DENVER — The Colorado Avalanche previewed its potential first-round playoff matchup with a letdown defeat against the Nashville Predators.
Colorado fell 5-4 in a shootout to Nashville on Thursday in the regular season finale at Ball Arena. Predators forward Matt Duchene, formerly with the Avalanche (2009-17), was the only player to score in the shootout. Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen and Nazem Kadri all missed for the Avalanche.
It’s possible the teams will meet again with the Avs locked into the top seed in the Western Conference, and either Nashville or Dallas in line for the eighth seed. The Avalanche (56-18-7) has one more game, at Minnesota on Friday, before embarking on the postseason. Colorado has set a franchise record with 119 points on the year to surpass the 2001 Stanley Cup championship team.