Avalanche-Stars Game 3 preview: Landeskog’s return likely as series shifts to Denver

Playoff hockey is back at Ball Arena tonight as the Colorado Avalanche host the Dallas Stars in Game 3 of the Western Conference first round. The Avalanche looked to be just minutes away from stealing both games on the road to start the series, but squandered a third period lead in Monday’s contest that led to an overtime goal from Dallas and the series being tied at one apiece.

While Ball Arena is thought of as one of the toughest places to play in the NHL, the Avalanche have not backed that up in the playoffs in recent years. In the 10 home playoff games Colorado has played since throttling the Tampa Bay Lightning 7-0 in Game 2 of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final, Colorado has a record of just 3-7, including two losses in win-or-go-home scenarios.

The biggest story heading into Game 3 is the impending return of Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog, who pump-faked the entire hockey world in Game 2 when he was scratched after taking part in warmups. Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar gave a promising update on the captain on Wednesday morning, signaling that it’s very likely Landeskog will be out on the ice. There are many question marks surrounding what line he will be on, how his form will look and how many minutes he’ll play, but having him on the ice is all that matters for Colorado.

How to watch Game 3 of Avalanche-Stars

Game 3 will be broadcast on ESPN and Altitude TV with puck drop scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Denver time.

View the full series schedule here.

Odds for Game 3 of Avalanche-Stars

Moneylines: Avalanche -192, Stars +158

Puck lines: Avalanche -1.5 (+130), Stars +1.5 (-160)

Total: 6.5

The over has now hit in all five games the Avalanche and the Stars have played this season after seven goals were scored in Game 2. On the money line, this is the heaviest that Colorado has been so far in this series, as the home-ice advantage and the likelihood of Gabriel Landeskog making his return to NHL hockey point to the burgundy and blue having all the momentum on their side.

Projected lines for Game 3 of Avalanche-Stars

Avalanche
Lehkonen – MacKinnon – Necas
Drouin – Nelson – Nichushkin
Landeskog – Coyle – Kiviranta
Kelly – Drury – O’Connor

Makar – Towes
Lindgren – Manson
Girard – Malinski

Blackwood
Wedgewood

Stars
Granlund – Hintz – Rantanen
Marchment – Duchene – Seguin
Benn – Johnston – Dadonov
Back – Steel – Blackwell

Lindell – Ceci
Harley – Lyubushkin
Bichsel – Petrovic

Oettinger
DeSmith

*Lines reported from morning skate ahead of Game 3. Subject to change when teams take the ice for warmups*

Injury notes/report for Game 3 of Avalanche-Stars

Avalanche
Ross Colton is still dealing with the injury that he suffered in Game 1 and is not slated to play in Wednesday’s contest. He’s listed as day-to-day. In his place will likely be Gabriel Landeskog, who participated in morning skate for the Avalanche, and even had on a burgundy sweater for the second power play unit. There has been no solid answer on whether or not the captain is playing, but it seems likely that he will make his long-awaited return.

“He feels good. So we’ll see if he comes in,” Nathan MacKinnon said at morning skate on Wednesday.

Stars
Miro Heiskanen did make the trip to Denver with his team, but is not expected to play in Game 3 as he slowly ramps up his play. On the other hand, Jason Robertson is not with the team on the trip, as he is still listed as week-to-week.

What to watch for in Game 3 of Avalanche-Stars

The penalty game. In Game 2, the Avalanche (4) conceded penalties than the Stars (3) did, and they paid the price for it. Josh Manson has already committed three penalties in the first two games of the postseason, tied for the most by a single player in the league. Both teams are 2-for-7 on power play opportunities so far, tied for ninth-best of all playoff teams. In the regular season, the Avalanche had the eighth-best power play in the entire league, while the Stars were 17th in that category. On the penalty kill side, the Avalanche ranked 12th, while the Stars had the fourth-best penalty kill percentage.

Penalties can make or break a series, and the Avs need to be more disciplined on the ice to prevent Dallas from getting easier chances at the net.

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