Avs navigate injury-marred season, gear up for title defense
By PAT GRAHAM
AP Sports Writer
DENVER (AP) — The defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche are on track after a season filled with injuries and mini-slumps. They clinched a playoff spot in San Jose on Tuesday and moved into a tie atop the Central Division. Nathan MacKinnon and the Avalanche are soaring into the postseason in spite of playing without their captain, Gabriel Landeskog, all season and using an Avalanche-record 43 different players. At one stage, they trailed the divisional leader by 14 points, according to NHL Stats. But they’ve regrouped behind MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen and won 27 of 40 games since early January.