Game Preview: Avalanche Ring In January and the New Year with the Buffalo Sabres

Denver, Co. - The Buffalo Sabres are in town to play their final match of the regular season with the Colorado Avalanche. This match comes just under a month after Colorado completed a 5-4 comeback win against the Sabres in Buffalo.

Scott Wedgewood, who also made his Avalanche debut during Colorado's last game against Buffalo, will get the start in net tonight. Without confirmation from Buffalo Head Coach Lindy Ruff following their morning skate, and if starters creases are anything to go by, it looks like Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen will occupy the crease on the other side of the ice.

The Avalanche will be without Valeri Nichushkin during tonight's game. Head Coach Jared Bednar classified Nichushkin's absence as"day-to-day" and "lower body," saying it didn't look like something serious. "Could keep him out 7-10 days. We'll see what the next handful of days look like and see what kind of progression he makes."

Before getting into keys to tonight's game, a little update on Captain Gabriel Landeskog, who skated with the team this morning. While he also got a little one-on-one with one of the coaches this morning, he did participate in the first part of morning skate ahead of tonight's game.

He looks like he's progressed since his last outing on the ice, he's moving a little better, a little faster, and crossovers look much improved and more seamless. With that said, he's still favoring his left side with a lot of his stops and looked a little jumpy when accidentally bumping into a teammate during drills.

While it's clear he's still a ways away from a return, Bednar had pleasant things to say about his appearance during morning skate and his recovery progress:

With that, let's get into tonight's three keys to the game:

1.) Keep It Snowing On Buffalo

The Avalanche currently hold the NHL's longest active win streak, at five games. This streak is also tied for their longest win streak this season, which occurred from October 18-27.

Buffalo just broke a 13-game losing skid last week against the New York Islanders. This streak is the third-longest single-season losing streak for the club, and they're desperate to stay away from another streak after a 4-2 loss against the Dallas Stars.

2.) Special Teams Need to be Extra Special

The Avalanche did not take a single penalty during Tuesday's win over the Winnipeg Jets. In fact, there was only one penalty called during the entire game, which came during the first period.

Colorado's penalty kill is ranked 22nd league-wide at 77.6%. Not great odds, but also not odds they need to put to the test if they can stay out of the box.

On the other side of the ice, the Sabres boast a perfect 7-for-7 record on the penalty kill in their last four games, despite ranking 20th in the league. The Avalanche's power play, 11th in the standings, hasn't scored a goal since December 22nd against the Seattle Kraken. Not only would a goal on the man advantage tremendously help their chances of winning, but it would also put a cloth over Buffalo's flaming-hot penalty kill, therefore dampening their recent momentum.

3.) "Four lines, Six D, Two tendies"

The more-than-memorable post-game speech from Scott Wedgewood following their comeback win against the Sabres at the beginning of December still lives on, fresh in the minds of fans. The speech still reigns true for tonight.

It's going to take an effort from everyone on the ice. Mackenzie Blackwood had a phenomenal game on Tuesday against the Winnipeg Jets, making stops that gave his team the chance to beat the best team in the league. That momentum carries on into tonight's game. The blue line has done a great job at providing scoring chances, if not scoring a couple themselves. And the forwards? There's been help from up and down the lines, whether it be finding the back of the net or shutting down the neutral zone.

Where/How to Find the Game

Puck drop is slated for 7:08 pm Mountain Time.

Tonight is another coveted local Altitude broadcast, and if the game isn't enough incentive to watch tonight, Marc Moser and Mark Rycroft's fancy NYE getups will absolutely do the trick for you.

Tonight's broadcast will also be featured on Channel 20's KTDV.

If radio is more your speed, Connor McGahey will be holding the fort down over on Altitude Sports Radio (92.5 FM).

Make sure you bookmark THN's Colorado Avalanche site for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more.

Avalanche Defensive Prospect Signs Two-Year Deal With the Organization

Game Preview: Colorado and Winnipeg Face Off to Ring In the New Year

Avalanche Swap Prospects and Draft Picks with the Nashville Predators

Avalanche Sign Newest Goaltender Addition to Five-year, $26.25M Contract Extension