Morning Skate Report: Road Warriors in Nashville

NASHVILLE, Tenn.--The Colorado Avalanche has won four-straight road contests and shares the league lead for the most road points earned on the season, but it's not like the team has a choice. The Avs need to win these important games during their current road-heavy schedule.
The Avalanche aims to continue that road-warrior mentality tonight as the club faces the Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Arena.

"The majority of our games have been on the road, and if we didn't have a good road record then we would be in trouble," said defenseman Erik Johnson. "We're treating the games with a lot of importance right now, like every game. We also realize that the majority of our games are coming away from Pepsi Center, so we got to make sure that we're taking care of those games because we're going to have a pretty home-heavy schedule down the road."
Colorado is in a stretch that has the squad playing 19-of-28 outings away from its friendly confines. The club will play half of its road games for the season by mid-December, with this evening's matchup versus the Predators being the 15th away from the Mile High City.
The Avalanche has had success in visiting barns with an 8-4-2 record and is coming off a 3-0-0 road trip that saw the team make stops in Anaheim, Los Angeles and Arizona. It was the club's first perfect three-game road swing since Dec. 12-15, 2015 (at Nashville, St. Louis and Chicago).

"I think our last road trip was really successful. We're getting to establishing our game right away and getting leads when we need them and scoring big goals and having some comebacks when we need them too," said forward Matt Nieto. "We've done a good job on the road so far, and we got to keep it up."
The Avs have also been strong at Pepsi Center, going 5-2-2 on the campaign, and are now 6-0-1 in their last seven overall games. They are presently third in the Central Division.
Their current four-game road winning streak, which began on Nov. 11 in Edmonton, is the longest since 2015-16 (Dec. 12-15 and 28). Colorado's 18 road points are tied with the Toronto Maple Leafs for first in the entire NHL.
"I'm proud of our guys, the way we're playing," said head coach Jared Bednar. "One of the things last year was that we wanted to mirror what we have been doing at home [on the road]: getting good starts, staying committed to our team game and sort of building an identity. I thought we did that at home, and we were so-so on the road.
"This year, because of the schedule, we've been out on the road a lot here early, and we've found some different ways to win. We're getting contributions from a bunch of different lines, so I think it's real important for us to grow as a team that we find a way to win on the road and win in tough buildings like this."

The Predators will be a good challenge for the Avalanche, as the defending Presidents' Trophy winners are currently first in the NHL standings and own a 9-3-0 mark at Bridgestone Arena. Nashville defeated Colorado 4-1 earlier this season on Nov. 7 in Denver.
"We know these guys come out hard in this building, tough place to play," Nieto said of the Predators, a club the Avs know well from their first-round series in last year's Stanley Cup Playoffs. "Just got to get that energy right away and try and take it away from them. Hopefully, we get on the board early."
Colorado will get some home cooking in a few weeks when it begins a four-game stint at Pepsi Center from Dec. 15-21, but until then, there is still plenty of work to be done on the road.

END OF THE DAD TRIP

Tuesday marks the last day of the Avalanche's dad/mentor trip, and the players are having just as good of time as their guests.
"It's really special. I think all of us in this room wouldn't be playing pro hockey if it wasn't for them," said Nieto, who has his dad Jesse with him in Nashville. "We're grateful to have them here and see what we do on a regular day, game day, and we're excited to have them in the building tonight and hopefully get a win."

The fathers have been getting an inside look at what the players do on the road. From their preparation on practice and game days to hotels and team meals, they've seen it all. The group also had a little fun on Monday at the Country Music Hall of Fame.
"They get see the behind the scenes stuff, see the meetings," said Johnson, whose father Bruce is on his second Avalanche road trip. "They get to see the intricate details of a day-to-day basis and how we live our lives. It's fun for them to be able to see it.
"It's good to do these. I think it brings the guys closer together and you get to meet other guys' dads and see where they come from and hear about themselves. We've enjoyed it."

COMPHER ROLLING

Forward J.T. Compher missed 16 games with a head injury, but his strong play has continued in his first two games back in the lineup.
Compher has three goals in the two outings, has tallied in three straight contests (four goals) and is on a four game-point streak (four goals and one assist). He scored the game-tying marker late in the third period on Saturday versus the Stars.
For the season, the Northbrook, Illinois, native has seven points (six goals and an assist) in seven contests. He will likely center Colorado's fourth line this evening with Sven Andrighetto and Gabriel Bourque on his wings.

LINEUP NOTES

Tyson Barrie will miss his first game of the season on Tuesday with an injury (undisclosed). He did not practice on Monday in Nashville.
Defenseman Mark Barberio will take Barrie's spot in the lineup after being a healthy scratch for the past four games.
Semyon Varlamov will start in net for Colorado, while forwards Sheldon Dries and Vladislav Kamenev will be scratched.
VIEW: Avalanche Projected Lineup at Predators