Why Wins are More Important on Avs 3-Game Road Trip

The Avalanche are on the road for a three-game stint, playing a mix of division rivals. All wins are important, but who they beat is also significant.

On Wednesday night, they face off against the Chicago Blackhawks, the last team in the NHL, and then the Minnesota Wild on Thursday night, on a back-to-back. The Wild are three points ahead of the Avs as of Tuesday afternoon and play the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday night.

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Colorado and Winnipeg play for the third time this season at Canada Life Centre on Saturday night. The Jets are No. 1 in the Central Division and five points ahead of the Avs, as of Tuesday ahead of their matchup with the Predators.

“The Blackhawks have been playing some better hockey here recently, and two teams we’re chasing so it’s not just how many games you win,” head coach Jared Bednar said. “I say this to our guys all the time — it’s which games you win as well. And if you’re trying to catch Minnesota and Winnipeg, and they’re not losing a lot to anybody else, then it’s up to us to go try and beat them and those are four-point games, so we’ve done a good job of that recently.”

The Blackhawks have half as many points as the Jets but that is also the kind of team the Avs could fall to. With nothing to lose, they may play with more passion and hunger to beat a highly skilled team like the Avalanche, as seen by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2-1 shootout loss on Saturday night.

“Tomorrow is important to try to get to our game right away. You know, sometimes when you play bottom or the teams that are below you, or bottom in the standings, you could get a little sloppy or loose or something,” Mikko Rantanen said. “So we got to be on our toes right away and play like it’s very important game at this time of the year.”

The Avs have only lost one game in their last eight and are in the No. 3 spot in the Central Division. When they return from the three-game road trip they have a five-game homestand  — the longest of the season.