NHL Game of the Week: Colorado Avalanche vs. Edmonton Oilers

Western Conference playoff implications are on the line in Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, as the Colorado Avalanche and Edmonton Oilers meet for the last of their three-game season series.

Edmonton took the first two games in Denver, Colorado, winning 4-1 on November 30, 2024 and 4-3 on January 16, 2025.

Colorado has 64 points, ranking fourth in the Central Division and sixth in the Western Conference. In comparison, Edmonton leads the Pacific Division with 70 points, second in the Western Conference behind only the Winnipeg Jets’ 79.

The Avs traded future Hall of Fame forward Mikko Rantanen to the Carolina Hurricanes on January 25, 2025, and the two skaters they got in return, Martin Nečas and Jack Drury, haven’t performed well so far. They have a combined plus-minus of -5 in their first six games, though Nečas tallied two assists in two of his first three Colorado games.

Colorado has played sub-.500 hockey in their last 10 games, going 4-5-1 in that span, most recently a 3-0 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday. Thatcher Demko saved 25 shots on goal for a shutout and Colorado served 31 penalty minutes in that game.

Penalty minutes could be costly for the Avalanche, as Edmonton converts power plays 24.2% of the time, seventh-best in the NHL. Colorado’s penalty kill is mid-tier, ranking 13th in the league.

Forward Jonathan Drouin has been productive in the last two weeks, with two goals and six assists in seven games to complement stars Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar.

After allowing at least three goals in five straight games with a .874 save percentage, projected starting goalie Mackenzie Blackwood recorded back-to-back shutouts against the St. Louis Blues and Philadelphia Flyers before allowing two goals against Vancouver on Tuesday.

Blackwood has a 2.50 GAA and a .918 save percentage in 36 starts this season.

The Avs will continue a five-game road trip on Thursday as they travel to Calgary to face the Flames before battling the Oilers.

The Oilers have gone 6-3-1 in their last ten games, most recently a 3-2 overtime escape in St. Louis on Tuesday in which Edmonton forward Connor Brown scored the winning goal, his first-ever goal in overtime.

Oilers star Connor McDavid scored a goal and tallied two assists on Tuesday and the latter assist set up Brown for the game-winner against the Blues.

Edmonton’s other star skater, Leon Draisaitl, has been as productive as ever, scoring three goals and tallying five assists in the Oilers’ last six games.

A question for the Oilers as the March 7 trade deadline looms is whether they’ll go after someone new to lead the goaltending group considering Stuart Skinner’s struggles after his rookie year, but he won’t man the net for this game.

Skinner’s backup, Calvin Pickard, will likely do the honors, and in his last start, which was January 27, 2025 against the Seattle Kraken, he saved 26 of 28 shots to help the Oilers win 4-2.

Pickard has a 13-4-0 record with a 2.47 GAA in 17 starts this season.

The Oilers will end a short two-game road trip with a matchup against the Chicago Blackhawks on Wednesday before going up against Colorado.

All stats and records are as of before the games on February 5, 2025.

Owen Klein is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email ojk5092@psu.edu.