Avalanche Team Report

INSIDE SHOTS

It was only one game, but Avalanche goalie Peter Budaj(notes) played well enough that he could get to start consecutive games for the first time this season on Saturday against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena.

Pressed into service because Craig Anderson(notes) is nursing a stiff neck, Budaj stopped 27-of-29 shots Thursday in the Avalanche’s 4-1 loss in Pittsburgh, where the Penguins sealed the deal with two empty-net goals.

“I thought he played terrific,” Avalanche coach Joe Sacco said. “He gave us a chance to win.”

The start was just the third this season for Budaj, whose previous start came in a 6-4 loss in Edmonton when he allowed five goals on 27 shots.

Budaj is coming off the worst season of his NHL career. Budaj went 20-29-5 with a 2.86 goals-against average and .899 save percentage last year, yet he somehow managed to get a new one-year contract with a $425,000 raise to $1.25 million.

Budaj has played decently against the Blue Jackets, posting a career 4-4-0 record with a 2.53 average against them.

Anderson, who was plowed into by Florida’s Keith Ballard(notes) in Wednesday’s game, was scratched Thursday because of a stiff neck.

“Hopefully, he’ll wake up (Friday) feeling a little bit better and we’ll re-evaluate him,” Sacco said. “He’s still questionable for the game on Saturday night.”

Penguins 4, Avalanche 1:   The Avalanche was held to 16 shots on goal—one in the third period when the Penguins put the game away with two empty-net goals in the final minute Thursday at Mellon Arena. Peter Budaj, making his third start of the season, stopped 27-of-29 shots for the Avalanche, which has gone 1-1-1 in the first three games of a five-game road trip.

NOTES, QUOTES

• C T.J. Galiardi(notes) scored a power-play goal at 5:02 of the first period and thought he’d given the team a 2-1 lead at 8:14 of the second, only to have the goal washed out by a quick whistle. Replays, along with audio, clearly showed the puck cross the goal line before the whistle sounded. “It looked like (a goal), but you know, things happen quick out there and they blew the whistle,” Avalanche coach Joe Sacco said. “If you’re asking me, yeah, I thought it was a goal, for sure. But (the refs) didn’t call it or see it that way.”

• The Penguins out-shot the Avalanche 31-16 for the game and 12-1 in the third period. “When you get one shot, it’s going to be tough to manufacture a win, and the shot was from the outside,” Avalanche coach Joe Sacco said. The 16 shots were the second-fewest this season. The Avalanche had 14 shots in a 3-2 win in Calgary on Oct. 28.

• Coach Joe Sacco wasn’t happy with RW Milan Hejduk’s(notes) giveaway in the waning seconds of the first period that led to Pittsburgh’s tying goal, which came off the stick of Sidney Crosby(notes) with 6.1 seconds remaining. “We can’t give up a goal with (6.1) seconds left in the first period,” Sacco said. “We made a bad decision at the blue line and turned the puck over.”

• Unhappy with his team’s play in Wednesday’s 6-5 shootout loss to Florida, coach Joe Sacco made a number of line changes. The most significant was moving second-line center Matt Duchene(notes) to left wing on the top line with center Paul Stastny(notes) and right wing Chris Stewart(notes). All three players were held without a point.

• G Tyler Weiman(notes) was recalled from Lake Erie in the American Hockey League to serve as Peter Budaj’s backup because Craig Anderson has a stiff neck and couldn’t play. Weiman, 25, had a 6-8-1 record with a 2.41 goals-against average and .912 save percentage at Lake Erie.

Quote To Note:   “The coach is showing a lot of confidence in me and I’m getting some good ice time and on the power play.”—Avalanche center T.J. Galiardi, who has a goal in each of the past two games after scoring once in his first 18 games.

ROSTER REPORT

Goaltenders:   Peter Budaj, Tyler Weiman.

Defensemen:   Brett Clark(notes), Brian Fahey(notes), Adam Foote(notes), Scott Hannan(notes), John-Michael Liles(notes), Kyle Quincey(notes), Ryan Wilson(notes).

First Line:   Matt Duchene, Paul Stastny, Chris Stewart.

Second Line:   Cody McLeod(notes), Ryan O’Reilly(notes), Milan Hejduk.

Third Line:   Wojtek Wolski(notes), T.J. Galiardi, Darcy Tucker(notes).

Fourth Line:   Marek Svatos(notes), Matt Hendricks(notes), Chris Durno(notes).

Player Notes:  

• LW Marek Svatos is in Avalanche coach Joe Sacco’s doghouse. Svatos was demoted to the fourth line for Thursday’s game in Pittsburgh, and he logged just 5:48 in ice time. Svatos has six goals, three assists and 33 penalty minutes in 30 games. “He’s got to give us more,” Sacco said. “He’s got to give his teammates more. He’s got to stay out of the penalty box. He’s taken some bad penalties at the wrong time.” Svatos had 34 penalty minutes in 69 games last year.

• C T.J. Galiardi scored a goal Thursday in Pittsburgh, giving him one in each of the past two games. He had just one goal in his first 18 games. Galiardi, a 21-year-old rookie, made his NHL debut last season when the Avalanche was ravaged by injuries and he scored three goals in 11 games.

• RW Milan Hejduk returned to the Avalanche lineup Thursday in Pittsburgh after missing three games with a sore knee. He logged 19:03 in ice time, had two shots on goal and was minus-3. His turnover led to Pittsburgh’s tying goal with 6.1 seconds left in the first period.

Medical Watch:  

• G Craig Anderson (stiff neck) is day-to-day, though coach Joe Sacco called him “questionable” for Saturday’s game in Columbus. Anderson has missed one game.

• D Kyle Cumiskey(notes) (foot) was placed on injured reserve Nov. 28, retroactive to Nov. 23. He’s missed six games.

• RW David Jones(notes) (knee) will miss between 4-and-6 months to recover from surgery for a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

• D Ruslan Salei(notes) (back) was placed on injured reserve Oct. 12, retroactive to Oct. 8. Salei has yet to play this season.