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Canucks, Avalanche meet in early-season showdown

Nov 4, 2006 - 5:07 PM Vancouver (7-6-1) at Colorado (6-5-2) 10:00 pm EST

DENVER (Ticker) -- The Vancouver Canucks and the Colorado Avalanche have been playing respectable hockey so far this season.

However, the two clubs are in danger of falling too far behind the red-hot Minnesota Wild in the Northwest Division to catch up. The Canucks and Avalanche, already five and six points behind the Wild, respectively, meet on Saturday.

The Canucks had a chance to gain ground on the Wild, but dropped a 5-2 decision to Minnesota on Thursday. Ryan Kesler and Jan Bulis gave the Canucks a 2-0 lead, but could not prevent the Wild from scoring five unanswered goals to win going away.

Vancouver goaltender Roberto Luongo was not sharp, stopping only 19-of-24 shots.

Colorado comes off a 4-1 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Thursday.

Ken Klee scored the only goal for the Avalanche, who outshot the Blues, 45-29, but were blanked in six opportunities with the extra man.