Wild-Colorado game preview

High-scoring Avs next

Preview: After a three-day hiatus, the Wild travels to Colorado to take on the Avalanche, the second-best team in the Western Conference with 49 points. Before the Christmas break, the Wild (41 points) shut out Calgary 3-0. Colorado, which leads the league in goals per game at 3.62, is coming off a 7-3 win over Vegas. The Wild and Avalanche have split two games this season, each winning at home.

Players to watch: Avalanche C Nathan MacKinnon (21 goals, 34 assists—55 points) is the third-leading scorer in the NHL. RW Mikko Rantanen has three goals in his past five outings. … Wild RW Luke Kunin has scored twice in his past three games. RW Kevin Fiala has five points over his past six games.

Numbers: The Wild is 12-4-4 in its past 20 games. Against the Central Division, it is 2-8-1. The Wild gives up the fourth-most goals in the NHL (3.29 per game). … Colorado is 10-5-2 at home. The Avalanche is 6-3-1 over its past 10 games.

Injuries: Avalanche D Cale Makar (upper body) and LW Colin Wilson (lower body) are out. Wild D Greg Pateryn (lower body), C Mikko Koivu (lower body) and Jason Zucker (fractured fibula) are also out.

Sarah McLellan