Avs Look to Keep Pace in California

CENTENNIAL, Colo.--Winners of three straight on the road and with points in each of its last six contests away from Pepsi Center, the Colorado Avalanche looks to keep it solid play in visiting barns going this weekend with two games in California.
Colorado is 6-1-1 in its last eight games and its six-game road point streak (3-0-3) matches a season high. The Avs begin their trek on Friday night at the San Jose Sharks and will play the Anaheim Ducks in a Sunday matinee before returning to Denver.
"I think our commitment to defend on the road has been really good recently," J.T. Compher said following Thursday's practice at Family Sports Center. "We're limiting some good teams to not having a lot of scoring chances, and it's a good recipe to get a win."

The Avalanche presently holds the second wild-card position in the Western Conference standings and is tied with the rival Minnesota Wild with 68 points. Colorado is one point up on the Dallas Stars and has a two-point lead on the 10th-place Arizona Coyotes.
While neither the Sharks or Ducks are clubs the Avs are directly competing with for a playoff spot, head coach Jared Bednar still called both games must wins.
"We're trying to drive the best out of our team on a nightly basis," Bednar said. "Sometimes it's better than others, but the results are the most important thing right now. We're going on the road with the intent of winning both these games. That is how we have to approach it. The standings are too tight, you can't take any days off."
Colorado had nearly its entire team participate in the 30-minute practice session, with the only healthy skater not taking the ice being defenseman Erik Johnson, who was held off for a maintenance day.
Bednar did not give his starting netminder for either contest on the club's road trip, but he did mention that he might split starts between Semyon Varlamov and Philipp Grubauer. Varlamov has played 11 of the Avs' last 12 outings, while Grubauer recorded a 38-save shutout in his last appearance on Sunday at the Nashville Predators.

COLE AVAILABLE

Defenseman Ian Cole was a full participant in Thursday's practice, and he could make his return to the lineup on Friday night.
Cole has missed the last three weeks and 11 games with an upper-body injury that he suffered on Feb. 7 at the Washington Capitals.

The Avalanche has been playing the same six defensemen since Cole's injury, and Bednar noted that he doesn't know which one he will scratch when Cole returns. The Colorado coach also said that Cole's addition will make everyone on the backend better with the increase in competition for ice time.
"The team has been playing good, Coler gets hurt," Bednar said of the challenge of sitting one of the club's reliable D-men. "Obviously [Cole is] a veteran guy and reliable guy for us. Just take it day-by-day and see how guys do. It should drive the best out of them."
Cole, who is donning a full-face shield on his helmet, has 10 points (goal and nine assists) is 53 games this season and leads the team in penalty minutes (94), blocked shots (137) and average short-handed ice time per game (3:32).

LONG-TERM INJURY UPDATES

Out indefinitely with a shoulder injury since getting hurt in early December, forward Vladislav Kamenev has been doing off-ice workouts with the club, but it's still unknown if he will be able to return to action this season.
"It's good. He's in the gym right now working out," Bednar said. "He's been around and has been doing lots of work off the ice. That will continue for quite some time."
Kamenev had two goals and three assists before getting hurt in the game at the Tampa Bay Lightning on Dec. 8.
Defenseman Conor Timmins has been on the Avalanche's injured non-roster list all season, but he continues to participate in nearly every team on-ice session, albeit in a red, non-contact jersey.
Timmins hasn't played since suffering a concussion in the Ontario Hockey League Playoffs last spring, and Bednar isn't sure if the rear guard will see game action at any level during the 2018-19 campaign.
"The season is dwindling down, and he's still in a red jersey," Bednar said. "I feel like he's making progress. I think our medical staff feels like he's making progress. He feels like he's making progress. He's taken some hits, accidental and some controlled contact, and he keeps coming the next day ready to practice. I just don't know how we get him into a game. He's on his own timetable right now. When he feels well enough to play and well enough to go in a regular jersey and non-symptomatic, then we'll do that. But I can't tell you when that is."
Bednar did say that Timmins will join the Colorado Eagles of the American Hockey League this weekend for practice while the Avalanche is on the road. Timmins made a similar trek three weeks ago when the Avalanche had a three-game road trip on the East Coast.

QUOTABLES

Forward Colin Wilson on the team creating quality chances against the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday night: "If the chances are there, it shows you're doing the right things. We had a lot of good chances last night, should have been more than two-to-one. I know I have one I want back, so at least they're there."

Forward J.T. Compher on the locker room vibe currently:"I think confidence has gone up and we always had that belief that we could get it back on track. It's a lot more fun when you're playing good hockey and getting wins."

Head Coach Jared Bednar on having Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen taking the opening faceoff versus the Canucks:"I just wanted to start. The message to our team is we can't wade into games. I remember multiple, multiple, dozens of games last year at home where we came out firing on all cylinders, and it started with our first shift."