The Avalanche are back at Ball Arena on Friday night with Tampa Bay coming in for the first of two regular-season meetings between the clubs in 2026-27. The puck drops at 7 p.m. MDT, and the rematch in Tampa is set for February 13.
Colorado is trying to steady itself after a 4-3 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday. Artturi Lehkonen scored twice, Gabriel Landeskog added a goal and Scott Wedgewood turned aside 37 of 40 shots, but the Avs couldn’t finish the comeback. New Jersey struck first at 6:40 of the opening period on Luke Evangelista’s goal, then Landeskog pulled Colorado even at 14:32 with his fourth of the season, finishing a play created by Cale Makar after a strong solo effort through Devils traffic.
The game slipped away in the second and third periods. Declan Chisholm put New Jersey ahead 2-1 at 12:33 of the middle frame, Arseny Gritsyuk made it 3-1 at 4:39 of the third, and Jesper Boqvist added an empty-netter at 16:05. Lehkonen cut the gap with a goal at 16:47, then buried his second of the night at 19:55 while Colorado had pulled the goalie, but the rally ended there.
Friday’s matchup also brings together two teams coming off wins. Tampa Bay rolled past the Vegas Golden Knights 6-2 on Tuesday behind a balanced offensive burst.
Brandon Hagel opened the scoring on the power play at 4:11 of the first, John Carlson made it 2-1 at 14:04, and after Vegas briefly tied it, Anthony Cirelli scored twice in the second period before Victor Hedman and Nikita Kucherov finished off the Knights. Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 32 of 34 shots in net.
Colorado has plenty of firepower of its own. Nathan MacKinnon is tied for seventh in the NHL with 16 points and tied for eighth with 10 assists.
Among defensemen, Makar is tied for second in goals with three, tied for fourth in points with 11 and tied for sixth in assists with eight. Lehkonen, meanwhile, is tied for fourth in the NHL with eight goals.
The Avalanche also have the edge in recent production at home, where MacKinnon is tied for the NHL lead with nine even-strength points this season. As a team, Colorado leads the league with 34 five-on-five goals.
This one also comes with some familiar history. In 47 previous regular-season games against the Lightning, Colorado is 22-18-3-4. The clubs have also met once in the playoffs, with the Avalanche beating Tampa Bay in six games in the 2022 Stanley Cup Final.
MacKinnon, Makar and Landeskog have all produced plenty against Tampa Bay over the years. MacKinnon has 32 points, including 11 goals and 21 assists, in 23 regular-season games against the Lightning, plus six points in six playoff games.
Makar has nine points in 10 regular-season meetings and seven points in six playoff contests. Landeskog has 19 points in 18 regular-season games against Tampa Bay and five points in six playoff games.
The Lightning arrive with their own high-end scoring leaders. Nikita Kucherov leads the team in points with 13 and assists with nine, while also tying for second in goals with four.
Hagel leads Tampa Bay with seven goals and ranks second with 12 points. Jake Guentzel is tied for second on the club in goals with four and assists with five, and sits third with nine points.
After the road trip, Jared Bednar said the message is simple: “It’s just regroup time. Go back to what we were trying to do before these two games, and that’s play to our identity, the pace of the game, the competitiveness and work that’s also needed to sort of set up that pace. And then trying to sustain it for as long as we can.”
In Other News...
Avalanche Fans Have A New Reason To Watch Toronto Closely
The trade market is starting to heat up around one of Colorados future assets, and the Maple Leafs are right in the middle of it. Toronto is reportedly willing to pay a premium price to land an impact defenseman, with the conversation centered on pieces that could include the Avalanches 2027 first-round pick or top prospects. For a Colorado team that has already seen its draft capital become part of bigger league-wide discussions, that kind of buzz is worth monitoring closely.
One name being floated in those talks is Easton Cowan, the kind of prospect Toronto would have to consider moving if it wants to swing big. At the same time, Nashville has also been involved in conversations about defenseman Brady Skjei, whose contract and lack of trade protection make him a player to watch as teams search for help on the blue line. For Avalanche fans, the intrigue is less about Torontos shopping list than about how far the market could stretch and what it might mean for Colorados future assets. [Read more 🡒]
Megnas Return Gives Colorado A Boost Fans Will Notice
Jayson Megna gave the Colorado Eagles exactly the kind of lift that tends to matter in the middle of a season grind, scoring twice in a 4-1 win over the Bakersfield Condors and finishing it off with the game-winner. The veteran forwards return was one of the cleaner storylines of the night, and it came with Colorado getting contributions in the other key areas too, as the Eagles cashed in on special teams and kept the pressure on from start to finish.
Ilya Nabokov backed it up in net with 34 saves on 35 shots to move to 4-1-0, giving Colorado the kind of steadiness that can make a lineup feel deeper than it looks on paper. Bakersfield tried to reset its crease by turning from Connor Ungar to Nathan Day during the game, but the Eagles never let the shift change the rhythm, and Megnas presence was the kind of boost fans will notice again if it carries over. [Read more 🡒]
Avalanche Top Line Finally Looked Like A Problem Again
For much of the night at Ball Arena, the Avalanches top line looked like the version that can tilt a game by itself. Nathan MacKinnon, Martin Necas and Artturi Lehkonen combined for nine points in a 6-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning, with MacKinnon finishing with a goal and three assists as Colorados offense found a familiar rhythm. The power play also chipped in once, and MacKenzie Blackwood backed it up with 31 saves to help the Avalanche keep control.
There were still a few rough edges, though, which is where this one gets more interesting for Colorado. The penalty kill had its issues, and a controversial late sequence added some noise to a night that otherwise felt like a step toward getting the teams most dangerous trio rolling again. If the Avalanche are going to lean into that kind of top-end firepower, theyll still want the rest of the details cleaned up behind it. [Read more 🡒]