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NHL ON NBCSN: The Avalanche look to bring the Lightning back down to earth

Victor Hedman, Nathan MacKinnon

Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman, left, of Sweden, ties up Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon as they battle for control of the puck in the third period of an NHL hockey game Sunday, Feb. 22, 2015, in Denver. Colorado won 5-4. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

AP

NBCSN will continue its coverage of the 2015-16 campaign tonight when the Colorado Avalanche host the Tampa Bay Lightning at 9:00 p.m. ET. If you want to watch the game online, you can do so here.

The Lightning will look to close out their four-game road trip on a winning note when they travel to Colorado to take on the Avalanche.

Tampa Bay is on the outside looking in when it comes to the Eastern Conference playoff picture, but back-to-back wins over Edmonton and Vancouver have them right back in the hunt (they’re one point behind Boston and New Jersey in the Wild Card race).

With their upcoming schedule, the Lightning could be poised to go on a run.

After tonight’s game, the team will head back to Tampa Bay to begin a long home stand that will see them play seven of their next eight games at Amalie Arena. Their one road game is an in-state matchup against the Florida Panthers.

The Avalanche’s three-game winning streak came to a crashing halt on Sunday when they dropped a 6-3 decision to the Blackhawks.

One of the few bright spots in the loss was Matt Duchene, who registered two goals and an assist.

The 24-year-old already has 21 goals this season, which is the same amount he had all of last year.

“To this point it’s been good, but the key for me is staying hungry — which I don’t think is a very hard thing to do — and not getting complacent,” Duchene said, per the Denver Post. “I want to put the same work in every day and focus on the same goals. It’s tough to score a lot of goals in this league for a reason.

“Last year, it was one of those years. Guys have them all the time. And sometimes the numbers are too cruel. That weighs on you and doesn’t help you springboard your game. This year, we have more guys seeing the production they’re used to. It’s definitely a good thing for everyone individually, and that ties into the team.”

Like the Lightning, the Avalanche aren’t in a playoff spot right now, but they’re close.

Colorado enters tonight’s game tied with Nashville for the final Wild Card spot in the West, but the Preds have a game in hand.