Avalanche Face Golden Knights in Friday Afternoon Clash

The Colorado Avalanche (6-1-4) travel to Las Vegas today to take on the Vegas Golden Knights (6-1-3) in the first of three matchups this season, as both teams look to maintain their strong starts to the 2025-26 NHL season.

Colorado is coming off an impressive 8-4 victory against the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday, fueled by a hat trick from Victor Olofsson and two goals from Nathan MacKinnon. MacKinnon’s two goals also moved him past Milan Hejduk for fourth most in franchise history with 376. Vegas defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 6-3 yesterday, overcoming an early deficit with a strong third-period performance. This game features two of the top teams in the Western Conference, setting the stage for a potentially pivotal early-season contest.

MacKinnon currently leads the NHL in goals with nine and is tied for third in points with 17, while Cale Makar leads all defensemen in points (15) and assists (12). Recently signed to an eight-year contract extension, Martin Necas is tied for 14th in the league in goals with seven. “I feel like coming into this season having the whole camp, being with the guys. Feel like a real player of the Colorado Avalanche and I’ve seen the things we can do on the ice, and I was like, sign me up,” Necas said regarding his commitment to the team. For Vegas, Jack Eichel leads in points with 19, and Pavel Dorofeyev tops the team in goals with nine. You can find more information about the National Hockey League standings here.

Historically, the Avalanche hold a 16-10-2 record in 28 regular-season games against the Golden Knights. The game is scheduled for 2 p.m. MT at T-Mobile Arena and will be broadcast on Altitude and Altitude+, with radio coverage on Altitude Sports Radio (950 AM). Following today’s game, the teams will meet again in Las Vegas on December 27th and in Denver on April 11th.