More than three weeks passed between Avalanche games inside the Pepsi Center when Colorado finally returned to its home ice Tuesday night.
The welcome-back party? A strong performance against an NHL bottom feeder that extended the Avs’ current winning streak to five games. Goalie Philipp Grubauer was brilliant with 34 saves in his second shutout performance this season, while forwards Mikko Rantanen, Valeri Nichushkin and Gabe Landeskog added goals in a 3-0 victory.
The Avalanche (33-16-6) entered the night scoring an NHL-leading 3.65 goals per game. Tuesday’s result proved Colorado is also capable of winning a scrappy contest, as it remains in second place (72 points) for the Central Division race.