 |  |  |
| Colorado Avalanche | 7:00 pm ET / 5:00 pm MT | Columbus Blue Jackets |
| 25-27-1 | January 13, 2009 | 25-23-5 |
| 51 points | Nationwide Arena | 55 Points |
| 14th in West | Columbus, OH | 10th in West |
These teams last faced each other on January 13th. At the time, the Avs were in 8th and the Blue Jackets were in 9th, just 1 point behind. Colorado was riding a three game winning streak after wins over Nashville, Chicago and Pittsburgh. Our prospects for making the playoffs were very much alive. Key word there is "were".
The Avs were playing a decent game, but fell apart in the 3rd period allowing 3 goals in just over 2 minutes - energizing the crazed Columbus fans and even crazier Columbus announcers - and ended up losing 4-3. Since that fateful Tuesday, the Avalanche have been in a tailspin, losing 8 of 11 and dropping from 8th to 14th in the standings. Instead of fighting for a playoff spot, the Avs are fighting to stay out of last; the Blues are just one point back and will be hosting Vancouver tonight.
Enjoy the game thread, folks, and remember: it's your last opportunity to make BJ jokes until the fall...