What - Game 50 (28-16-5)
When - 7 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 8
Where - PNC Arena; Raleigh, NC
How to Watch - Bally Sports South, Altitude Sports
The Carolina Hurricanes will host the Colorado Avalanche (32-15-4) tonight as both teams look to get back into the win column.
The Canes are coming off of a 3-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks after having won three in a row before the All-Star break.
While the Hurricanes looked rusty to start against the Canucks, the team looked more like itself in the third period and pretty much only lost due to a funky bounce.
The question for Carolina tonight will be the status of star forward Andrei Svechnikov.
The Canes, who are not holding a morning skate, have been without Svechnikov for the last five games after the forward suffered an oblique injury.
He skated in a non-contact jersey on Wednesday and according to coach Rod Brind'Amour, the call will be Svechnikov's to make.
The Avalanche are coming off of a 5-3 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Thursday which followed a 2-1 overtime loss to the New York Rangers on Wednesday.
Before that, Colorado had also won three straight heading into the break.
The obvious player to watch out for tonight is Nathan MacKinnon who's second in the league in scoring with 85 points. He's registered a point in all but eight games this season and has been a threat all over the ice with his shot and speed.
Carolina will have to work extra hard to try and contain him or at the very least minimize his damage.
Streaks
- Seth Jarvis (6a) has points in five straight games.
Milestone Watch
- Seth Jarvis will play in his 200th career game tonight.
Game Notes
- The Canes will face the Avs for the second and final time this season. Carolina lost 6-4 in Colorado on Oct. 21.
- The Avalanche are 9-4-0 in their last 13 against the Hurricanes.
Key Matchups
Starting Goalies
- Pyotr Kochetkov: 11-8-3; 0.898 Sv%; 2.60 GAA
- Alexander Georgiev: 27-11-3; 0.899 Sv%; 2.88 GAA
Leading Scorers
- Goals - Sebastian Aho (18) / Nathan MacKinnon (32)
- Points - Sebastian Aho (55) / Nathan MacKinnon (85)
Power Play
- Carolina - 28.2% (2nd)
- Colorado - 24.9% (9th)
Penalty Kill
- Carolina - 83.2% (5th)
- Colorado - 82.6% (9th)
Hurricanes Projected Lineup
Teuvo Teravainen - Sebastian Aho - Seth Jarvis
Michael Bunting - Jack Drury - Martin Necas
Jordan Martinook - Jordan Staal - Jesper Fast
Brendan Lemieux - Jesperi Kotkaniemi - Stefan Noesen
Jaccob Slavin - Brent Burns
Brady Skjei - Brett Pesce
Dmitry Orlov - Jalen Chatfield
Pyotr Kochetkov
Antti Raanta
Injuries and Scratches: Tony DeAngelo, Spencer Martin, Andrei Svechnikov (UBI), Frederik Andersen (blood-clotting issue)
Avalanche Projected Lineup
Jonathan Drouin - Nathan MacKinnon - Mikko Rantanen
Miles Wood - Ross Colton - Logan O'Connor
Zach Parise - Ryan Johansen - Artturi Lehkonen
Andrew Cogliano - Fredrik Olofsson - Joel Kiviranta
Devon Toews - Cale Makar
Sam Girard - Josh Manson
Bowen Byram - Jack Johnson
Alexander Georgiev
Justus Annunen
Injuries and Scratches: Caleb Jones, Kurtis MacDermid, Sam Malinski, Pavel Francouz (groin), Gabriel Landeskog (knee)
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