The Avalanche, the defending Stanley Cup champions, are 4-4-1 but have lost two straight, 1-0 to the New Jersey Devils on Friday and a 5-4 loss to the New York Islanders on Saturday, the day before they flew to Finland to start their European adventure.
"Not the result we wanted in New York and New Jersey," said Avalanche goalie Pavel Francouz, who stopped 22 of 23 shots Friday. "This is special experience for us, but we also know that we're playing for four points, so we'll do our best to win these games."
Each team practices Tuesday and Thursday. Excursions are planned for the off day Wednesday and the games are at Nokia Arena in Tampere on Friday (2 p.m. ET; NHLN, SN, ALT, BSOH, SN NOW) and Saturday.
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The Avalanche have a healthy contingent of Finland natives headlined by forwards Mikko Rantanen (Nousiainen) and Artturi Lehkonen (Piikkio), and goaltending coach Jussi Parkkila (Tampere). They plan to visit various top-tier Finnish restaurants and visit the sauna during their time here.
Colorado forward Evan Rodrigues welcomes the week while assimilating his way into the team after signing as a free agent Sept. 12. The Avalanche are on the eighth of a 15-day road trip. Though it has not gone as well as they hoped, taking two of six points so far, Rodrigues believes the work done now will pay big dividends later.
"Yeah, I mean, this is a pretty long [trip]," Rodrigues said. "We were in New York for a week and now here for a week. So I really get to know the guys and you're kind of with each other almost 24/7, other than when you're sleeping. I think it's definitely a good bonding experience."
The Avalanche can afford to bond. They know what they're about after winning the Cup. Desperation, if it arrives, won't come for a while.
It's closer for the Blue Jackets (3-7-0), who held a closed-door meeting after a 7-1 loss to the Devils on Sunday. They've lost three straight games by a combined 17-4, four of their past five and are last in the Metropolitan Division.