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| COLORADO AVALANCHE |
| 5–4–1 (11 points) |
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2:00 P.M. – SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 5 NOKIA ARENA TAMPERE, FINLAND |
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Bally Sports Ohio ESPN+ (Out of Market) NHL Network |
No pressure, but when Columbus and Colorado meet again Saturday afternoon in Tampere, Finland, the Blue Jackets will be looking to avoid something they haven't done since April of 2021: lose five straight games in regulation.
The losing streak hit four games Friday in a 6-3 loss to the Avalanche. Credit when it's due to Columbus — they turned a 3-0 deficit early in the second period into a tie game with only about ten minutes remaining. But the Avalanche would score a pair of quick goals in the middle of the third and add an empty-netter late to get doubled-up by the defending Stanley Cup champions.
Now, the Blue Jackets will look to return the favor when the clubs conclude a two-game set in Europe.
| CBJ | SEASON STATS | COL |
|---|---|---|
| 2.64 | GOALS FOR | 3.40 |
| 4.55 | GOALS AGAINST | 3.00 |
| 3.1% | POWER PLAY | 39.4% |
| 78.4% | PENALTY KILL | 72.5% |
| 30.5 | SHOTS FOR | 31.7 |
| 34.6 | SHOTS AGAINST | 33.6 |
| 45.3% | CF% (EVEN) | 51.2% |
| 50.9% | FACEOFF % | 44.5% |
| PROJECTIONS | ||
| ODDS OF CBJ WIN PER MONEYPUCK | 31.0% | |
| ODDS OF CBJ WIN PER THE 538 | 31.0% | |
| CAESAR'S SPORTSBOOK BETTING | COL -250 | |
| AVALANCHE: LAST THREE GAMES | ||
| FRI, 10/28 | @ NEW JERSEY | L, 1-0 |
| SAT, 10/29 | @ NY ISLANDERS | L, 5-4 |
| FRI, 11/4 | VS. COLUMBUS | W, 6-3 |
| AVALANCHE: TEAM LEADERS | ||
| GOALS |
VALERI NICHUSHKIN, MIKKO RANTANEN |
7 |
| ASSISTS | NATHAN MACKINNON | 13 |
| POINTS | NATHAN MACKINNON | 16 |
TALKING POINTS: AVALANCHE
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With Alexandar Georgiev getting Friday's start, it seems most likely that Pavel Francouz will be in net for the Avalanche in Saturday's Finland finale. The numbers aren't drastically different between the two, but at 3.08 and .898, the goals against average and save percentage are slightly lower than that of Georgiev (2.81, .918%).
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Friday's game marked just the third time in Nathan MacKinnon's career that he had four assists in a game. He leads the team with 13 helpers on the season and is second in the league, trailing only Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers.
- The talk of Tampere has been native son Patrik Laine, but Mikko Rantanen is from just two hours south in Nousiainen, Finland. Rantanen picked up a hat trick Friday, the fourth of his career. Look for him to finish strong in Saturday's game.
STORYLINES
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BUILDING BLOCKS
Unlike Sunday's lifeless loss to the New Jersey Devils, there were positives to take away from the first half of the Tampere two-step. The Blue Jackets scored a power play goal and sometimes it just takes one to get things rolling. The fourth line played admirably and had one of their best efforts of the season, both in effort and from a statistical standpoint. They battled back from a 3-0 deficit and had a chance to take the lead at the midpoint of the third period. There was a level of fight that wasn't there pre-Finland; if it sticks around, this time will find a way to win some games.
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MINOR POINT OF STRESS
There's no reason to panic, but, it's worth noting that Johnny Gaudreau might be in his first slump as a member of the Blue Jackets. In his last 118 minutes on the ice, Gaudreau has one goal — and that came in the third period of a game that Columbus trailed 5-0 at home. He's had some decent opportunities, particular in Friday's first game from Finland, but finding the back of the net Saturday would be (at the very least) a moral boost.
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LAINE WATCH
After just missing picking up the team's first power play goal of the season (it was ever-so-slightly tipped by Jakub Voracek), Laine scored a goal in his hometown in the second period of Friday's loss — and it was a great moment for both him and those in attendance. Can the Tampere native make it two in a row Saturday?
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GOTTA FIGURE OUT THIS GOALIE THING, SOON.
The numbers — both basic and advanced — show that Elvis Merzlikins has been one of the worst goaltenders in the NHL through the first month of the season. In fact, most show that he's been the worst. Daniil Tarasov has looked relatively fine, but it's no secret that the team would like him to spend more time in Cleveland before a potential call-up. Joonas Korpisalo is now healthy, and as of Friday night, he appears to be Saturday's starting goaltender for the first time this season. This defense doesn't do its goalies many favors, but that can only be used for so long. One of these guys — any of 'em — need to stake their claim to being the #1 goaltender for the team.PROJECTED LINES
Updated: 12:45 p.m.
Subject To Change
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GOTTA FIGURE OUT THIS GOALIE THING, SOON.
| LW | C | RW | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | Johnny Gaudreau | 38 | Boone Jenner | 29 | Patrik Laine |
| 14 | Gus Nyquist | 96 | Jack Roslovic | 59 | Yegor Chinakhov |
| 50 | Eric Robinson | 34 | Cole Sillinger | 91 | Kent Johnson |
| 19 | Liam Foudy | 7 | Sean Kuraly | 24 | Mathieu Olivier |
| LD | RD | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Zach Werenski | 77 | Nick Blankenburg |
| 4 | Vladislav Gavrikov | 2 | Andrew Peeke |
| 22 | Jake Bean | 44 | Erik Gudbranson |
| Starting Goalie | Backup | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 70 | Joonas Korpisalo | 40 | Daniil Tarasov |
