The Colorado Avalanche take on the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena in a huge playoff test for both clubs. The last time these two teams met, the Avalanche won a wild comeback win on March 8 at Ball Arena.
Valeri Nichushkin had a whale of a game, notching his first career hat trick as the Avs erased a 4-2 deficit and turned it into a 7-4 win. Nathan MacKinnon also had a two-goal game as the Avs beat one of the Eastern Conference’s best teams.
This time around, the Leafs will be motivated to get revenge for last game’s gut-wrenching loss. So, the Avs will need to be on their best game. But considering how well the Avalanche have played since the trade deadline, it won’t be hard to see the team come out guns blazing from the opening faceoff.
The Avs are 8-1-1 in their last 10 riding a two-game winning streak. In that span, the Avs have outscored opponents 41-20 while scoring 10 power play goals. Plus, the Avs followed up the 7-4 win against Toronto with a 3-0 shutout against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Overall, the Avs are rolling at this point. The club seems to be getting hot at the right time. As such, it remains to be seen if the Avs can catch the Dallas Stars for second place in the Central Division.
If that’s the case, the Avs can wrestle home-ice advantage from Dallas for the first round of this year’s NHL playoffs.
Looking at the Colorado Avalanche lineup against Toronto Maple Leafs
There are no major changes expected for the Colorado Avalanche in their Wednesday night tilt against the Maple Leafs. The top line will likely feature MacKinnon alongside Artturi Lehkonen and Martin Necas.
The second unit should consist of Jonathan Drouin and Valeri Nuchushkin with Brock Nelson down the middle. This unit hasn’t gotten as much attention as it should. They have been playing very well, with Nelson quietly becoming the anchor in the Avs’ top six.
The bottom six looks dangerous with Charlie Coyle centering Joel Kiviranta and Ross Colton. Lastly, the fourth line looks solid with Jack Drury leading Parker Kelly and Logan O’Connor.
The defensive pairings look solid as Devon Toews plays alongside Norris Trophy candidate Cale Makar. Ryan Lindgren and Sam Malinski move up to the second pair with Samuel Girard and Erik Johnson rounding out the blue line.
Josh Manson has been week-to-week with an upper-body injury. So, he’ll likely be ready at some point during the postseason.
Lastly, MacKenzie Blackwood should be back between the pipes as he missed his last start with an illness. Otherwise, Scott Wedgewood will get the call, though there hasn’t been any indication that Blackwood won’t be ready for Wednesday night.
Overall, fans should not expect any major lineup changes against the Toronto Maple Leafs. As it stands, this could be the lineup that hits the ice for Game 1 of the NHL playoffs in about four weeks.