Georgiev is tied for the league lead with three wins (3-0-0) early in the season and will look to add another as the Avalanche host the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday night. Georgiev has been nothing short of terrific in his first three games, recording a near-perfect 1.30 GAA and .958 SV%. Last season, Georgiev posted a 1.00 GAA and .950 SV% in two games against the Blackhawks (2-0-0). Despite the Blackhawks' impressive 4-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday, Georgiev and the Avalanche are massive -347 home favourites and should walk away with a victory at ease tonight.

Dellandrea will sit in favour of Sam Steel tonight after playing in each of the Stars' first two games. The 23-year-old scored nine goals and added 18 assists in 82 games with the Stars last season. Through two games in 2023-24 he's registered no goals and one assist with an ATOI of 12:29.

Vlasic missed the Sharks' previous game due to an undisclosed injury but will return to San Jose's lineup Thursday vs. Boston. The 36-year-old stay-at-home defensemen is in his 18th NHL season (all with San Jose) and had one SOG, a +1 plus/minus and zero points in two games so far in 2023-24.

Georgiev is tied for the league lead with three wins (3-0-0) early in the season and will look to add another as the Avalanche host the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday night. Georgiev has been nothing short of terrific in his first three games, recording a near-perfect 1.30 GAA and .958 SV%. Last season, Georgiev posted a 1.00 GAA and .950 SV% in two games against the Blackhawks (2-0-0). Despite the Blackhawks' impressive 4-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday, Georgiev and the Avalanche are massive -347 home favourites and should walk away with a victory at ease tonight.

Thrun has two assists, one SOG, and a -1 plus/minus through two games with San Jose in 2023-24 but finds himself the odd man out on their roster as he was reassigned to the San Jose Barracuda (AHL) Wednesday. The 22-year-old will endure his first taste of AHL action after he made the jump to the NHL straight from Harvard (NCAA) in 2022-23.

Georgiev will look to continue his sparkling start to the season after he is slated to get the nod in goal for the third consecutive game for the Avalanche. Georgiev has shut the door in his first two games of the season (2-0-0), posting a 1.45 GAA and .947 SV%. With Pavel Francouz out indefinitely and current backup Ivan Prosvetov lacking NHL experience, Georgiev should be a workhorse for the Avalanche going forward. Tonight, they are -149 road favourites against a Seattle Kraken team that has had a miserable start to the season, scoring only twice in their first three games (0-2-1).

Thrun was a healthy scratch for the Sharks' previous game vs. Colorado but will draw back into San Jose's lineup as they take on Carolina Tuesday. The 22-year-old had an assist, one SOG, and a -1 plus/minus across 19:29 TOI in his only game played this season. He will replace Marc-Edouard Vlasic in the Sharks' lineup Tuesday.

Vlasic missed the Sharks' morning practice Monday after leaving their previous game vs. Colorado after just five shifts and 3:15 TOI and is expected to be out Tuesday as San Jose takes on Carolina due to an undisclosed injury. The 36-year-old veteran is in his 18th NHL season and has played in 70+ games in every full NHL season since 2015-16.

Thrun had one assist and one shot in 19:29 TOI in the Sharks season-opening loss to the Golden Knights. However, he will come out of the lineup on Saturday to make room for Nikolai Knyzhov to make his season debut.

Knyzhov was a healthy scratch for the Sharks' season-opening loss to the Golden Knights but he will replace Henry Thrun in the lineup vs. Colorado. Knyzhov had one goal and no assists in 12 games with the Sharks last season.

Desharnais had five PIMS and one shot on goal in the Oilers season opening loss in Vancouver. Desharnais will be scratched Saturday to make room for Mattias Ekholm (hip) to make his season debut.

Georgiev will search for his 100th career victory as he is slated to tend the pipes for the second consecutive game for the Avalanche. Georgiev was terrific in his first game of the season, saving 34 of 36 shots in a 5-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings. After a fantastic first season with the Avalanche that saw him record a 2.53 GAA and .918 SV% in 62 games (40-16-6), Georgiev looks poised to pick up where he left off as one of the top goalies in the league this season. The Avalanche will be facing a Sharks team that struggles to generate offence and will be without Mikael Granlund and Logan Couture.

Georgiev led the NHL in wins with his 40-16-6 record, .918 SV% and 2.53 GAA in 2022-23 and will be Colorado's starting goaltender vs. Los Angeles for their season opener Wednesday. The 27-year-old is entering his second season in Colorado after signing a three-year, $10.2 million contract prior to last season. He takes on Los Angeles on the road, who finished 2022-23 11th in the NHL in both shots per game (32.4) and goals for (274).

Couture has missed the entire preseason with a lower-body injury and will be forced to miss the Sharks' season opener vs. Vegas as he is week-to-week with the ailment. The 34-year-old top-line centre is a massive loss for San Jose after he had 27 goals, 40 assists, 198 SOG, 19 PIMs, and a -30 plus/minus through 82 games in 2022-23.

The 26-year-old forward was brought into Pittsburgh camp on a PTO and has earned himself a one-year, two-way contract worth $775,000. The Boston-born veteran had eight goals, seven assists, 64 SOG, and 12 PIMs across 68 games in his only season in Florida in 2022-23. He is joining his third NHL team after spending six years in Ottawa and one with the Panthers.

Furlong was drafted in the fifth round of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft (140th overall) and signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Sharks on Thursday. The 19-year-old Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) captain had seven goals, 43 assists, 40 PIMs and a +47 plus/minus in 67 games in 2022-23 in the Quebec league. He has returned to Halifax for his 2023-24 season.

Couture was considered week-to-week with a lower-body injury he suffered in offseason training. According to head coach David Quinn, Couture continues to progress but he seems highly questionable for the start of the regular season.

Musty was San Jose's 2023 first-round pick (26th overall) and signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Sharks on Wednesday. The 18-year-old left-winger had 26 goals, 52 assists, 71 PIMs and a +16 plus/minus through 53 games played with Sudbury (OHL) in 2022-23. He is expected to return to the OHL for his third season with Sudbury for the 2023-24 season.

Couture is week-to-week with a lower-body injury sustained during off-season training and is expected to miss the Sharks' opener on October 12th. The 34-year-old centre led San Jose in scoring in 2022-23 with 27 goals, 40 assists, 198 SOG, and a -30 plus/minus through 82 games played. He is entering his 15th NHL season with San Jose and will hope to have a proper timeline for his return in the upcoming days.

Rutta had three goals, six assists, 64 SOG, 30 PIMs and a +3 plus/minus with Pittsburgh in 2022-23 and has been traded as part of a three-way deal to San Jose. The 33-year-old stay-at-home defensemen brings 15 goals, 70 points and 153 PIMs across 294 career games played to the Sharks.