Colorado (6-8-0) at Vancouver (9-6-0) 10:00 p.m. EST
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Ticker) -- The Colorado Avalanche
are finally back on track, but that momentum may fade quickly.
After a rough stretch of losses, the Avalanche go for their
second straight win on Wednesday when they visit the red-hot
Vancouver Canucks.
Colorado lost five straight games in regulation before finally
ending its slide with a1-0 victory over the Nashville Predators
on Saturday. Darcy Tucker scored with 4:21 remaining in the
second period to lift the the Avalanche to their first victory
since claiming a 2-1 shootout win against the Buffalo Sabres on
October 25.
Colorado was outscored 21-8 during its slide but Peter Budaj
stopped all 26 shots he faced against the Predators to snap a
personal four-game losing streak and earn his first shutout of
the season.
Whoever starts in net against the Canucks, either Budaj or
backup Andrew Raycroft, will have to be at their best. But it
seems that scoring goals is the biggest challenge facing the
Avalanche as Vancouver enters without having surrendered a goal
in any of its last three contests.
Captain Roberto Luongo has logged three straight shutouts, and
is coming off a 2-0 victory against the Minnesota Wild on
Saturday in which he made 29 saves.
The 29-year-old netminder, who leads the NHL with five shutouts,
stopped all 28 shots he faced during a 1-0 victory against the
Phoenix Coyotes on Thursday after making 24 saves en route to
last Tuesday's 4-0 blanking of the Predators.