Eurolanche

Surging Wild seek season sweep of Avs

Season series: The Minnesota Wild have won four in a row against the Colorado Avalanche, outscoring them 12-1, including three shutouts. Wild forward Zach Parise has two goals and two assists, and goaltender Devan Dubnyk is 2-0-0 with one shutout.

Avalanche (29-25-11) team scope: Colorado planned to start goaltender Semyon Varlamov in each game of its weekend back-to-back; he made 44 saves in a 4-0 win at the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday at Nationwide Arena. He has made every start since Jan. 13 but is 0-4-0 against the Wild this season. Including last year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs, Varlamov has lost his past six decisions against Minnesota and eight of his past nine. The Avalanche recalled forward Freddie Hamilton and he played 9:18 in his first game with the Avalanche after being acquired in a trade with the San Jose Sharks on March 2.

Wild (36-22-7) team scope: Minnesota did not practice Saturday following wins in back-to-back road games against the Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes. Dubnyk is 18-3-1 with a .940 save percentage and 1.60 goals-against average in 23 starts since being acquired from the Arizona Coyotes on Jan. 14; he is likely to start his 24th consecutive game. Defenseman Jared Spurgeon has missed eight games with an upper-body injury but has been skating and could return.

-- by Dan Myers for NHL.com --