Colorado and Winnipeg battled in a playoff-type game Thursday night, with the Avalanche holding on for a 3-2 win. They go for the sweep of the home-and-home when they host the Jets on Saturday in Denver.
Colorado (48-13-10, 106 points) has won four in a row to take complete control of the Central Division and the race for the President’s Trophy. With 11 games remaining, the Avalanche lead Dallas by nine points and have played one fewer game than the Stars.
A win Saturday night would give Colorado a stranglehold on the top overall seed.
“We’re still fighting for first place, so every win’s important until they put the mark beside our standings,” head coach Jared Bednar said. “So, we have something to play for down the stretch run here. And we’ve had a good year, but we’re not comfortable — we’re still just kind of fine-tuning our game for going into the playoffs.”
Nathan MacKinnon looks ready for the postseason. The star center scored two goals in the third period Thursday night to give the Avalanche a 3-1 lead and increase his league lead to 48 goals. His 117 points rank third in the NHL and he is on the brink of reaching 50 goals for the second time in three seasons.
“He’s absolutely fantastic. He’s an absolute horse out there. He’s a guy that works on his game so tirelessly,” Winnipeg’s Mark Scheifele said of MacKinnon. “On the other side, he’s a fun guy to watch. Makes a lot of plays, a lot of little plays, even that a lot of people don’t notice. So, he’s one of, if not the, one of the best, if not the best player in the league. And he shows it every single night. And it’s impressive to watch.”
Saturday night will be Logan O’Connor’s first home game since May 1 of last year. O’Connor missed the first 69 games rehabbing from offseason hip surgery and had an assist in his season debut at Pittsburgh on Tuesday night.
The Jets (30-30-12, 72 points) missed an opportunity to gain ground on Nashville for the second wild card in the Western Conference. They trail by five points with 10 games remaining and let one slip away against Colorado in a game that was tied entering the third period.
“Every game is huge for us, no matter the opponent,” Winnipeg forward Cole Perfetti said. “At this stage of the year for us, we need two points every single night, so it doesn’t matter who we’re playing.”
The Jets had won two in a row before Thursday night, which was the start of a tough stretch in their push to reach the playoffs. Saturday begins a four-game road trip and Winnipeg plays seven of its final 10 games away from home.
Half of the games are against teams holding a postseason position.
Scheifele, who has three goals and two assists in the last two games, is heating up at the right time for the Jets. He leads the team in goals (34), assists (54) and a career-high 88 points.
