Colorado @ Toronto preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 22, 2018 ) Colorado 4, Toronto 2

The Colorado Avalanche's pronounced woes on the road grow worse with each passing game while the Toronto Maple Leafs haven't been too keen about their recent performances at home, either. The Avalanche bid to end a seven-game road losing skid on Monday when they visit Scotiabank Arena to face the Maple Leafs, who fell for the fourth time in their last five home contests with Saturday's 3-2 setback versus Boston.

"We have to come together and figure a way out of this. And I have no doubt we will, but nonetheless it's frustrating," said Colorado captain Gabriel Landeskog, who saw his run of three straight contests with multi-point performances come to a halt in Saturday's 3-0 setback in Montreal. The Avalanche, who have lost nine of 10 overall (1-7-2), surrendered 15 goals during the first three contests of its five-game Canadian trek. The Avalanche may need to vent their frustrations at Frederik Andersen, who told reporters on Sunday that he feels ready to end his eight-game absence due to a groin injury. Although the 29-year-old Dane is optimistic, Maple Leafs head coach Mike Babcock said he has to refer to the training staff before a decision will be made on his starting goaltender against the Avalanche.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, Altitude (Colorado), TSN4 (Toronto)

ABOUT THE AVALANCHE (20-17-8): Carey Price and the Canadiens brought a halt to four separate point streaks by Colorado players, namely Nathan MacKinnon's eight-game run in which he scored five goals and set up six others. The 23-year-old scored a goal and set up two others in Colorado's 4-3 overtime win over Toronto on Dec. 29, 2017. Linemates Landeskog (three goals, three assists) and Mikko Rantanen (three goals, three assists) as well as defenseman Erik Johnson (one goal, two assists) saw their respective three-game point streaks come to a close Saturday as well.

ABOUT THE MAPLE LEAFS (28-14-2): While Auston Matthews has scored just one goal in his last nine games and fellow forward William Nylander has just one tally in his 16 contests this season, Nazem Kadri cautioned that the noise surrounding individual players' troubles will fall on deaf ears. "Complaining and saying you're unlucky and feeling sorry for yourself isn't going to do much," the 28-year-old Kadri told TSN. "So you just have to have that work ethic, have that positive mentality and be able to turn that page every game." Matthews has five points (one goal, four assists) over his last five games overall and scored twice in four career contests with Colorado.

OVERTIME

1. Toronto G Garret Sparks was medically cleared to return after sustaining a concussion during a practice.

2. Avalanche G Semyon Varlamov improved to 4-3-2 in his career versus the Maple Leafs after turning aside 31 shots in the win on Dec. 29, 2017.

3. The Maple Leafs' eighth-ranked power play is 6-for-46 in the last 17 games.

PREDICTION: Maple Leafs 5, Avalanche 3