Rangers @ Avalanche

Who will WIN this matchup?

New York Rangers (37-28-4)

@ Colorado Avalanche (41-20-8)

Starting Goalies:

Alexandar Georgiev (NYR): Unconfirmed

Pavel Francouz (COL): Confirmed

Current odds:

New York Rangers: (+135)

Colorado Avalanche: (-155)

• The Colorado Avalanche have encountered a swarm of injury bugs this season and may have absorbed their biggest bite yet in the form of Nathan MacKinnon. The Hart Trophy contender sustained a lower-body injury Monday and could miss his first game of the season when Colorado – already without six key contributors – hosts the New York Rangers on Wednesday. MacKinnon left the 3-1 loss at Los Angeles midway through the second period with coach Jared Bednar telling the media: “He leaves the game, I’m concerned right away. I have no idea (of the severity). I know he wasn’t good enough to come back in the game tonight. So, yeah, there’s some concern.” If MacKinnon cannot play, he will join forwards Mikko Rantanen, Nazem Kadri, Andre Burakovsky and Matt Calvert, Norris Trophy candidate Cale Makar and No. 1 goaltender Philipp Grubauer.

• New York sits three points out of a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference after a 4-2 victory at Dallas on Tuesday gave it two wins in its last three games. The Rangers’ Mika Zibanejad became the first player in club history to record 40 goals in 56 or fewer games and has 10 in his last five contests.

• Artemi Panarin had an assist Tuesday and leads the club with 94 points, and his plus-35 rating is second in the league to Colorado’s Ryan Graves (plus-42). Zibanejad (career high-tying 74 points) is fourth in the NHL in shooting percentage at 19.8 after going 1-for-4 versus Dallas. Igor Shesterkin on Tuesday made 31 saves, improving to 10-2-0 with a .932 save percentage, and coach David Quinn could turn to his hot rookie again Wednesday.

• Despite all the injuries and a 1-2-1 funk, Colorado sits two points behind first-place St. Louis in the Central Division with a game in hand and is eight points clear of third-place Dallas. MacKinnon has 93 points – nearly double the total of the closest teammate in Makar (47) – and his 35 goals are well ahead of Gabriel Landeskog’s 21. Landeskog, who missed 16 games with a lower-body injury earlier this season, was kept off the scoresheet Monday after recording five goals and eight assists in his previous eight contests.

• Colorado hasn’t allowed a power-play goal in 12 of its last 13 games.

• New York is 0-for-5 on the power play in its last two games after going 6-for-15 in its previous three contests.

• The Rangers won the first of two meetings this season 5-3 on Jan. 7 behind a combined two goals and three assists from Panarin and Zibanejad.