Puck drop is scheduled for 9:00 p.m. ET
Venue: Ball Arena, Denver, Colorado
Broadcast: ESPN+ (national/streaming), Altitude (AVS regional), KUSA/KTVD (Denver over-air), FanDuel Sports Network North/Wisconsin (Wild regional), TVAS/SNP (Canada)
Game Context
A heavyweight Central Division battle with massive playoff positioning implications. Colorado leads the NHL with 85 points and sits atop both the Central and Western Conference. Minnesota is third in the Central (78 points) and third in the West, just two points behind the second-place Stars and firmly in the playoff picture. The Avs are chasing home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs; the Wild are battling to lock in a top-three divisional seed and avoid a first-round date with Colorado.
Recent Form
- Wild: 8-1-1 in their last 10 games entering the Olympic break, capped by a thrilling 6-5 OT win over Nashville on Feb. 4 (Matt Boldy hat trick). They rode a seven-game point streak and averaged 4.6 goals per game in that stretch while allowing 3.1. This is Minnesota’s first game back after the three-week break.
- Avalanche: 3-2-0 in their last five pre-break and opened the post-Olympic schedule with a solid 4-2 road win over Utah on Feb. 25 (goals from Parker Kelly, Victor Olofsson, Brock Nelson, Martin Necas; Scott Wedgewood 29 saves). Colorado leads the NHL in goals per game (3.84) and ranks second in goals against (2.41).
Injury Report
Minnesota Wild:
- Jonas Brodin (D) – Lower body (IR)
- Jesper Wallstedt (G) – Illness (out)
- Marcus Foligno (LW) – Illness (day-to-day; questionable)
Colorado Avalanche:
- Logan O’Connor (RW) – Hip (out)
Positive notes / returns:
- Nathan MacKinnon (Avalanche) returns after captaining Canada to Olympic silver (full participation expected on top line).
- Minnesota returns eight Olympians, including gold-medal winners Matt Boldy and Brock Faber (Team USA) and Filip Gustavsson (Sweden).
Projected Lineups & Goalies
Wild (Coach John Hynes)
F: Kirill Kaprizov – Ryan Hartman – Mats Zuccarello
F: Marcus Johansson – Joel Eriksson Ek – Matt Boldy
F: Yakov Trenin – Danila Yurov – Vladimir Tarasenko
F: Vinnie Hinostroza – Nico Sturm – Rem Pitlick
D: Jack Hughes – Brock Faber
D: Jacob Middleton – Jared Spurgeon
D: Zach Bogosian – (Hunt or depth)
G: Filip Gustavsson (expected; strong vs. Avs historically) / Marc-Andre Fleury
Scratches: Likely depth adjustments for Foligno if out
Injured: Brodin, Wallstedt
Avalanche (Coach Jared Bednar)
F: Gabriel Landeskog – Nathan MacKinnon – Martin Necas
F: Artturi Lehkonen – Brock Nelson – Valeri Nichushkin
F: Ross Colton – Parker Kelly – Victor Olofsson
F: Charlie Brindley – Jack Drury – Joel Kiviranta
D: Devon Toews – Cale Makar
D: Josh Manson – Brent Burns
D: Joel Kulak – Sean Malinski
G: Mackenzie Blackwood (expected after Wedgewood started Feb. 25) / Scott Wedgewood
Scratches: Depth pieces
Injured: O’Connor
Key Player Matchups
- Kirill Kaprizov vs. Cale Makar / Devon Toews: Kaprizov has a point in every 2025-26 meeting vs. Colorado (3 points in 2 GP). Makar’s elite transition game will be the primary counter.
- Nathan MacKinnon vs. Minnesota’s top defense (Faber/Hughes): MacKinnon has 4 points (3G-1A) in two games vs. the Wild this season and returns motivated after Olympic silver.
- Matt Boldy / Joel Eriksson Ek shutdown line vs. Avs’ secondary scoring: Boldy’s hot streak (hat trick pre-break) and two-way play are critical.
- Goaltending: Gustavsson (Wild) has historically performed well in Denver; Blackwood gives Colorado a reliable option after the back-to-back situation.
Series History (2025-26 Season)Tied 1-1-0:
- Nov. 28, 2025: COL 2, MIN 3 (SO)
- Dec. 21? (or earlier): COL 5, MIN 1
Minnesota has earned a point in the most recent meeting; Colorado dominated the other. The Wild are 27-29-8 all-time in Denver.
Betting Trends
- Colorado is 38-17 as a moneyline favorite this season and dominant at home.
- The total has gone OVER 6.5 in 32 of Minnesota’s 58 games.
- Wild are 5-3 as +125 or longer underdogs.
- Avs are averaging 3.84 GF/GP (1st NHL); Wild allow 2.86 GA/GP but have scored freely lately.
- Post-Olympic “re-entry” games for the visitor (Wild) often trend toward higher totals due to rust vs. a rested/returning home star (MacKinnon).
Game Odds
Minnesota Wild 6.5
Colorado Avalanche – 148
Odds Courtesy of Sports Odds Direct as of Wednesday, February 25, 2026
