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Malinski notched an assist, four shots on goal and two PIM in Thursday's 7-3 loss to the Canadiens.
Malinski signed a four-year contract extension on Tuesday. That deal came as he's proven himself in a top-four role alongside Cale Makar in the absence of Devon Toews (upper body). Malinski has posted just four helpers with 40 shots on net and 18 blocked shots over his last 15 outings since a three-assist game in Vegas on Dec. 27. Overall, the 27-year-old blueliner has 25 points, 104 shots on net, 57 blocked shots, 25 hits and a plus-27 rating through 52 appearances, numbers worthy of a look in deeper fantasy formats.
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Avalanche's Samuel Girard: Ends month-long slump
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Girard posted an assist, three shots on goal and two blocked shots in Thursday's 7-3 loss to the Canadiens.
Girard had gone 13 games without a point entering Thursday. The 27-year-old blueliner has held a steady role on the third pairing during his slump, though that role may be contributing to his difficulties on offense. For the season, Girard is at 12 points, 31 shots on net, 34 blocked shots and a plus-13 rating over 37 appearances.
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Avalanche's Joel Kiviranta: Scores in Thursday's loss
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Kiviranta scored a goal and added two hits in Thursday's 7-3 loss to the Canadiens.
Kiviranta picked up his first goal and second point over four games since he returned from a lower-body injury. The winger is up to two goals, six points, 18 shots and 35 hits through 25 appearances. Kiviranta will continue to fill a primarily defensive role in the Avalanche's bottom six -- don't expect him to approach the pace that yielded 16 goals and 23 points in 79 regular-season outings last year.
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Avalanche's Brock Nelson: Buries another goal
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Nelson scored a goal, added two hits and went minus-2 in Thursday's 7-3 loss to the Canadiens.
Nelson has had a nose for the net in January with 12 goals and five assists over 13 outings. The 34-year-old center is up to a total of 28 goals, 47 points, 117 shots, 41 blocked shots, 26 hits and a plus-6 rating. Nelson has never had a 40-goal campaign -- his best was a 37-goal effort over 72 outings in 2021-22. He shot 21.6 percent that season and is at 23.9 in 2025-26, so a career high is possible as long as his luck doesn't fade.
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Avalanche's Ross Colton: First goal in 26 games
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Colton (lower body) scored a goal Thursday in a 7-3 loss to the Canadiens.
Colton had missed three games. He played 12:37 with two shots, three hits and one block. The goal was Colton's first in 26 games (eight assists). We'd like to recommend him as a depth fill on your roster, but we need to see more offense before that's a sensible option.
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Avalanche's Scott Wedgewood: Rough night in blue paint
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Wedgewood made 21 saves Thursday in a 7-3 loss to Montreal.
Wedgewood was hard on himself after the game. "It's a goalie loss," he told reporters. "It was unfortunate to get one super early, and then just nothing clean for me. And I made some choices that I've prided myself on not making and it cost us. You know, I'm OK with some of those going in, it's just the (bad) bounces and situations that you put yourself in that cause (bad) bounces was something that I needed to smarten up on today." Wedgewood is 20-4-5 with a 2.30 GAA and .912 save percentage in 31 starts this season, but January has been tough on him. He is 3-3-1 with 20 goals allowed and a .888 save percentage in seven starts this month.
Toews (upper body) will miss Thursday's game in Montreal, per the NHL media site.
Toews hasn't been in the lineup since Jan. 3 because of the injury. He has a goal, 13 points, 18 PIM, 14 hits and 58 blocks in 40 outings in 2025-26. His next opportunity to play will come Saturday in Detroit.
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Avalanche's Scott Wedgewood: Set to face Montreal
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Wedgewood is expected to start on the road against Montreal on Thursday, per Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette.
Wedgewood has a 20-3-5 record, 2.14 GAA and .918 save percentage in 30 appearances in 2025-26. He's getting his first start since Jan. 21, when he stopped 15 of 16 shots in a 2-1 shootout loss to Anaheim. Montreal is 29-17-7 this campaign, but the Canadiens have a mediocre 3-3-1 record over their past seven games.
