COLORADO AVALANCHE NOTES:

UPCOMING GAMES

Date Opponent Time (MT) TV Radio
Wed, Mar. 15 at Toronto 5 p.m. TNT, Sportsnet 92.5 FM
Thu, Mar. 16 at Ottawa 5 p.m. Altitude 92.5 FM
Sat, Mar. 18 at Detroit 11 a.m. Altitude, NHLN 92.5 FM

TONIGHT’S GAME
COLORADO AVALANCHE (37-22-6, 80 PTS) at TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (40-18-8, 88 PTS)
5:10 p.m. MT / 7:10 p.m. ET – Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, Ontario
TNT / Altitude Radio (92.5 FM)
The Colorado Avalanche continues their four-game road trip tonight in Toronto against the Maple Leafs … The Avs, who opened the trip with an 8-4 victory over Montreal on Monday, will play in Ottawa tomorrow before wrapping up the road swing on Saturday afternoon in Detroit … Colorado is 9-3-1 in its last 13 games and 17-5-3 (.740) in its last 25 contests … That’s tied with Boston (18-6-1, .740) and New Jersey (17-5-3, .740) for the second-best record since Jan. 14 behind only Carolina (18-5-1, .771) … The Avs are 8-2-1 in their last 11 road games … Colorado is in a busy stretch of 15 contests in 26 days from March 4-29.

ON THE CALL
TNT: Kenny Albert (play-by-play), Eddie Olczyk (analyst), Keith Jones (between the benches)
Sportsnet: Chris Cuthbert (play-by-play), Craig Simpson (analyst), Shawn McKenzie (reporter)
Altitude Radio: Conor McGahey

LAST GAME
March 13 – Colorado 8, Montreal 4 at Bell Centre
Thirteen different players had a point, including seven different goal scorers, and the Avalanche tallied a season-high eight goals in an 8-4 win over the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre … Artturi Lehkonen had two goals and an assist in his first game at Bell Centre as a visitor before leaving the contest with a broken finger … Valeri Nichushkin (1g/2a) and Cale Makar (0g/3a) also had three points and Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon both had a goal and one helper … Logan O’Connor and Devon Toews added two assists and Bowen Byram, J.T. Compher and Matt Nieto also lit the lamp for Colorado …. Alexandar Georgiev made 16 saves.
SF: 33 SA: 19 PP: 3-3 PK: 1-2

The Avalanche’s eight goals were a season high … It marked just the fifth time since relocating from Quebec that Colorado has scored 8+ goals in a ROAD game and the first time since March 8, 2004 at Vancouver (9-2 win) Colorado’s four first-period goals matched a season high for a single frame Lehkonen reached the 20-goal mark for the first time in his career and notched his 100th NHL goal in his first game as a visitor at the Bell Centre before leaving due to injury Makar recorded his 18th career 3-point game, passing Tyson Barrie (17) for the most 3-point outings by a defenseman in Avalanche / Nordiques history MacKinnon reached the 80-point mark in his 54th game, the fastest player in Avalanche history (since relocating) to hit the 80-point plateau MacKinnon extended his goal streak to five games, one shy of his career high set in 2018-19 Rantanen’s goal ended up as the game winner, his ninth game-winning goal of the season which ties Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Brayden Point for the NHL lead … The nine game-winning tallies are already career high … It was his 32nd career GWG, passing Anton Stastny (31) for eighth place on franchise all-time list Overall, it was Rantanen’s 43rd goal of the season, tied for third in the NHL, and 34th at even strength, tying McDavid for the league lead The Avalanche went 3-for-3 with the man advantage, the first time Colorado has scored three or more power-play goals since Dec. 1 at Buffalo … The Avalanche’s power-play unit has now converted in four straight games, going 6-for-14 (42.9%). Montreal’s power-play goal snapped the Avalanche’s streak of 17 consecutive penalty kills, their longest run of the
season Bowen Bryam scored his sixth goal of the year, tied for second among Avalanche defensemen and surpassing his rookie season total of five from last year Nichushkin has recorded 16 points (5g/11a) over his last 11 games Colorado held Montreal to 19 shots after allowing 20 in its previous game against Arizona … The Avs, who did not give up a shot in the third period against the Coyotes on Saturday, allowed a combined two shots in a stretch lasting 42:57 between the two contests

CURRENT INJURIES
Pavel Francouz – lower body (Feb. 14 – present)
Darren Helm – lower body (Jan. 14 – present)
Erik Johnson – ankle (Feb. 14 – present)
Gabriel Landeskog – knee (Oct. 12 – present)
Artturi Lehkonen – finger (March 15 – present)
Kurtis MacDermid – lower body (March 9 – present)
Josh Manson – lower body (March 4 – present)
Total Man-Game Lost: 367

