The Colorado Avalanche beat the Edmonton Oilers 5-4 Friday in their final game before the 4 Nations Face-Off break. And Adam Proteau has three takeaways from the Avs' win.

The Avalanche won their second straight game -- and their fourth win in their past five games -- by beating the Edmonton Oilers 5-4 Friday. And here are three key takeaways from the Avs' latest win:

1. Necas continues strong play as new member of the Avalanche

Star forward Martin Necas -- the main return for the Avs in their blockbuster trade with the Carolina Hurricanes -- posted the Avalanche's fifth goal in Friday's win, giving him 20 goals and 64 points in 57 games this year. Necas has three goals and four points in his past two games, showing the skill Colorado GM Chris MacFarlan saw in him when he made Necas the Avs' centerpiece of the Mikko Rantanen trade.

Necas won't be playing in the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament, but he will get vital rest and recuperation time, and that could lead to an even more potent level of play for him. Regardless, he's clearly the star the Avs wanted for Rantanen, and he's going to be central to the Avalanche's Stanley Cup playoff chances.

2. Familiar faces lead way for Avs in win over Oilers

The Avalanche have two superstars in center Nathan MacKinnon and defenseman Cale Makar, and both of them were highly-influential in the win over Edmonton. MacKinnon had a three-assist, four-point night to extend his league-leading points total to 87 points, while Makar netted two goals and three points in the win.

The Avs have a group that doesn't need Makar and MacKinnon to do all the heavy lifting each and every game. But when MacKinnon and Makar are at their best, they impose their will in a way few NHLers can. And on Friday, we saw the dynamic duo power Colorado to another win and a 33-22-2 record.

3. Avalanche aren't in top-three in Central Division, but they have clear advantage in wild-card race

The Avalanche's win gives them 68 standings points thus far this season, but in the competitive Central Division, that total has them out of the top-three ranks in the standings. That said, Colorado is well ahead of the next-best wild card team in the Western Conference -- the Vancouver Canucks, who have 61 points. Vancouver does have three games in hand on the Avs, but the separation in the standings speaks well of the Avalanche's chances to be a playoff team.

Time -- and the final third of the regular-season -- will tell whether Colorado is a true Cup front-runner. But we expect them to be just as competitive the rest of the way this year, and push the Dallas Stars and Minnesota Wild for second-and-third place in the Central. It's going to be quite the challenge, but we expect the Avs will be up for it.