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Avalanche's Ross Colton: Ready to return
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Colton (lower body) is good to play Thursday in Montreal, per Conor McGahey of Altitude TV.
Colton missed three straight games due to the injury. He has five goals and 20 points in 48 appearances in 2025-26. Colton's return is expected to result in Taylor Makar being a healthy scratch Thursday.
Avalanche's Keaton Middleton: Helper in season debut
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Middleton logged an assist and two hits in Wednesday's 5-2 loss to the Senators.
Middleton appeared in his first NHL outing of the season in Wednesday's loss after posting nine points in 39 AHL appearances. The 27-year-old defenseman logged 10:23 of ice time on the third pairing against Ottawa. Middleton was limited to two assists in 41 regular-season outings for the Avalanche in 2024-25, and his stay on the NHL roster could be a short one, as the team has often rotated players in depth roles this year.
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Avalanche's Parker Kelly: Scores against former team
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Kelly scored a goal on two shots and added two hits in Wednesday's 5-2 loss to the Senators.
Kelly's goal at 14:05 of the second period briefly tied the game at 1-1, though Ridly Greig answered just 17 seconds later. The 26-year-old Kelly is up to a career-high 20 points in just 51 outings this season, reaching this milestone against his former team. He's added 67 shots on net, 105 hits, 36 blocked shots and a plus-10 rating while playing primarily in a bottom-six role.
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Avalanche's Valeri Nichushkin: Pots goal in loss
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Nichushkin scored a goal on two shots in Wednesday's 5-2 loss to the Senators.
Nichushkin's goal brought the Avalanche within one early in the third period, but they couldn't tie the game. The 30-year-old winger hadn't scored in January prior to Wednesday, picking up just two assists and 16 shots on net over 10 outings. He's now at 12 goals, 29 points, 102 shots on net, 35 hits and a plus-3 rating over 42 contests.
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Avalanche's Mackenzie Blackwood: Takes loss in Ottawa
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Blackwood allowed three goals on 21 shots in Wednesday's 5-2 loss to the Senators. The last two goals were empty-netters.
The Avalanche struggled as a whole and were in no position to help Blackwood. He's gone 1-3-0 with 15 goals allowed on 101 shots over his last four games, though that's part of a larger rough patch for the team. Overall, Blackwood has a 14-4-1 record with a 2.44 GAA and a .909 save percentage across 19 appearances. Scott Wedgewood will likely get the nod for Thursday's game in Montreal, but fantasy managers should be patient with Blackwood -- he's talented enough to turn things around, especially on a strong team.
Colton (lower body) will not play in Wednesday's road clash with the Senators, per Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette.
While Colton will miss his third consecutive game Wednesday, Colorado is hopeful that he will return at some point during the remaining two matchups in the team's road trip. Overall, the 29-year-old winger has been a solid secondary scorer for the Avalanche with 20 points with 20 points and 115 shots on net to go with 99 hits and 20 blocks through 48 games this season. His next chance to take the ice is Thursday's road matchup in Montreal.
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Avalanche's Mackenzie Blackwood: Tending twine against Ottawa
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Blackwood will be between the pipes for Wednesday's road game against Ottawa, Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette reports.
Blackwood has had mixed results in recent outings, but he'll be in the crease for a third consecutive game Wednesday. Across his last three starts, he's gone 1-2-0 with a 4.06 GAA and an .850 save percentage. Ottawa is tied for ninth in the league with 3.29 goals per game this season.
Middleton was summoned from AHL Colorado on Tuesday.
Middleton has two goals and nine points in 39 AHL appearances this campaign. He will probably make his 2025-26 debut with the Avalanche against Ottawa on Wednesday. Middleton had two assists, 44 shots on goal, 37 blocked shots and 69 hits in 41 games for Colorado during the 2024-25 NHL regular season.
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