Colorado Avalanche: Key Points to Beat the New York Islanders
The Colorado Avalanche hope to keep their 2020 winning streak going by beating the New York Islanders tonight at Nassau Coliseum.
The Colorado Avalanche are rolling hot in 2020. They’ve played two games in this brand new decade, and they’ve won both. They beat the St. Louis Blues at home and the Devils in New Jersey.
Well, as alternate captain Erik Johnson pointed out in a post-game presser, it’s not like the Avs want to peak too early — they want to peak at the right time. And that’s a couple months away as they’re heading into the playoffs. Nonetheless, a little January winning streak never hurt anybody.
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Besides, tonight is the first game of a back-to-back New York series. They’ll be playing in Nassau Coliseum instead of Barclays Center tonight before heading over to Madison Square Garden tomorrow.
The Avalanche, of course, are chasing the Blues for the top spot in the Central Division, if not the whole Western Conference. The Islanders currently sit in the third seed of the Metropolitan Division. They’re coming off being shut out by the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday.
Well, let’s look at some keys to how the Avs can take tonight’s game, too.
High-Octane Offense
The Colorado Avalanche’s best tool is their high-octane offense. Now that the team is healthy, they really have some precious offensive gems.
The Islanders can put up some numbers. They’re at a +10 goals differential. The Avs, though, are at +32. So, if it becomes a high-scoring affair, that could favor the Avalanche.
Old Friends and Goalies
Actually, they’re the same person. Tonight marks the first time the Colorado Avalanche will face old buddy and former goalie Semyon Varlamov since losing him in free agency over the summer.
Varlamov had a bit of a rough start with his new team, but he’s flying now. He’s 22-14-5 with a save percentage of .920. We’re going to need Philipp Grubauer, if the’s the starting goalie, to be better. He’s at 25-12-9 with a save percentage of .911.
Semyon Varlamov started the last two games (and lost) for the Islanders, so no telling if he’ll even get the nod tonight. For the Islanders’ sake, they should start him thanks to the curse of the former Avs. For our sake… bring on Thomas Greiss.
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How to Enjoy the Game
Game Time: Jan. 6, 5:00 pm MT
TV: Alt, SN (Islanders’ feed)
Radio: Altitude Radio (FM 92.5/AM 950)