Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Colorado Avalanche Pick & Prediction OCTOBER 30th 2024


Preview and Prediction
The Colorado Avalanche believe they have not performed well in their last two games. They were able to get away with it once, but their below-par display on Monday night resulted in a 5-2 defeat to the Chicago Blackhawks.
Colorado has the chance to make up for their loss when they take on the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday night to finish off a three-game homestand in Denver.
The Avalanche bounced back from a rough start to the season, winning five consecutive games before their disappointing performance against Chicago. Now, with another forward out, they face a Tampa Bay team that has won two games in a row.
Leading goal-scorer Ross Colton left Monday's game after taking a shot to the leg in the first period, adding to the list of injured Avs. Colton's injury seems serious enough that he will be out for more than just a few games.
"He will be out for some time, but we will have a better idea of how long that will be by tomorrow or Wednesday morning," said coach Jared Bednar.
Colton has scored eight goals in 10 games, providing a boost to the offense while top-line forwards are sidelined. Artturi Lehkonen (shoulder), Gabriel Landeskog (knee), Valeri Nichushkin (suspension), and Jonathan Drouin (upper-body injury) have all been out this season.
Stars Cale Makar and Nathan MacKinnon have been carrying the scoring load. Both have recorded at least one point in each of the first 10 games; Makar has 17 points (three goals, 14 assists) and MacKinnon has 16 (five goals, 11 assists).
If Colton is placed on the injured list, Colorado will call up a forward from the AHL. However, the Avalanche's main focus should be on improving their performance after Monday night's disappointment.
"We are not satisfied with moral victories at the moment," Bednar stated. "It was not our best game. We needed to be better and we were not. This is two games in a row now."
Tampa Bay is coming off an emotional 3-2 overtime victory against Nashville on Monday night, where they honored former captain Steven Stamkos, who helped the Lightning win two Stanley Cups. After spending 16 seasons in Tampa, Stamkos returned for the first time since signing with the Predators in the offseason.
Tampa Bay spoiled his return, but like the Avalanche, they were not pleased with their overall performance ahead of a four-game road trip.
"We need to be more consistent throughout the entire 60 minutes," said Lightning captain Victor Hedman. "We are facing some tough teams. We cannot afford to take a period off here and there; we need to be on top of our game for the entire 60 minutes. We need to execute our game plan."
One area where Tampa Bay can improve is their special teams. The Lightning led the NHL in power-play percentage last season but have only converted 5 out of 31 opportunities this year. They are also struggling on the penalty kill, ranking 28th in the league with a 71.9 percent success rate.
This could be a problem against Colorado's potent power play, which ranks third in the NHL at 36.4 percent and has scored 12 power-play goals despite missing four key players.


Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Colorado Avalanche Recap OCT 30TH 2024
Jake Guentzel scored twice, Nikita Kucherov had a goal and two assists and the Tampa Bay Lightning used a quick start to beat the Colorado Avalanche 5-2 in Denver on Wednesday night.
Anthony Cirelli had a goal and an assist and Conor Geekie also scored for Tampa Bay, which earned its third win in a row. Brayden Point and Brandon Hagel contributed two assists each, and Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 33 shots.
Lightning defenseman Erik Cernak left the game in the second period with an undisclosed injury.
Colorado has dropped two straight after winning five in a row to continue a streaky beginning to the season. Cale Makar had a goal and an assist, Ivan Ivan also had a goal, Nathan MacKinnon added two assists and Kaapo Kahkonen made 16 saves in his first start for the Avalanche.
Makar and MacKinnon have each recorded at least one point in the first 11 games of the year.
Tampa Bay scored three times on its first five shots. Kucherov got his ninth goal of the season 1:01 into the game with a one-timer from the slot, and then he sent a pass from behind the net to Guentzel, who roofed a shot at 3:36.
Geekie made it 3-0 at 5:32 when he finished off a three-on-one rush, but the Avalanche got one back on a power play late in the first on Ivan's redirection of Makar's shot from the point at 14:56, his second goal of the season.
Colorado failed to score on a power play early in the second, and less than a minute later, Guentzel scored off a rebound at 6:28 for his second of the game and fourth of the season.
The Avalanche went on the power play twice more after the midway point of the second but couldn't capitalize, and Tampa Bay had three minutes on the power play after Matt Stienburg was assessed a five-minute major for a hit on Cernak.
Makar's fourth goal of the season at 10:57 of the third made it 4-2. Kahkonen came off for an extra skater with 2:49 left, and Cirelli scored into the empty net, his second goal of the season, with 1:20 to go.