colorado Avalanche defeated the Detroit Red Wings 5-1 on Sunday behind an eight-point performance from the Avs' top line and 37 saves from goaltender Semyon Varlamov. Colorado took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission before each club found the back of the net in the second stanza. Nathan MacKinnon extended the Avalanche lead in the final frame with his second tally of the night and Tyson Barrie capitalized on a 5-on-3 power play for his 11th goal of the season.
The Chicago Blackhawks fell to the St. Louis Blues in overtime on Sunday despite never trailing in regulation and a hat trick from rookie right wing Alex DeBrincat. The forward scored twice in six minutes in the first period to get the Blackhawks off to an early lead. Chicago had a 3-2 lead going into the final 20 minutes but DeBrincat completed his hat trick and the Blues scored twice to send the game into an extra frame where St. Louis took a 5-4 win.

Last Time They Met

The Blackhawks defeated the Avalanche in overtime on March 6 in the clubs' second meeting of the season. Erik Gustafsson opened the scoring in the first period to give Chicago the lead but Nathan MacKinnon knotted the match in the second frame. After a scoreless third stanza, Jonathan Toews scored the overtime tally for Chicago to take a 2-1 victory.

What To Watch

Leading The Way
Nathan MacKinnon continued his 12-game point streak (13 goals and 11 assists) on Sunday and has had two, three-point performances in the last week. The forward has had three or more points in 13 outings this year, the most three-point contests by an NHL player this season and the most by a Colorado skater since Peter Forsberg did it 14 times in 2002-03.
MacKinnon is tied for second overall in league scoring with 89 points (38 goals and 51 assists) and the forward leads all players with 1.39 points per game. MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen have 18 points apiece in the month of March, tied for the most among all skaters this month.
On The Road Again
Colorado has earned a point in four consecutive road games, as well as six of its last seven away from the Mile High City. The Avalanche is 14-16-6 away from Pepsi Center this season and has five remaining games as the visiting team. The Avs have recorded a power-play goal in three of its last four road outings and the penalty-kill unit has only given up one goal in 13 shorthanded situations during this span.

Player To Watch

Colorado: Defenseman Tyson Barrie
Tyson Barrie has at least a point in 10 consecutive games, the most straight games in his career and the longest by a defenseman in Avalanche history (since 1995-96). During his streak, he has five goals and eight assists and now has 50 points this campaign, making him just the fourth D-man in franchise history to produce two 50-point seasons. Barrie is currently 11th among league blueliners in scoring with 11 goals and 39 assists.
Chicago: Right Wing Alex DeBrincat
Coming off a hat trick on Sunday, Alex DeBrincat is fourth in scoring for Chicago with 45 points (25 goals and 20 assists). The right wing is first in points for rookies on the Blackhawks and tied for fifth in the league for first year skaters.

The Details

Puck drop for Tuesday's contest is slated for 6:30 p.m. MT. The game can be watched live locally on Altitude and the radio broadcast can be heard on Altitude Sports Radio AM 950.