MacKinnon, Avalanche to host the Hurricanes

Carolina Hurricanes (37-24-7, seventh in the Eastern Conference) vs. Colorado Avalanche (30-27-12, 10th in the Western Conference)

Denver; Monday, 9 p.m. EDT

BOTTOM LINE: Nathan MacKinnon leads Colorado into a matchup with Carolina. He’s fifth in the NHL with 87 points, scoring 35 goals and recording 52 assists.

The Avalanche are 15-12-6 on their home ice. Colorado averages 4.2 penalties per game, the most in the Western Conference. Ian Cole leads the team with 33 total penalties.

The Hurricanes have gone 19-13-3 away from home. Carolina leads the Eastern Conference recording 34.7 shots per game while averaging 3.0 goals. In their last meeting on Oct. 20, Colorado won 3-1. Gabriel Landeskog scored a team-high two goals for the Avalanche in the victory.

TOP PERFORMERS: MacKinnon has recorded 87 total points while scoring 35 goals and adding 52 assists for the Avalanche. Mikko Rantanen has recorded six goals and totaled 10 points over the last 10 games for Colorado.

LAST 10 GAMES: Hurricanes: 7-2-1, averaging 9.3 points, 3.5 goals, 5.8 assists, 3.4 penalties and 8.7 penalty minutes while giving up 2.6 goals per game with a .912 save percentage.

Avalanche: 6-3-1, averaging 9 points, 3.3 goals, 5.7 assists, 4.3 penalties and 10 penalty minutes while giving up 2.2 goals per game with a .930 save percentage.

Avalanche Injuries: Gabriel Landeskog: out (upper body), Matt Nieto: out (lower body).

Hurricanes Injuries: Micheal Ferland: day to day (upper body).