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Avalanche Pregame Notes

Avalanche Game 53 vs St. Louis Blues, Necas, Drury Home Debut! Lines, Notes & How to Watch

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The Colorado Avalanche (29-21-2) open a two-game homestand against the St. Louis Blues (23-24-4) on Friday. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:08 p.m. MT.



READ MORE: Rantanen Deal Signals Change: Why MacFarland Should Be Rewarded With Patience (+)

Martin Necas and Jack Drury are set to make their home debuts with the Avs. After both were held off the scoresheet in their first road game, they’ve each produced in the last two games, with Necas recording four assists and Drury scoring twice. The two met with media at Family Sports on Thursday after their first practice.

Colorado is hoping to shake off what’s been an inconsistent stretch over the past few weeks. Usually, a team exiting a slump starts to string together a few good games but doesn’t necessarily get the results. That’s what the road trip felt like. And now the Avalanche have an opportunity to pounce on a struggling team.

Mackenzie Blackwood gets the nod in goal, making his third consecutive start. Blackwood has had a rocky stretch of games given the Avs’ inconsistencies. He’s 1-3-1 in his last five starts and has given up at three goals in each game.

No other roster changes are expected for the Avs since their loss to the Islanders other than the goalie switch. Kraton Middleton is again expected to sit in favor of Calvin de Haan, who again joins Sam Malinski on the third pair.

READ MORE: What Helped Necas and Drury Adjust Quickly to Avalanche

St. Louis has lost three straight games in regulation and is looking to bounce back. Jim Montgomery’s club has just four wins over the last 10, falling seven points out of the final wildcard position.

This is also the Blues’ first game without Brandon Saad. Ever since the forward signed with the team in 2021, he’s been a staple of their top nine. However, after placing the former Av on waivers, the team and player mutually agreed to terminate his contract rather than have the veteran assigned to the AHL. Saad became a free agent today.

This is the first of four meetings between the two clubs. They’ll have each other once in January, February, March, and April.

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Season Series

  • Jan. 31 vs St. Louis Blues
  • Feb. 23 at St. Louis Blues
  • March 29 vs St. Louis Blues
  • April 5 at St. Louis Blues

Avalanche Injuries

  • Valeri Nichushkin (lower body, week-to-week)
  • Oliver Kylington (upper body, nearing return)
  • Gabriel Landeskog (knee, no timetable)

Projected Avalanche Lines (subject to change)

Jonathan Drouin โ€” Nathan MacKinnon โ€” Martin Necas
Juuso Parssinen โ€” Casey Mittelstadt โ€” Artturi Lehkonen
Miles Wood โ€“ Jack Drury โ€“ย  Ross Colton
Joel Kiviranta โ€” Parker Kelly โ€” Logan Oโ€™Connor

Devon Toews โ€” Cale Makar
Samuel Girard โ€” Josh Manson
Calvin de Haan โ€” Sam Malinski

Scott Wedgewood
Mackenzie Blackwood

Projected Starters (subject to change)

  • Confirmed: Mackenzie Blackwood (COL)
  • Unconfirmed: Jordan Binnington (STL)

Upcoming Milestones

  • Devon Toews โ€” needs 1 assist for 200
  • Nathan MacKinnon โ€” needs 4 PPG for 100
  • Logan Oโ€™Connor โ€” needs 4 points for 100
  • Mackenzie Blackwood โ€” needs 9 wins for 100

How to Watch

  • TV: Altitude Sports
  • Radio: 92.5 FM

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