Eurolanche

Avalanche homestand continues

The Colorado Avalanche continues a three-game homestand on Saturday night, hosting the Tampa Bay Lightning at Pepsi Center. The contest will wrap up the two-game season series between the teams, who met just over a week ago in Tampa, where the Lightning won 5-2.

The Avalanche is 17-10-5 in the all-time series against the Lightning (since 1995-96), including a 10-3-3 mark at home. Colorado is 6-1-1 in its last eight meetings against Tampa Bay at Pepsi Center.

Last Time Out

Colorado Avalanche

The Avalanche opened its current homestand with a 2-1 win over the Florida Panthers on Thursday night. Nathan MacKinnon scored both of Colorado's goals for his second consecutive multi-goal performance at home and third overall this season, which matches his career high for multi-goal performances in a single campaign (2013-14). Semyon Varlamov finished with 32 saves and stopped all 13 shots he faced in the third period as Florida tried to force overtime.

Tampa Bay Lightning

The Lightning also played on Thursday, beating the Arizona Coyotes 4-1 at Gila River Arena, powered by a goal and an assist each from Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point and Tyler Johnson. Tampa finished 1-for-3 on the power play and outshot the Coyotes 48-33. Arizona's lone tally came with the man advantage in the second period to make it a 3-1 game before Johnson's tally just 31 seconds into the final frame would account for the final score.

Last Time They Met

Colorado and Tampa Bay last squared off on Dec. 7 with the Lightning taking a 5-2 victory. Steven Stamkos and Vladislav Namestnikov paced the Lightning with three points (1g, 2a) while Gabriel Landeskog and Erik Johnson each tallied goals for the Avs. Colorado finished scoreless on three power-play opportunities while the Lightning finished 1-for-5 with the man advantage. Semyon Varlamov made 27 saves while Peter Budaj, who got the start in net for Tampa Bay, stopped 28 shots.

What to Watch

Avs PK

Colorado held the Panthers scoreless on one power-play opportunity on Thursday night, extending its streak to a season-high 11 consecutive kills. Colorado's penalty kill is now 45-for-49 at home (91.8%), the third-best home penalty kill in the league.

MacKinnon Looks to Strike

Nathan MacKinnon registered an assist when these two teams met on Dec. 7 and now has 13 points (5g, 8a) in nine career games against the Lightning, his highest total against an Eastern Conference team in his career.

Lightning on a Roll

At 23-6-2, the Lightning enter Saturday's contest as the league's top team with 48 points. Thursday's win marked a season-high sixth straight victory for Tampa, which remained perfect in the month of December.

Player to Watch

Colorado: Defenseman Mark Barberio

Barberio tallied an assist on Colorado's first goal Thursday night to extend his point streak to a career high four games (1g, 3a). His previous career-long point streak was three games from March 10-15, 2016 when he was a member of the Montreal Canadiens. Barberio now ranks third among Avalanche defensemen in scoring with eight points (2g, 6a).

Tampa Bay: Center Brayden Point

Point is currently on a six-game point and five-game goal streak, both career longs for the 21-year-old forward. He notched his sixth game-winning goal of the season on Thursday, giving him a team-high six on the season, which is also tied for first in the NHL.

The Details

Saturday night's game is set to begin at 7 p.m. and tickets are still available. It's also Star Wars night at Pepsi Center and a special ticket package includes a limited edition Colorado Avalanche/The Last Jedi puck. The game can be watched live on Altitude and the radio broadcast can be heard on Altitude Sports Radio AM 950 or online.

-- by Danielle Bernstein for avalanche.nhl.com --