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Mar. 14 – Alex Galchenyk recalled from the Colorado Eagles (AHL)
Mar. 6 – Jonas Johansson recalled from the Colorado Eagles (AHL)
Mar. 5 – Keith Kinkaid reassigned to the Colorado Eagles (AHL)
Mar. 4 – Ben Meyers reassigned to the Colorado Eagles (AHL)

TONIGHT’S OPPONENT – TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS
The Avalanche and Maple Leafs wrap up the season series with the second and final meeting of 2022-23 … Toronto won the first matchup 6-2 on New Year’s Eve at Ball Arena.

SCHEDULE vs. MAPLE LEAFS
Dec. 31 vs. TORONTO (L, 2-6)
Mar. 15 @ Toronto

RECORD vs. MAPLE LEAFS

THIS SEASON 2021-22 ALL-TIME SINCE 1995-96 PLAYOFFS
Overall: 0-1-0 Overall: 1-1-0 Overall: 44-33-10 Overall: 21-17-3 No meetings
Home: 0-1-0 Home: 1-0-0 Home: 21-15-5 Home: 8-10-0
Road: — Road: 0-1-0 Road: 23-18-5 Road: 13-7-3

EAST SIDE STORY
The Avalanche are 15-10-3 against Eastern Conference teams this year … Colorado finished 22-8-2 against the East last year, its most wins and tied for its most points (46) ever against the other conference… Since Jared Bednar was hired in 2016-17, the Avs are 105-64-18 (.610) against the Eastern Conference, which includes a 58-24-9 (.687) mark since 2019-20, the best of any Western Conference team over the last four seasons.

THAT’S THE POWER OF LOVE
The Avalanche went 3-for-3 with the man advantage in Monday’s victory over the Canadiens … That was the first time Colorado has scored three or more power-play goals since Dec. 1 at Buffalo … The Avalanche’s power-play unit has now converted in four straight games, going 6-for-14 (42.9%).

VIEW TO A KILL
The Avalanche killed off a season-high 17 consecutive power plays prior to allowing a goal to the Canadiens on Monday night … Colorado has given up only two man-advantage goal over the last eight contests, killing 19-of-21 shorthanded situations (90.5%) … Since Feb. 11, the Avs have extinguished 89.9% (40-45) of the opposition’s power-play chances.

FIRST AND FOREMOST
The Avalanche are 30-7-4 when scoring first, tied for the third-most wins when potting the first goal behind Carolina (34) and Boston (33) … Colorado has scored the first goal 41 times this year, tied for second in the league behind Carolina (42).

BACK-TO-BACK
The Avalanche are playing back-to-back games for the 10th time this season as they face Toronto tonight and Ottawa tomorrow … Colorado is 11-5-2 overall in back-to-back games this season, going 5-3-1 in the first contest and 6-2-1 in the second … The Avalanche had a stretch of three consecutive sets of back-to-back games from Feb. 14-25, with the club earning 11 of a possible 12 points during that span … All three back-to-backs required travel in between (either home/road or road/home) and all three opponents on the second half of the back-to-back were waiting for the Avs, with Colorado sweeping all three games … The Avalanche posted a 15-5-2 (.727) combined record in back-to-back games last season, the second-best mark behind Minnesota (.732, 19-6-3) … The Avs finished 7-3-1 in the first game and 8-2-1 in the second.

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS NOTES:

LAST GAME
Score: Toronto 3 vs. Buffalo 4
Date: Monday, March 13, 2023
TOR Goals: Matthews, Järnkrok, Nylander
BUF Goals: Quinn, Tuch, Cozens, Tuch (PP)
TOR Goaltender: Murray, 25/29, .862 SV%
BUF Goaltender: Anderson, 25/28, .893 SV%
TOR Power Play: 0-for-1
TOR Penalty Kill: 2-for-3
Player Notes:

