Avalanche 4 - 5 Sharks
Final
  for this game

Avs and Sharks close home-and-home in San Jose

Dec 15, 2011 - 4:14 PM (Sports Network) - The Colorado Avalanche haven't won a road game since late October and look to end their woes as the visitor tonight against the San Jose Sharks in the back end of a home-and-home set from HP Pavilion.

Colorado is winless in its last eight road games (0-7-1) and hasn't prevailed as the guest since Oct. 22 at Chicago. It's previous road win in regulation occurred Oct. 13 at Ottawa.

The Avalanche are 6-7-1 away from the Rocky Mountains this season and last in the Northwest Division. They ended a three-game slide and won for the fourth time in seven tries with Tuesday's 4-3 shootout win over the Sharks from the Pepsi Center, as Gabriel Landeskog scored the winner in the fifth round of the shootout. Matt Duchene, Daniel Winnik and Stefan Elliott each scored for the Avalanche, who were coming off a 0-3-0 road trip and posted their fourth straight win at home.

"I had my mind made up when I took the shot," Landeskog said of his game- winning goal. "His blocker was open so I just closed my eyes and shot it."

Colorado is 5-0 in shootouts this year and 16-1 in its last 17 shootouts dating back to December of 2009. On the injury front for the Avs, forwards Chuck Kobasew (head) and Brandon Yip (groin) are listed as questionable for Thursday's game.

San Jose will kick off a six-game homestand tonight versus Colorado, Edmonton, Tampa Bay, Los Angeles, Anaheim and Vancouver, and is 8-6-1 as the host. In the previously-mentioned loss to the Avs, Dan Boyle had a goal and an assist while Jamie McGinn and Patrick Marleau also scored.

"You take what you can get on the road," said Marleau. "We had controlled the game up until the third, then let it get away there."

Antti Niemi turned aside 30-of-33 shots in the loss for the Sharks, who went 0-1-2 on a three-game road trip and lost for the seventh time in their previous nine games overall (2-5-2).

San Jose, which is tied with Phoenix for second place in the Pacific Division, had won three in a row over the Avalanche before the recent loss.

Colorado is winless in six straight games at the Sharks.






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