NHL Game of the Week: Colorado Avalanche vs. Los Angeles Kings

The Colorado Avalanche are set to visit Crypto.com Arena on Oct. 11 at 10 p.m. to square off against the Los Angeles Kings in search of a season-opening win on the road.

After losing in the first round of the playoffs last year, the Avalanche look to redeem themselves and make another Stanley Cup run.

The Avalanche enter this season ranked No. 2 with the introduction of many new faces on the offensive front. In fact, only six players remain who hoisted the Stanley Cup just two seasons ago, including Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, Devon Towes, Valeri Nichushkin, Samuel Girard and Artturi Lehkonen.

But they didn’t have the best preseason, only winning two out of the six games played. So, the new additions on offense will need to find their groove with the veterans in order to kick off the new season on a good note.

If they can do that, Colorado just might be able to build a successful season and have another potential playoff run.

Last season, the Avs had the fifth-best save percentage in the league (.917%). With Alexander Georgiev as their goalie for the second year in a row, they have a chance to be one of the top in that category again.

Now onto the Kings.

Similarly, they also were a first-round exit last season and hope to prevent it from happening for the third straight year in a row, which could end a near-decade-long playoff run drought.

The No. 12 ranked Kings had a much better showing in the preseason, with a 6-2-1 record, which they hope to continue into the start of the regular season.

But problems arise between the posts. Goalkeeper Pheonix Copley returns for yet another season and looks to improve the team's save percentage (.892%), which was one of the worst in the league. The Kings also picked up two more experienced goalies over the offseason, David Rittich and Cam Talbot, in hopes of seeing more consistent goaltending.

With this issue addressed, they should be able to improve that percentage throughout the year. Ultimately, this can help them make a deeper playoff push this season.

The Avs played much better on the road, going 29-11-1 and look to continue that dominance into the season.

On the contrary, the Kings played much better at their home arena with a 26-11-4 record. They look to start the season off strong with a win on home ice.

The Avs definitely have the upper hand in their head-to-head series against the Kings, winning 14 of the last 20 games over the last six years. Hockey fans won’t want to miss this game.

Carlin Whalen is a third-year student majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, please email cjw6426@psu.edu.