COLORADO AVALANCHE NOTES:
The Colorado Avalanche takes on the Dallas Stars in a Central Division matchup tonight at American Airlines Center…This is a quick one-game road trip for the Avs, who will return to Denver and begin a three-game homestand on Saturday afternoon against the Panthers…Colorado will play 12 games in the month of January, six at home and six on the road…The Avs are 5-0-1 in their last six games, matching their longest point streak of the season (third time)…Colorado is 8-2-1 in its last 11 contests.
The Avs are 5-0-1 in their last six games overall, matching their longest point streak of the season (third time)…Colorado is 8-2-1 in its last 11 contests.
The Avalanche and Stars are meeting for the second time this season and the second and final time here in Dallas…Colorado rallied from an 0-3 deficit to beat the Stars 6-3 on Nov. 18 at American Airlines Center…Mikko Rantanen, Ross Colton and Valeri Nichushkin all had a goal and one assist and Cale Makar added three helpers…It marked the first time Colorado rallied from a three-goal deficit to win on the road in regulation since Jan. 21, 2004 at Florida…The Avs finished 3-1-0 against Dallas last season, 2-0-0 at home and 1-1-0 on the road.
RECORD vs. STARS THIS SEASON
2022-23 ALL-TIME SINCE ’95-96
O: 1-0-0 O: 3-1-0 O: 74-56-23
O: 51-38-19 H: —
H: 2-0-0 H: 44-19-13
H: 28-14-11
A: 1-0-0 A: 1-1-0
A: 30-37-10 A: 23-24-8
CURRENT INJURIES
Pavel Francouz – lower body (Oct. 11 – present)
Jean-Luc Foudy – lower body (Oct. 11 – present)
Gabriel Landeskog – knee (Oct. 11 – present)
Artturi Lehkonen – neck (Nov. 11 – present)
Chris Wagner – Achilles (Oct. 11 – present)
Man-Games Lost: 205
ONE MONTH AT A TIME
The Avalanche finished 8-5-2 in December, the 31st consecutive month that Colorado has not posted a “losing month” (meaning the club had a .500 or better record in that particular month)…It’s the longest such streak in franchise history, topping the previous mark of 26 straight months from March 1994 to February 1998…This current run, which began in February 2019, is the third-longest active streak in the NHL and the seventh longest in league history…Twenty eight (29) of these last 31 months for the Avalanche featured a winning record, as only October 2021 (4-4- 0) and October 2022 (4-4-1) did not.
GRAND CENTRAL
The Avalanche are 6-5-2 against Central Division opponents, 3-2- 0 at home and 3-3-2 on the road…Colorado finished 19-6-1 against its division rivals last year, 10-2-1 at home and 9-4-0 on the road…The 19 wins tied Carolina (19-6-1) and Edmonton (19- 6-1) for the most divisional victories in the NHL
DALLAS STARS NOTES:
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Jan. 2 – Recalled G Matt Murray from Texas (AHL)
Jan. 1 – Loaned G Matt Murray to Texas (AHL)
INJURIES
Man-games lost, 2023-24: 20
NAME INJURY # OF GAMES DATES
C Roope Hintz Upper body 1 Oct. 12
C Radek Faksa Upper body 4 Nov. 1-6
C Matt Duchene Upper body 1 Nov. 6
D Thomas Harley Upper body 3 Nov. 14-20
C Craig Smith Illness 2 Nov. 22-24
C Roope Hintz Illness 1 Dec. 9
G Jake Oettinger Lower body 8 Dec. 16-pres
TONIGHT’S GAME:
It’s a battle between two of the top teams in the Central Division as the Stars host the Colorado Avalanche tonight at American Airlines Center. (7 p.m. CT, Bally Sports Southwest, The Ticket 96.7-FM/1310-AM). The Stars will look to exact revenge on an Avs team that rallied from a three-goal deficit with six unanswered tallies in the first meeting of the season on Nov. 18, 2023. Dallas enters tonight’s contest in third place in the Central Division with 48 points (22-10-4) and has gone 7-2-1 in its past 10 games. Colorado sits in first place in the Central with 51 points (24-11-3) and has also gone 7-2-1 in the past 10 overall, including wins in three straight.
TASTE OF THE ROCKIES
– The Stars are 0-1-0 against the Avalanche this season, falling 6-3 at home on Nov. 18. Forward Tyler Seguin led the club with two goals (2-0—2) and forward Mason Marchment had two assists (0-2—2) in the game. – Dallas is 67-66-20 all-time vs. Colorado, including a 42-23-12 mark at home. – Forward Joe Pavelski leads active Stars in goals (22) and points (22-24—46) and ranks third in assists (24) in 54 career games against Colorado. He also paces the club in power-play goals (13) and game winners (4) against them. – Captain Jamie Benn ranks second among active Stars in assists (31) and points (13-31—44) in 55 career games vs. the Avs. – Forward Tyler Seguin ranks second among active Stars in goals (21), third in points (21-22—43) and fourth in assists (22) in 39 career games against Colorado. – Forward Matt Duchene has 11 goals and 13 points (11-2—13) in 13 career games against his former club. Duchene was the third overall pick by the Avalanche in the 2009 NHL Draft and went on to record 428 points (178-250—428) in 586 regular-season games with them. – Forward Roope Hintz enters tonight’s contest with nine points (2-7—9) in 14 career games against the Avs. – Forward Jason Robertson has five goals and 12 points (5-7—12) in eight career games vs. Colorado. – Forward Craig Smith has 12 goals and 24 points (12-12—24) in 37 career games against the Avalanche. – Defenseman Ryan Suter leads active Stars in assists (37) and ranks third in points (5-37—42) in a team-high 81 career games vs. Colorado. – Goaltender Jake Oettinger is 3-2-1 with a 2.56 goals-against average and .931 save percentage in six career appearances against the Avalanche. – Netminder Scott Wedgewood is 1-1-0 with a 3.58 GAA and .894 SV% in three career appearances vs. Colorado. – Goalie Matt Murray has yet to appear in a game against the Avs.
