With the Western Conference’s best team in town, Wednesday presented a test for the streaky Avalanche. Colorado flunked.

HC Scott Arniel criticized himself and his players for their lacklustre effort against Utah HC on Monday. The Jets responded well against an excellent Avalanche team. Connor Hellebuyck turned away 25 of the 27 shots he faced, and MacKenzie Blackwood allowed three goals on 25 Jets shots.

Winnipeg stands to both rebound and take advantage of a top-heavy Colorado lineup. My Jets vs. Avalanche predictions and NHL picks expect the road underdogs to bark loudest in tonight’s Central Division showdown.

BOTTOM LINE: The Colorado Avalanche play the Winnipeg Jets in a matchup of Central Division opponents. Colorado is 28-19-1 overall with a 7-8-0 record against the Central Division. The Avalanche have a +10 scoring differential, with 159 total goals scored and 149 conceded.

Ridly Greig opened the scoring for Ottawa with a short-handed goal with 7:44 left in the second period. Clayton Keller tied it 1:36 later. Karel Vejmelka stopped 24 shots for Utah, which closed a three-game trip with its second straight loss.

The Colorado Avalanche (28-19-1) close out their homestand against the Winnipeg Jets (31-14-3). Puck drop is scheduled for 7:38 p.m. MT. READ MORE: Bednar on Nichushkin: ‘We Don’t Have a Solid Timeline’ In the third straight game against top teams in the Central Division,

Murat Ates of the Athletic: Ates writes now that Dylan Samberg is returning to the Winnipeg Jets lineup changes the way they put their pairs together. But it allows the restricted free agent to potentially get a nice long-term deal this summer where he could be a staple on this Jets defense corps moving forward.

The opponent for the Jets this evening are an Avs team which are none too pleased with the 3-1 loss they suffered to the Wild on Monday. They’ve hit a bit of a rough patch going 5-4-1 in their last ten games.

This battle of divisional rivals lived up to its billing, as the Winnipeg Jets (32-14-3) snuck by the Colorado Avalanche (28-19-2) 3-2 in overtime at Ball Arena on Wednesday night.

Raised in the booming metropolis of Altona, Man., Ken Wiebe grew up wanting to play in the NHL, but after realizing his hands were more adept at typing than scoring, he shifted his attention to cover his favourite sport as a writer.

Cale Makar scored twice and set up the tiebreaking goal by Artturi Lehkonen with 15 seconds remaining as the revamped Colorado Avalanche blew a pair of two-goal leads before earning a dramatic 5-4 victory over the host New York Rangers on Sunday afternoon.