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Avalanche hoping for Statsny return vs. Canucks

Feb 9, 2008 - 1:12 PM Colorado (29-21-5) at Vancouver (27-21-7) 10:00 pm EST

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Ticker) - The Colorado Avalanche are hoping Paul Stastny will be back on the ice Saturday when they visit the Vancouver Canucks.

Stastny, the Avalanche's leading scorer with 49 points this season, has missed the last nine games after having his appendix removed on January 17. The 22-year-old center was expected to play sometime during the team's brief two-game road trip this week, which concludes on Saturday.

Despite the absence of Stastny, Colorado managed to skate away with a 3-1 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday. After missing three game with back spasms, Jose Theodore returned to make 30 saves and record his sixth win in his last nine starts.

The Canucks snapped a four-game losing streak on Thursday as Daniel Sedin and Alex Burrows each scored a goal in the third period to lift Vancouver to a 2-1 victory over the Atlanta Thrashers.

Thursday's game was a rare comeback victory for Vancouver, which is now just 2-19-1 this season when trailing after two periods. The Canucks also were winless in regulation in their previous 13 games before outlasting the Thrashers.