Blue Jackets  2    Avalanche  5

Columbus Blue Jackets (14-14-7) at Colorado Avalanche (19-11-6), 9 p.m.

Sports Network | December 19, 2009

(Sports Network) - The Columbus Blue Jackets will try to avoid their longest losing streak in over three years tonight in a matchup with the hosting Colorado Avalanche at Pepsi Center.

Expectations were higher than usual for the Blue Jackets following their first ever playoff appearance a season ago. However, the club has lost five straight (0-3-2) and is just 2-8-5 over its last 15 games. That has Columbus 12th in the Western Conference with 35 points.

The Blue Jackets were last in action Thursday night when they dropped a 2-1 shootout to the Coyotes. Rick Nash had the lone goal for Columbus and also scored in the shootout, but Mathieu Garon was beaten twice in the final session.

Garon ended with 26 saves for Columbus, which hasn't lost six in a row since November 10-24, 2006.

"We had a slow start -- the first 10 minutes were slow again, but after that I thought we played real well," said Blue Jackets head coach Ken Hitchcock.

Columbus begins a four-game road trip tonight and have lost seven straight as the guest, falling to 6-8-3 on the road this season.

Colorado will look to rebound tonight after a 6-1 setback to Washington on Tuesday. T.J. Galiardi had the Avalanche's lone goal, as the club fell to 2-2-0 on a five-game homestand and 9-4-2 at the Pepsi Center this year.

Craig Anderson got the start in net and allowed five goals on 21 shots before getting pulled after the second period. Peter Budaj stopped three of the four shots he saw in relief.

"We gave them opportunities and they buried them," said Anderson. "That team will score every chance they get."

Colorado is tied with Calgary for first place in the Northwest Division with 44 points and expects to have Milan Hejduk back in the lineup. He missed the last two games with a knee injury, while Marek Svatos has also been out for two straight contests due to a groin ailment. He is questionable for tonight.

Hejduk scored when the Avalanche posted a 3-2 win in Columbus on December 5 to snap a four-game series losing streak and beat the Blue Jackets for just the second time in the last eight meetings.

Colorado has lost its last two at home versus Columbus.