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The Minnesota Wild begin a home-and-home series with Colorado Avalanche Friday at the Xcel Energy Center.
The Wild (8-12-3) are coming off a 2-1 shootout loss Wednesday to the Boston Bruins at home and the Avalanche (14-7-4) were defeated by the Nashville Predators 4-3 in overtime Wednesday on the road.
The Series
This is the second of six meetings this season between the two teams. The Wild defeated the then-top team in the Western Conference 3-2 in a shootout at the “X” on Oct. 21. Darcy Tucker and Kyle Quincey scored the Avalanche and Brent Burns and Mikko Koivu scored for the Wild. Koivu tied the game with just under five minutes remaining to tie the game, then scored the only goal of the shootout.
Injury Report
The Wild still have Pierre-Marc Bouchard (concussion), Petr Sykora (concussion) and Brent Burns (concussion) out. Martin Havlat (hamstring) and Antti Miettinen (illness) did not practice Thursday, so it is unlikely either will play against the Avalanche.
The Avalanche have Matt Hendricks (groin) and Ruslan Salei (back) out. Adam Foote (jaw) and Kyle Cumiskey (foot) did not play Wednesday and their status is uncertain.
Avalanche Player to Watch
Peter Statsny. The center leads the Avalanche in points with 23, five goals and 18 assists. He is a star and becoming one of the top forwards in the NHL. He has one goal and four assists in the last five games.
Guaranteed Goal
Mikko Koivu. The center had the game-tying goal in the first meeting of the season between the two teams. He leads the Wild with 21 points, six goals and 15 assists. His goals come in bunches and his last was two games ago. He should get a couple this weekend against the Avalanche.
Final Score Prediction
Wild 2, Avalanche 1. The Wild are banged up, but newly acquired forward Guillaume Latendresse is expected to play his first game as a member of the team. The Wild has played of late, including a terrific defensive performance that held the Bruins to a season-low 16 shots. The Avalanche lost three of the last four, including two on the road. The Avalanche had to travel from Denver to the Twin Cities for the holiday. Momentum and surroundings favor the Wild.
