Avs Begin Two-Game Set Against Coyotes

The Colorado Avalanche faces the Arizona Coyotes on Monday in the first contest of a two-game set at Ball Arena.
The Avs (13-7-2) are coming off a 5-4 overtime loss against the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday. Mikko Rantanen registered his second multi-goal performance in his last three games, tallying one on the power play for his team-best fifth man-advantage marker. Samuel Girard and Nazem Kadri both finished with two assists, while Brandon Saad and Logan O'Connor added a goal each. Goaltender Hunter Miska made 22 saves in his fourth appearance of the campaign.

Arizona rallied from a two-goal deficit to score five straight markers in a 5-2 victory over the Minnesota Wild on Saturday. Tyler Pitlick collected two goals, with Conor Garland (one goal, one assist), Niklas Hjalmarsson (two assists), Clayton Keller (two assists) and Derick Brassard (two assists) all earning multi-point performances. Netminder Darcy Kuemper denied 32-of-34 shots.
Monday's meeting is the Avalanche's third contest of its season-long, nine-game homestand.

Avalanche vs. Arizona Coyotes

Ball Arena | Denver, Colo.
| Game Time: | 7:00 p.m. | | --- | --- | | TV: | Altitude (blackouts apply), Fox Sports-Arizona (ARI), | | Radio: | Altitude Sports Radio, FM 92.5 (KKSE) | | Live Streams: | AltitudeNow.com, ESPN+, Official app (blackouts apply to all) | | Online Audio: | Listen Live Here | | Follow: | @Avalanche, Official app, Gamecenter |

COLORADO-ARIZONA CONNECTIONS

Colorado netminder Hunter Miska was a part of the Coyotes organization from 2017-2019… Arizona's Derick Brassard finished the 2018-19 season with the Avalanche… Arizona head coach Rick Tocchet was an assistant coach for Colorado from 2002-2004.

HISTORY

Colorado swept the first two-game set against the Coyotes as it defeated the club in back-to-back contests, 3-2 on Feb. 26 and 5-2 on Feb. 27 at Gila River Arena. The Avalanche has won seven out of the last 10 matchups versus Arizona and three out of five at Ball Arena. Mikko Rantanen (one goal, three assists) leads the squad in scoring when facing the Coyotes this season, while Nazem Kadri (one goal, two assists) and Andre Burakovsky (one goal, two assists) are tied for second in offensive production. Goalie Philipp Grubauer is undefeated versus the club in an Avalanche sweater, sporting a 3-0-0 record with a .927 save percentage and 2.54 goals-against average.
The Avs boast a 49-30-10 all-time record against Arizona (since 1995-96), including a 24-13-6 mark at home.

ROSTER REPORT

Colorado had an off day on Sunday, so its lineup likely won't be known until after morning skate. Jayson Megna suited up in his third contest of the year on Saturday, as J.T. Compher missed his first matchup this season with an upper-body injury. Goaltender Philipp Grubauer is expected to start in between the pipes.

INJURY UPDATE

Head coach Jared Bednar said after Saturday's contest that Nathan MacKinnon (upper body) and Bowen Byram (upper body) were planning on skating on their own on Sunday, but it is unknown if the two will be available for the game. Matt Calvert (upper body) was questionable to join that group in skating on Sunday. Cale Makar remains day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Pavel Francouz (lower body) and Erik Johnson (upper body) are both out long term with injuries. Dennis Gilbert is on the NHL's COVID-19 protocol list and is also dealing with an upper-body ailment.

SCOUTING THE COYOTES

Arizona holds an 11-10-3 mark through the first 24 games of the season, with a 4-3-0 record on the road and is tied with the Los Angeles Kings for the fifth spot in the West Division with 25 points. In 43 all-time games on the road versus the Avalanche (since 1995-96), the Coyotes own a 17-19-7 record, registering 2.56 goals per game, a 13.6 power play-success rate and an 82.0 penalty-kill percentage. In the last five contests at Ball Arena, the club has a 2-1-2 mark.
Arizona sports the eighth-best penalty kill in the league, extinguishing 82.7 percent of its penalties. On the road, the squad's man-down unit ranks first in the NHL, killing penalties at a 90.9-percent clip.

(OPPOSING) PLAYER TO WATCH: OLIVER EKMAN-LARSSON

Oliver Ekman-Larsson has recorded nine assists in 14 games this season, tied with Nick Schmaltz for fifth in helpers on the Coyotes. The defenseman is in his 11th NHL season--all with Arizona--and has tallied 373 points (125 goals, 248 assists) in 737 career games. Ekman-Larsson ranks third in all-time scoring by a Coyotes player (since 1996-97) and is six points away from tying Jeremy Roenick for second place. He ranks second in assists and first in points by a defenseman in Arizona history.
In 31 all-time meetings against the Avs, the Yotes captain has compiled six tallies and nine helpers, which is tied for first in scoring (Teppo Numminen) and leads all defensemen in an Arizona jersey in goals versus the club.

NUMBERS GAME

6

The Avs have notched a power-play marker in six out of the last seven outings, going 6-for-24 (25 percent) in that span. The club's 23.5 percent man-advantage percentage is the 13th-best in the league.

55

Colorado has allowed only 55 goals this season, tied for the fifth-fewest tallies in the league with the New York Islanders. The club's 2.50 goals-against average ranks sixth in the NHL.

100

Samuel Girard picked up his 100th career NHL point on Saturday, coming on his first of two assists on the night. Girard has tallied 16 goals and 85 assists in 245 career games, including four goals and 13 assists this season.

NOTEBOOK

The Avalanches holds a 5-3-1 mark at Ball Arena this season and is a 2-2-1 in its last five games on home ice… Colorado is 2-2 in contests that have gone beyond 60 minutes this year… Philipp Grubauer's 12 wins are tied for the second-most in the NHL with the Vegas Golden Knights' Marc-Andre Fleury and Toronto Maple Leafs' Frederik Andersen… Logan O'Connor scored his third goal of the season on Saturday, eclipsing his career-best two tallies he produced in 2019-20… Nazem Kadri has registered five points (all assists) in his last four games and nine points (two goals, seven assists) over his last seven outings… Brandon Saad's eight goals rank second on the team and all have come at even strength, the most on the Avs in the category.