The Colorado Avalanche have dropped their past two games, against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Nashville Predators. They will look to get back in their winning ways on Monday afternoon against the Washington Capitals. The Avs trail in the series at 38-48-9, though they are 4-1 in their last five meetings.
Colorado leads the league in wins and points, and has a commanding lead in the league.
Washington is 24-19-0-6 this year and are 10th in the Eastern Conference with 54 points. They have a 2-3 record in their last five games.
The Avs will rely on their star players, along with their depth, to knock off the Capitals. Here are three players that need to play well for the Avs to come away with the victory.
1. Scott Wedgewood
Scott Wedgewood should be in net for the Avalanche this afternoon. He has a 19-3-0-4 record this season, helping the Avs win 57.7 percent of their games so far. He also has two shutouts this season, while giving up a 2.19 goals-against average (he’s made 715 saves so far).
Wedgewood was a key piece the Avs added last season, along with Mackenzie Blackwood. The Avalanche have relied on their new goaltending room, especially when some key players have been out of the lineup. Today, and for the next while, the Avs will be without Gabriel Landeskog and Devon Toews—two key losses. Both were named to their respective country’s Olympic roster. Hopefully they both are able to go and contribute.
Both of the team’s goalies have a chip on their shoulder after they got passed up when it came time to vote for the Canadian goalies headed to the 2026 Olympics. They might be well passed thinking about it at this point, but if not, it might be in the back of their minds. They’ll want to prove that it was the wrong decision to pass on them.
Wedgewood will go up against the all-time goal scorer today in Alexander Ovechkin. Ovechkin has 12 goals and 10 assists in 27 career games against the Avalanche, and it won’t be an easy task for the Avs’ defense, especially without Devon Toews.
2. Nathan MacKinnon
Nathan MacKinnon has 36 goals and 46 assists so far this season and although it appears likely he will not reach 50 goals before the Olympic break, he’s still having a superb season. He is on pace for 64 goals and 82 assists and could be in line for another Hart trophy.
Against the Capitals all-time, MacKinnon has 11 goals and 17 assists in 28 games. On January 24, 2024, MacKinnon recorded a four-goal game. Perhaps he can repeat that type of performance today.
He is the best player in the league and is a big reason why the Avalanche are in the position they are.
3. Jack Drury
With Toews and Landeskog out of the lineup, other players need to pick up the slack. Jack Drury is somebody who might need to have a solid game. I’m not talking about a hat trick for the third-liner, but even one goal and one or two assists could be what puts Colorado over the top against the Capitals.
Drury has seven goals and eight assists in 46 games this year. He has 53 shots and 42 blocks this year, which is always important in a depth role. He has gone six games without scoring a goal, which is not ideal. It has to change and the best time for it to change is right now.
An honorable mention is Parker Kelly, who eight goals and eight assists in 46 games this season. Maybe if Drury has a solid game, Kelly will feed off of that and contribute.