Pittsburgh travels to play MacKinnon and the Avalanche

Pittsburgh Penguins (26-12-5, third in the Metropolitan Division) vs. Colorado Avalanche (25-15-4, third in the Central Division)

Denver; Friday, 9 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Nathan MacKinnon and Colorado square off against Pittsburgh. MacKinnon is third in the NHL with 65 points, scoring 26 goals and recording 39 assists.

The Avalanche have gone 11-7-2 in home games. Colorado is third in the NHL shooting 11.0% and averaging 3.6 goals on 33.0 shots per game.

The Penguins are 10-7-2 on the road. Pittsburgh has scored 144 goals and ranks seventh in the league averaging 3.4 goals per game. Bryan Rust leads the team with 17.

Pittsburgh beat Colorado 3-2 in the last meeting between these teams on Oct. 16.

TOP PERFORMERS: Ryan Graves leads the Avalanche with a plus-30 in 43 games played this season. MacKinnon has collected 13 points over the last 10 games for Colorado.

Rust leads the Penguins with 17 goals and has recorded 35 points. Evgeni Malkin has four goals and nine assists over the last 10 games for Pittsburgh.

LAST 10 GAMES: Penguins: 7-2-1, averaging 3.6 goals, 6.3 assists, 3.4 penalties and 8.9 penalty minutes while giving up 2.6 goals per game with a .916 save percentage.

Avalanche: 3-6-1, averaging 3.6 goals, 5.6 assists, 3.3 penalties and 9.1 penalty minutes while giving up 3.1 goals per game with a .902 save percentage.

INJURIES: Avalanche: None listed.

Penguins: Justin Schultz: out (lower body).