Wednesday night preview: Colorado Avalanche lock horns with the Tampa Bay Lightning

The Colorado Avalanche will face off against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday night at Ball Arena.

The Avs will be looking to start a new win streak as their previous one was snapped against the Chicago Blackhawks in the club’s last outing. The disappointing 5-2 loss set the Avalanche back to a 5-5 mark. Nevertheless, the remarkable turnaround has enabled the Avs to climb out of the Central Division cellar.

Meanwhile, the 6-3 Lightning have been largely inconsistent this season. They have beaten good teams such as the Carolina Hurricanes, but have lost to clubs like the Ottawa Senators and Minnesota Wild. In their last outing, the Lightning edged the underachieving Nashville Predators 3-2.

With that in mind, here’s a look at three key points heading into tonight’s matchup:

3 key points ahead of Wednesday night’s Colorado Avalanche-Tampa Bay Lightning tilt

The injury back continues to plague the Avs

This year’s revelation, Ross Colton, will be out of the lineup for the next six to eight weeks with a broken foot. The devastating news puts the Avs in another tough spot as the club deals with a plethora of injuries. Colton suffered the injury after blocking a shot during the Avs’ last game against the Blackhawks. He was seen in a walking boot following the game.

Currently, Jonathan Drouin, Artturi Lehkonen, and Miles Wood are on the shelf. Wood is listed as day-to-day, while Lehkonen and Drouin are still some time away from returning to the ice.

Lineup shuffling for the Avs

The Colton injury forces the Avs to make some lineup shuffling. That shuffling includes moving Nikolai Kovalenko to the top line. Ivan Ivan could get a look on the second line with blue liner Oliver Kylington skating as a forward.

Also, T.J. Tynan was recalled from the AHL and should sake on the fourth line with Chris Wagner and Matt Stienburg. The creative lineup changes are born out of necessity as they juggle with players on the mend.

Kahkonen to get the start

The Denver Post’s Corey Masisak reported that Kaapo Kahkonen will make his debut with the Colorado Avalanche with Alexandar Georgiev backing him up. As such, Justus Annunen will be a healthy scratch. Per Masisak, the move responds to the Avs carrying three goaltenders at the moment.  

In my estimation, Wednesday night’s game against the Lightning could be Kahkonen’s big audition. If he plays well, the Avs could make a decision on whether to keep Georgiev with the team or potentially send him down to the AHL on a conditioning stint as my colleague Sean McKenna has pointed out.