The Colorado Avalanche will attempt to equal their best
home start to a season since relocating to Denver, as they welcome the Chicago
Blackhawks tonight to the Pepsi Center.
The Avalanche began a three-game residency on Wednesday with a 4-1 victory
over the Coyotes. The win improved them to 5-0-0 as the host this year, one
victory shy of the 6-0-0 mark the 2007-08 squad started the season with.
Milan Hejduk scored twice and had an assist versus Phoenix, while Marek Svatos
and Davis Jones also scored. Colorado, which also got three assists from Paul
Stastny, halted a two-game slide and won for the fifth time in seven games.
"(The Coyotes) are a really good team, with solid goaltending," said Hejduk.
"This is a game we expected."
Peter Budaj, recovered from a bout with swine flu and making his first start
of the season, finished with 28 saves. Craig Anderson had started the club's
first 15 games, a franchise record, and should get the start tonight.
Should Anderson start, he might have to face a returning Jonathan Toews.
Chicago's captain has missed the last five games due to concussion-like
symptoms, but skated on Wednesday and Thursday and hopes to be back tonight.
Toews had 34 goals, 35 assists and 69 points in his second NHL season a year
ago, but has been limited to a goal and four helpers in nine games this year.
The Blackhawks have gone 3-2-0 without Toews in the lineup, including last
night's 3-1 loss to the Coyotes. Kris Versteeg had a short-handed goal and
Cristobal Huet stopped 20-of-23 shots in defeat.
"We had a lot of chances to take control of the game and it was just
unfortunate tonight," Versteeg said.
Patrick Kane had an assist to give him a goal and five helpers over his last
six games, but Patrick Sharp, who leads the team with six goals, failed to
light the lamp for the seventh time in his last eight games.
Chicago earned a 4-3 shootout win over Colorado on October 10, with Andrew
Ladd netting the winning goal in the ninth round of the extra session. The
Blackhawks have won four of six and six of their last nine versus the Avs, but
have dropped two of three and three of their last five in Denver.
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