Preview: The Avalanche hope to bounce back against Patty Roy and the Isles

The start in Colorado was difficult as the Avalanche had to cancel their first two regular season contests. The same goes for their opponent tonight, the New York Islanders. Fans at Ball Arena are hoping for Colorado's first win of the regular season after a frustrating loss to the Blue Jackets. The visiting Islanders are looking to spoil that and bounce back from a 3-0 loss to the Dallas Stars. Will Islanders head coach and Avalanche legend Patrick Roy return to Colorado and emerge victorious?

Colorado avalanche

The obvious point of discussion tonight is whether it will be Georgiev's goal again, despite having been hunted in both starts so far. Jared Bednar says, “Georgie is our man,” so don’t expect Justus Annunen or newcomer Kaapo Kähkönen to be between the pipes.

Let's talk about the rest of the team, who honestly seem to be doing pretty well aside from giving up some rush opportunities early in the season and suffering from poor coverage. With so many fresh faces in the squad, these things should clear up over the course of the year, but what excites me is what is already evident outside of the results.

Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, Devon Toews and even Josh Manson stood out to me as successful players in the first two competitions. It's only time for Cale Makar to break through again, and we've seen some good things from young Nikolai Kovalenko, Cal Ritchie and Ivan Ivan. This club should do well if the skaters can make a few saves despite their availability issues.

Maybe Colorado can get more out of Casey Mittelstadt, who is just two points away from his 200th career high. Cale Makar's breakthrough could come tonight as he has 14 points in eight career games against the Islanders. Keep an eye on Makar, especially the Avalanche power play, which currently ranks as the most efficient man advantage in hockey.

Planned lineup

Nikolai Kovalenko – Nathan MacKinnon – Mikko Rantanen
Ross Colton – Casey Mittelstadt – Callum Ritchie
Miles Wood – Parker Kelly – Logan O'Connor
Ivan Ivan – Chris Wagner – Joel Kiviranta

Devon Toews – Cale Makar
Sam Girard-Josh Manson
Calvin De Haan – Sam Malinski

Note: There is nothing to confirm, but I expect forward Jonathan Drouin's upper body injury will continue to keep him out for tonight's game.

New York Islanders

The Islanders got a fresh start last season after hiring Patrick Roy as head coach midway through the season. Patty had not coached in the NHL since his tumultuous departure from Colorado's staff. Still, he's back, and the Islanders could be too, after an unexpected late-season push and a playoff appearance last season.

On paper, the Islanders don't have a particularly scary lineup. Still, the top team is very talented and the Islanders (especially with Roy at the helm) are known for playing a pesky and defensively focused style. The Avalanche will have their hands full tonight as I'm sure the Isles would love to represent the Gipper in his old stomping grounds.

Planned lineup

Anthony Duclair – Bo Horvat – Mathew Barzal
Maxim Tsyplakov – Brock Nelson – Kyle Palmieri
Anders Lee – Jean-Gabriel Pageau – Simon Holmstrom
Casey Cizikas – Kyle MacLean – Oliver Wahlstrom

Adam Pelech – Ryan Pulock
Alexander Romanov – Noah Dobson
Mike Reilly-Scott Mayfield

goalkeeper

I for one am not expecting anyone but Georgiev to watch tonight, but I'm very worried about Colorado's scoring chances this season. Unless things change quickly, the Avalanche are not in a great position to bring in a new goaltender. In my opinion, that's what Bednar says: “Georgie's our guy.”

Basically, Colorado can't trade for a goalie without sacrificing a forward of significant quality, and that would just be cutting off your nose to spite yourself. The Avalanche are unable to utilize the forward depth they don't have, and the same goes for the back end as well. You have to ride or die with Georgie, or pray that Annunen or Kähkönen will show up in a way no one can predict. The most outstanding goalkeeper in franchise history will watch on the opposing side with his jersey hanging in the rafters. No pressure.

Ilya Sorokin is the Islanders' unconfirmed starter, and if that is the case, it would be his first start of the new season.

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