ST. LOUIS — Peter Budaj will be back in net for the Avalanche on Thursday when they face the Blues.
Before this two-game road trip, which started with a 4-3 at Columbus on Tuesday, the Avs had tenatively planned to start Budaj against St. Louis. But that plan was solidified after Andrew Raycroft suffered a minor calf injury against the Blue Jackets.
Raycroft had started in four consecutive games, his longest stretch of starts this season.
“Rayzor was doing a great job, he was making the stops when we needed them,” Budaj said. “I lost the net before and I knew it was going to happen this season, that there were going to be times Rayzor was going to be playing. That’s the nature of the business sometimes.”
Tuesday’s loss dropped Raycroft’s record to 9-2 for the season. But his goals-against average and saves percentage both improved — to 2.70 and .901.
Budaj will go into the game against the Blues at 13-18-1, 2.82 and .901. He is coming off a run of three straight losses that included a shaky night in a 6-1 rout at the hands of the Blue Jackets in Denver on Jan. 2.
The Avs are looking at three games in the next four nights — they also play Edmonton at home Friday — so Budaj likely would have played against the Blues even if Raycroft hadn’t gotten dinged at Columbus.
But now there’s a possibility that Budaj also will be in the net against Edmonton, especially if he plays well in St. Louis and Raycroft isn’t 100 percent physically.
