It is hard to believe we are about to turn the calendar from 2025 to 2026. The 2025 calendar year has been a fun one in hockey, from the Florida Panthers repeating as Stanley Cup champions to Alex Ovechkin breaking Wayne Gretzky’s record. It has been an interesting year for the St. Louis Blues as well, but before we start thinking about 2026, they have one more game to play. On New Year’s Eve, the Blues take on the rival Colorado Avalanche on the road.
Blues’ Gameday Preview: Blues at Avalanche
The Blues and Avalanche are meeting for the first time this season. Last season, the Blues won three of four with their rivals, including two wins as part of their 12-game winning streak.
The Blues lead the all-time regular-season series, 79-73-11-4.
Time: 9:00 P.M. Eastern Time
TV: FanDuel Sports Midwest (St. Louis), Altitude Sports Network (Colorado)
The Blues’ Story
The Blues are 15-17-8 on the season with 38 points. They are 4-5-1 in their last 10 games.
Recent Game
The Blues fell to the Buffalo Sabres on Monday, 4-2. It was a lackluster game in which the team struggled to generate shots on goal, recording only two in the third period. Head coach Jim Montgomery noted the effort was lacking.
“What it really comes down to is we’ve got to have a better effort than that. We have to play with more purpose and pride, and the physicality just isn’t good enough right now.”
Projected Lineup (Subject to Change)
- Jake Neighbours – Robert Thomas – Pavel Buchnevich
- Otto Stenberg – Brayden Schenn – Jordan Kyrou
- Robby Fabbri – Dalibor Dvorsky – Jimmy Snuggerud
- Alexey Toropchenko – Oskar Sundqvist – Mathieu Joseph
- Philip Broberg – Colton Parayko
- Tyler Tucker – Justin Faulk
- Cam Fowler – Logan Mailloux
- Joel Hofer/Jordan Binnington
Team Leaders
Thomas leads the team in points with 29. Faulk and Neighbours each lead with ten goals. The assists leader with 20 is Thomas. Tucker has the most penalty minutes on the team with 43. Lastly, Stenberg leads in plus/minus with a plus-2 rating.
Related: Blues’ Stars of the First Half: Hofer, Faulk, and Thomas
In goal, Hofer leads in all major categories. He has eight wins, a 2.87 goals-against average (GAA), and a .901 save percentage (SV%). Furthermore, he has recorded all three of the team’s shutouts.
The Avalanche Story
The Avalanche is 29-2-7 with 65 points. They are 9-0-1 in their last ten games.
Recent Game
The Avs were victorious on Monday, beating the Los Angeles Kings 5-2. Nathan MacKinnon scored his 399th career goal, which also added to his league-leading goal total. The Avs have now earned points in 28 of their last 29 games. Their historic season is showing no signs of slowing down.
Projected Lineup (Subject to Change)
- Gabriel Landeskog – Nathan MacKinnon – Martin Necas
- Artturi Lehkonen – Brock Nelson – Valeri Nichushin
- Ross Colton – Jack Drury – Victor Olofsson
- Joel Kiviranta – Parker Kelly – Gavin Brindley
- Devon Toews – Cale Makar
- Josh Manson – Brent Burns
- Samuel Girard – Sam Malinski
- Scott Wedgewood/Mackenzie Blackwood
Team Leaders
If someone asks you who leads the Avalanche in X category, the answer is more than likely MacKinnon. He leads the Avs in points (66), goals (32), assists (34), and plus/minus (plus-48). The only skating statistic MacKinnon does not lead the team in is penalty minutes, which is led by Manson with 45.
In goal, Wedgewood leads the team with 17 wins and a 2.13 GAA. Blackwood, on the other hand, leads with a .924 SV%.
Blues’ Storyline to Watch
The loss on Monday was not their worst of the season, but it was still frustrating. The Blues started with an intense first period. They fell behind early but fought back to take the lead and put up nine shots on goal. After that, they only had nine more shots. Just two shots in the third period when the game was right there for the taking. When they did get chances, they completely missed the net. Thomas missed on a breakaway, and Snuggerud missed a wide-open net in the final minute.
We briefly mentioned Montgomery’s comments regarding effort, but we have to reference them again. To beat the Avalanche, the Blues have to be a lot better. They cannot have a bad period. Furthermore, if the game is there for the taking, the team needs to generate chances and get pucks on net.
Wednesday night can go one of two ways. It can be the latest in a series of frustrating losses, or it can be an inspirational win that can help turn the season around.
Avalanche Storyline to Watch
The Avs’ storyline centers around MacKinnon. With another goal, he will become just the third Avalanche player to score 400 goals with the team. Furthermore, he will pull closer to Michael Goulet for the second-most goals in team history (456).
The Avalanche’s historic season has the opportunity to see a great deal of hardware. In addition to being the frontrunner for the Presidents’ Trophy, the team should be considered the favorite to win the Stanley Cup. MacKinnon, meanwhile, could be on his way to winning his second Hart Trophy.
Enjoy the Game!
If you are out and about for New Year’s celebrations, be responsible and stay safe! Please check back in throughout the day for lineup updates. After the game, check back in for the recap here at The Hockey Writers.
