The Colorado Avalanche: News from around the NHL - October 25th, 2013

A preview of the Colorado Avalanche game.

Roy, though, feels the credit goes beyond the goalies.

"I'm pleased to see the way we're playing defensively. It's a commitment of the six guys on the ice," the Hall of Fame goaltender said. "We know we have great goaltending, but our defensemen have played well."

Still, it's difficult to overlook the contributions from Varlamov and Giguere. Varlamov, who may get the start Friday, has a 1.68 goals-against average while winning five of six starts, while Giguere has a 0.67 GAA while winning all three starts.

Nate Guenin sure has the character of an Avalanche player.

Needless to say, his family in the small western Pennsylvania town of Aliquippa is proud to see Nate's perseverance pay off.

"My grandfather worked in a steel mill for 40 years, and he would never take a day off. He always told me, 'If you're not feeling good or whatever you go to work and when you have your days off that's when you take them,' " Guenin said. "I'm still not saying I made it by any means, but seven hard years in the minors for the most part and I've seen a lot of guys that I came up with pack it in or go over to Europe. My dream is to play in the NHL and I wasn't going to stop."

Patrick Kaleta tried to get out of his suspension by appealing to Bettman; he failed. He is still serving a ten game suspension.

The National Hockey League has upheld Buffalo Sabres forward Patrick Kaleta’s 10-game suspension for an illegal check to the head of Columbus Blue Jackets defenceman Jack Johnson.

Kaleta had appealed the original ruling on the grounds that contact with Johnson’s head was unavoidable.

Commissioner Gary Bettman dismissed Kaleta’s appeal, siding with director of player safety Brendan Shanahan, who handed down the original penalty on Oct. 15. Shanahan said in his decision that Kaleta could have avoided contact with Johnson’s head.