The Avalanche are getting Gavin Brindley back against the Florida Panthers. The 21-year-old rookie forward has missed the last 10 games since suffering an injury against the New York Rangers. Brindley will replace Zakhar Bardakov in the lineup, which means that Parker Kelly will likely shift to center on the fourth line.
READ MORE: Avalanche Game 31 vs Florida Panthers: 30th Anniversary Celebrations, Lines, Notes & How To Watch
It’s also going to be a special night for the organization. As part of their 30th anniversary celebrations, the 1995-96 Stanley Cup championship team will be honored ahead of puck drop. Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg, Claude Lemieux, Mike Ricci, Sandis Ozolinsh, and Sylvain Lefebvre are among the members of that team who are in town for the game.
Lefebvre is an assistant coach on Paul Maurice’s staff in Florida.
The Avs are coming off a 4-3 shootout loss against the Nashville Predators. They played four games in six days, which began with their second regulation loss of the season, followed by consecutive 3-2 wins in New York and Philadelphia.
Colorado is 7-1-2 in its last 10 games and holds the top spot in the league. The Dallas Stars are just two points back, although Colorado has a game in hand.
Meanwhile, Florida has had a tough start to the year. They’ve won their last three to pull themselves three games above .500. Their 15-12-2 record has them currently on the outside of the playoff picture, albeit the entire Eastern Conference is within 11 points of each other. Having a hot week could put you at the top of the standings.
Florida has not had Aleksander Barkov or Matthew Tkachuk available this season. Barkov is expected to miss the entire year, while Tkachuk isn’t likely going to be back until sometime in January. They’ve relied a lot on veteran Brad Marchand, and Carter Verhaeghe has also picked up the slack in recent weeks.
Sam Bennett also has eight points in his last four games.
The Panthers scored 11 goals in two wins against Columbus and the New York Islanders before defeating Utah 4-3 last night.
