Former Denver Pioneers forward Logan O’Connor will make his NHL debut with the Avalanche on Monday night against the .
“Most of his chances and scoring opportunities for himself and his linemates (with the Colorado Eagles) are created from his tenacity and his relentlessness on the puck,” Avs coach said after an optional morning skate Monday. “We need a little bit of that in our lineup right now.”
The 22-year-old, who forewent being captain for his senior year at DU when he signed a two-year, entry-level contract with Colorado in July, is tied for second on the Eagles with nine goals. He’ll play on Colorado’s fourth line with Sheldon Dries at center and on the left side.
Bednar said forward will start the game on the top line with and , a look that Bednar tried in Saturday’s 3-2 overtime loss to Chicago. The move, which included putting Avs captain on the second line with and , was done with the intention of jump-starting the bottom sets of forwards.
“That was our best line through 30 minutes the other night,” Bednar said of the tier-two trio.
Forward Matt Nieto will return to his spot on the checking line with and . will start in net for the second consecutive game. is the expected scratch.
Colorado has lost four games in a row.
“We spent the last day-and-a-half basically trying to give our guys some clarity and reinforce some of our defensive systems so we don’t give up as much,” Bednar said. “We don’t want to have to rely on our goalie like we did last game with Varly.”
Los Angeles, which is playing its second game of a three-in-four set, will have some help as veteran defenseman Dion Phaneuf is returning to the lineup. The 33-year-old missed the previous six games with an upper-body injury.
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