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Avalanche @ Oilers Game 74 Preview

Ference out, Aulie in, Gordon questionable

By Jeff Chapman
Iginla is second in team scoring for Colorado
Iginla is second in team scoring for Colorado
Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports


Colorado

@
oilers logo black text
33-27-12, 78 points, 1.084 p/g Ranks 20-40-13, 53 points, .726 p/g
Western Conference - 11th Western Conference - 13th
21st P/G 28th
24th ST 27th
18th ES 29th
14th Goal 30th
6 PM MDT - SN
Rexall Place
The opposing view: Mile High Hockey

Exciting Last Place Hockey!

AT LEAST, IN THE WEST

The Jets made quick work of the Oilers on Monday night, toppling them by a 4-1 marker.  That's great if you're a fan of hoping to luck into one of Connor McDavid or Jack Eichel next month.  It sucks if you'd like to see a hockey team win more than once every Equinox.  It's the fortieth regulation loss this season (it's really 53 if you count OT/SO losses).  You know things are bad when the goal horn sounds when the other guys score.  Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored the lone Oiler tally early in the third period, his 23rd of the season.

The Oilers are saying

"They played a very solid game.  They played with good structure, they competed hard and 5-on-5 I thought we were competing hard as well.  It really came down to special teams tonight"

That's Oilers interim head coach Todd Nelson on his team's loss to the Jets.

Winnipeg's power play finished 2-4, while Edmonton failed to gain any ground, going 0-4.  Goaltender Ondrej Pavelec stopped 33 of 34 Oiler shots en route to the W.  Winnipeg has a fair shot at making the playoffs this year if they go 4-4 in their remaining eight games.

As for the Oilers...who's hosting the draft party, anyways?

The Opponent is saying

"We're not going to give up.  I understand that our situation does not look good, with the fact that Winnipeg and Minnesota are winning their games.  But at the same time as a coaching staff and the players, we feel that we believe in ourselves"
That's Avalanche head coach Patrick Roy on his team's playoff chances.

I like Patrick Roy in the same way that I like a crazy uncle.  They say things that are generally fun until you have to put up with this person for more than fifteen minutes every holiday.  Patrick Roy is right, his team's playoff chances are fugly.  At 78 points, they've got quite a way to climb.  They've got ten remaining, they'll need to win eight or nine in order to get a so much as a whiff of a chance.

Have some of this
  • INJURY CARD - Andrew Ference (lower body), will miss tonight's game and Boyd Gordon (back) is questionable.  You can bet that Keith Aulie will be in for Ference.  Matt Fraser (concussion) has been cleared to play.
  • Everybody's favourite former Flame Jarome Iginla will be back in town.  Wave hi, Jarome.  Iginla is second in scoring (24-26-50 in 72 GP), trailing only Gabriel Landeskog by a point.
  • Ben Scrivens (14-23-10, .895 SV% / 2.99) probably wishes he could've had Monday's goal against Drew Stafford back.  He'll get the start tonight, while Colorado will ride Semyon Varlamov (25-18-8, .922 SV% / 2.52)  until his wheels fall off.  Varlamov's numbers have no doubt turned down from last year's, but .922 SV% is still mighty tidy.  Colorado's 193 goals scored puts them in the bottom third of the league.
  • UPDATE

    • Unless Buffalo defeats Arizona twice in the next week, they're looking solid for 30th

  • GOILERS