Colorado Faces Calgary In First Game After Break

The Colorado Avalanche plays its first game following the NHL's holiday break on Tuesday night, hosting the Calgary Flames at Pepsi Center. It will be the first of three matchups this season and the only time the Flames visit the Mile High City. Colorado's remaining two contests against Calgary--on Jan. 4 and March 27--will both be played on the road.
The Avalanche is 54-46-10 all-time against the Flames and 28-22-6 on home ice in the series. Colorado has won five of the last eight meetings against its former Northwest Division rivals at Pepsi Center.

Last Time Out

Colorado closed out the pre-holiday portion of its schedule with a much-needed 2-1 overtime win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday night at the United Center. Calvin Pickard finished with 38 saves and Nathan MacKinnon recorded his third game-winning goal of the season when he scored just 25 seconds into the extra frame.
The Flames also entered the holiday break with a win, topping the Vancouver Canucks 4-1 on Friday night. The Canucks struck first and led 1-0 after the opening period, but Calgary scored four unanswered to take the win. Four different Calgary players finished with multiple-point games, led by Mark Giordano's two markers and Mikael Backlund's goal and two assists.

Last Time They Met

The Avalanche and the Flames last played on March 18, 2016 at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, with Colorado taking a 4-3 shootout victory. The Avs trailed by two goals early in the second period and entered the final frame of regulation still down by one tally. Carl Soderberg potted the equalizer near the midway point of the frame, and the Avalanche eventually won in the skills competition.

What to Watch

Calgary Power Play
While the Flames' power play ranks 15th in the league with an 18.8 percent rate of success, it's been hot in the month of December, scoring on 36.8 percent of its man-advantage opportunities.
Colborne Takes on Former Team
Avalanche center Joe Colborne, who hails from Calgary, played the last three seasons with the Flames before signing with the Avalanche as a free agent this summer. He recorded 100 points (37 goals, 63 assists) in 217 contests with Calgary and plays his first game against his former team on Tuesday night.
Carrying Momentum
The Avalanche looks to carry some momentum from Friday night's 2-1 overtime victory over the Chicago Blackhawks into the next portion of the season. Colorado sits in last place in the Western Conference, but with 10 points separating them from a potential wild card spot, going on a run and fighting their way back into the playoff race isn't out of the question.
"Now we got to find a way to duplicate that performance and repeat it over and over again," head coach Jared Bednar said following Friday's game. "To me, that is the standard of our team, and we haven't met it enough."

Player to Watch

Colorado: Right wing Jarome Iginla
Iginla was tied with Tyson Barrie and Nathan MacKinnon for the team lead with four points against his former team in the three-game season series in 2015-16. Iginla is one point away from passing Alex Delvecchio and taking sole possession of 34th place on the NHL's all-time scoring list.
Calgary: Left wing Matt Tkachuk
Tkachuk ranks sixth in the league in rookie scoring with 19 points (seven goals, 12 assists) this season and enters Tuesday's game riding a three-game point streak. He's recorded seven points (one goal, six assists) in his last six outings.

The Details

Colorado and Calgary square off at 7 p.m. MT, and tickets are still available. The game can be watched live on Altitude TV and can be heard on Altitude Sports Radio AM950 and online at ColoradoAvalanche.com.