• Auston Matthews scored for the Maple Leafs at 1:11 of the second period, recorded the secondary assist on Järnkrok’s goal and posted the primary assist on Nylander’s goal. Matthews recorded his fourth three-point game of the season. Matthews has scored in three-consecutive games and has posted a multi-point game in back-to-back outings. Matthews posted his sixth multi-assist game of the season and his 18th multi-point game of the season.
• Calle Järnkrok scored for Toronto at 4:13 of the second period. Järnkrok posted his 15th goal of the season, just one goal away from his NHL career-high of 16 goals, which he set in 2015-2016 and 2017-2018 with Nashville.
• William Nylander scored for the Maple Leafs at 18:58 of the third period. With his 35th goal of the season, Nylander set a new career-high. Nylander has scored in back-to-back games and extended his point streak to five games where he has recorded seven points (2G, 5A).
• Mitch Marner recorded the secondary assist on Matthews’ goal and the primary assist on Järnkrok’s goal. Marner has posted a multi-point game in three-straight games where he has collected eight points (2G, 6A). With two assists on Monday, Marner has recorded 61 assists this season. Marner has reached the 60-assist mark for the third occasion in his NHL career. Per NHL Stats, “Marner moved ahead of Doug Gilmour (2) and tied Borje Salming for the most 60-assist seasons in franchise history.” Marner has posted his 22nd multi-point game of the season.
• John Tavares won a season-high 18 face-off attempts during Monday’s game.

TONIGHT’S GAME
2022-23 Matchups vs. Colorado: Second of Two
2021-22 Record vs. Colorado: 1-0-1
Toronto Season Record: 40-18-8
Toronto Home Record: 24-7-4

TONIGHT’S STORYLINES
The Maple Leafs are set to take on the Colorado Avalanche tonight in the second of two matchups between the clubs this season. Toronto won their first meeting of the 2022-23 season 6-2 against Colorado on December 31st at Ball Arena. Michael Bunting (2G), Auston Matthews (1G, 1A), William Nylander (2A) and John Tavares (2A) all recorded a multi-point game in Toronto’s 6-2 win. The Maple Leafs have earned at least one point through five of their last six games against the Avalanche (4-1-1). Toronto is skating in their third matchup of a four-game homestand where they have posted a 1-1-0 record so far. The Maple Leafs have posted a 24-7-4 record on home ice this season.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
TV: Sportsnet RADIO: TSN 1050
Toronto Maple Leafs: Media Notes

NEXT GAME
Date: Friday, March 17, 2023
Opponent: vs. Carolina Hurricanes
Time: 7:00 pm ET
Broadcast Information: TSN4 (TV), TSN 1050 (Radio)

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
March 12, 2023 The Maple Leafs recalled forward Alex Steeves from the Toronto Marlies (AHL).
March 3, 2023 The Maple Leafs acquired forward Radim Zohorna from the Calgary Flames in exchange for
forward Dryden Hunt.

INJURY REPORT
Carl Dahlström Shoulder (LTIR)
Victor Mete Lower Body (LTIR)
Jake Muzzin Neck (LTIR)
Ryan O’Reilly Broken Finger (LTIR)
Nick Robertson Shoulder (LTIR)

ALL-TIME VS. COLORADO AVALANCHE:
First Matchup between Clubs: November 18, 1979 (Toronto 2 at Quebec 4)
All-Time Record: 34-40-9-4 (87 Games)
All-Time Record at Home: 19-22-4-1 (46 Games)
All-Time Record on the Road: 15-18-5-3 (41 Games)
Last Home Win vs. Opponent: December 1, 2021 (Toronto 8 vs. Colorado 3)

ACTIVE LEADERS VS. COLORADO AVALANCHE:
Games Played: Mark Giordano (53), Wayne Simmonds (30), Calle Järnkrok (29), TJ Brodie (29)
Goals: Auston Matthews (10), Mark Giordano (8), Wayne Simmonds (6)
Assists: Mark Giordano (22), TJ Brodie (15), John Tavares (10)
Points: Mark Giordano (30), Wayne Simmonds (17), Auston Matthews (16), TJ Brodie (16)
Penalty Minutes: Mark Giordano (59), Wayne Simmonds (57), Erik Gustafsson (12), David Kämpf (12)

2022-23 AVERAGES
Points% GF/Game GA/Game PP% PK% SF/G SA/G FO%
Toronto .667 3.42 2.70 25.6 80.7 32.2 28.9 53.6
Colorado .615 3.23 2.80 24.3 79.0 33.4 31.5 46.4

THE MAN ADVANTAGE IN 2022-23
Power Play: 25.6%
Power Play Goal Leader: 13 – Tavares
Power Play Point Leader: 32 – Marner (7G, 25A)
2021-22 Power Play: 63/231 (27.3%)

ON THE PK IN 2022-23
Penalty Kill: 80.7%
Shorthanded Goal Leader: 3 – Marner
Shorthanded Point Leader: 4 – Marner (3G, 1A)
2021-22 Penalty Kill: 192/234 (82.1%)

FAST FACTS
Wednesday games 10th of 11 (8 home, 3 road)
Back-to-Backs played 10 of 14
Record in first game of back-to-back 6-4-0
Record in second game of back-to-back 6-3-1
March games 7th of 14 (5 home, 9 road)