Granted, the Blue Jackets are playing well. But that makes them fat and happy. They are in a letdown spot here hosting Colorado after beating the Capitals on the road last night. The Blue Jackets defeated the Rangers at home two games ago. This is their third game in four days. They have Calgary on deck at home on Wednesday and then at Tampa Bay on Friday. So it's going to be tough from a motivation standpoint for Columbus to get excited about Colorado.

The Avalanche can prove dangerous. They are playing well, too, with three victories in their last five games, including a huge road 'dog win in their last game two days ago against the Wild. Star goal scorer Nathan MacKinnon is getting hot and there's a strong possibility the Avalanche get back top goal scorer Matt Duchene, who has missed the past four games with a concussion.

Colorado's first-year coach Jared Bednar was an assistant coach in the Columbus organization before taking the Colorado job. So you know he wants his team to show well against the Blue Jackets.

The Avalanche are expected to go with their starting goalie, Semyon Varlamov, while the Blue Jackets are expected to go with second-string goalie Curtis McElhinney. He's one of the weaker backup goalies in the league.

(Editor's note: Stephen Nover has one NBA and one NHL game going today in addition to this free selection. The long-time pro has cashed seven of his last nine NHL plays and is 5-1-1 on his past seven NBA plays.)