Eurolanche

Blackhawks host Avalanche

Season series: The Chicago Blackhawks and Colorado Avalanche have split their first two games. Colorado won 3-0 at United Center on Dec. 15, when Chicago forward Patrick Kane's 26-game point streak ended. The Blackhawks won 4-3 in overtime at Pepsi Center on Dec. 31; Jonathan Toews scored the winner, his fourth in OT this season. The loss ended Colorado goalie Semyon Varlamov's eight-game winning streak against Chicago.

Avalanche team scope: Injured defensemen Erik Johnson (lower body) and Brad Stuart (back) are close to returning, but neither has been cleared to play. Colorado didn't practice Saturday after defeating the Nashville Predators 5-3 at Pepsi Center on Friday for its third straight win. Johnson has missed two games with what the Denver Post reported to be a knee injury. Stuart has been out since Nov. 12, a span of 27 games. The Avalanche are 12-4-2 since the start of December and have pulled back into the race for a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. "I think we're playing good hockey right now," coach Patrick Roy told the Avalanche website. "As for how far we can go, when you think about it, it's without Erik Johnson on the blue line. Our guys deserve a lot of credit." Defenseman Andrew Bodnarchuk, claimed off waivers on Jan. 5, will play his third game with Colorado and again be paired with Francois Beuchemin.

Blackhawks team scope: Chicago will look to extend its season-high winning streak to seven games. The Blackhawks scored the first goal in a 3-1 win against the Buffalo Sabres on Friday; they are 23-3-2 when scoring first. "I like the consistency," coach Joel Quenneville said. "I like what we're giving up, which is very little. Our goaltending's been solid. I think our balance on the back end and consistency up front looks like it's improving." Quenneville has 780 career NHL regular-season wins and is two away from tying Al Arbour (782) for second in League history. Blackhawks adviser Scotty Bowman tops the list with 1,244. Chicago, which didn't practice Saturday, is expected to start goalie Corey Crawford. Forward Richard Panik, who was acquired in a trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs on Jan. 3, might be available. He is trying to get a U.S. work visa and might have it in time for the game.

-- by Brian Hedger for NHL.com --