The Nashville Predators opened November with a dominant win in Denver. Theyre looking to end the month the same way.Nashville left Pepsi Center with a 5-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Nov. 1 but it might be tough to duplicate the results when the teams play Tuesday night. Nashville is without leading goal scorer James Neal, who didnt make the brief two-game trip that started Sunday with a 3-0 loss in Winnipeg.Defenseman Ryan Ellis and forward Colton Sissons also didnt make the trip after being put on injured reserve. The Predators called up reinforcements from Milwaukee of the AHL, but it didnt help in the shutout loss to the Jets.Nashville had 20 shots in the third period of the loss but couldnt get one by Winnipeg goaltender Connor Hellebuyck.I think we played well the first 20 minutes and then the second period wasnt nearly good enough, Predators defenseman P.K. Subban told NHL.com. The third period we had opportunities to score but couldnt put it in. Weve got to understand that to win on the road we need to play a full 60-minute game. Thats what its going to take.The Predators arent alone when it comes to injuries. The Avalanche will be without captain Gabriel Landeskog for a sixth straight game with a lower-body injury and goaltender Semyon Varlamovs wrist has improved enough that he will serve as Calvin Pickards backup, but he will not start for the second straight game.Landeskog hasnt skated since Friday but coach Jared Bednar said he is close to returning.Hes still considered day to day for me, Bednar told HockeyBuzz.com. Hes having good days and bad days right now.Defenseman Erik Johnson didnt practice Monday because of illness but is expected to play Tuesday.The Avalanche received a bit of good news. Leading scorer Nathan MacKinnon will play after slamming hard into the boards in Saturdays shootout loss to Vancouver. MacKinnon got treatment on his neck and back Sunday and is good to go.I was skating as fast as I could and lost an edge, and kind of spun, he told HockeyBuzz.com after Mondays practice. If we were playing (Sunday) I think I would have been able to skate. I got some treatment from the trainers and I feel better today.Colorado is trying to find some consistency seven weeks into the season. The Avalanche havent won or lost more than two games in a row yet and are 9-10-1 with three games left on this five-game homestand.They would like to turn things around against a Nashville team that beat them handily Nov. 1. Colorado was guilty of playing poor defense and taking undisciplined penalties against the Predators, and it prompted a team meeting right after that game ended.A win Tuesday would even Colorados record and probably mean no team meeting.Itd be nice to get to .500 -- I know it really (wouldnt) be .500, but it is in our minds, MacKinnon told HockeyBuzz.com. I guess were happy we got a point (against Vancouver), but we obviously wanted to get the win. Were getting better. I think its a process. Were better than we were last year. Were definitely improving. Adidas Nmd Womens Cheap .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. Wholesale Stan Smith . -- Team after team passed on Andre Ellington in the draft. http://www.stansmithdiscount.com/discount-stan-smith-shoes.html . Jeff Green scored 13 points and Kris Humphries 12 for the Celtics, who nearly blew an 18-point, second-half lead. Sullingers 20-20 was the first by a Celtics player since Kevin Garnetts first game in Boston in 2007. Garnett was dealt -- along with Paul Pierce -- to Brooklyn during the off-season. Cheap Stan Smith Shoes Womens . Supported by three-run homers from Jayson Werth and Wilson Ramos, the young right-hander went seven strong innings in the Washington Nationals 8-4 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night. Stan Smith Discount . Burris threw two TD passes, including a key 15-yard fourth-quarter strike to Bakari Grant that effectively countered a Toronto comeback bid and led Hamilton to a 33-19 victory. OKLAHOMA CITY -- Maybe life after Kevin Durant wont be so bad for the Thunder.After the longtime face of the franchise left for Golden State, crestfallen Oklahoma City fans were worried it was just a matter of time before the teams co-star, Russell Westbrook, would follow suit. In a move that shocked many, Westbrook re-signed with Oklahoma City. The former scoring champion and two-time All-Star MVPs return gives the team hope.New faces such as shooting guard Victor Oladipo and forward Domantas Sabonis, both acquired in the deal that sent Serge Ibaka to Orlando, might take some time to fit in. Westbrook believes the team is talented enough to succeed if it is focused and the new pieces blend with the old ones who helped the Thunder reach the Western Conference Finals last season.Just play hard, man, Westbrook said. I dont know, win or lose. The only thing I know is that as long as we play hard, we give ourselves an opportunity to win.Westbrook could post historic numbers. He averaged 23.5 points, 10.4 assists and 7.8 rebounds last season and had 18 triple-doubles, the most since Magic Johnson had 18 during the 1981-82 season. Without Durant, more of that could be on the way.Sabonis, a rookie out of Gonzaga who played for Lithuanias Olympic team, played with the starters throughout the preseason. Oladipo averaged 15.9 points and 4.0 assists in three years with Orlando. He joins Westbrook to form arguably the most athletic backcourt tandem in the NBA.Defensively, I think we can be the best defensive backcourt in the league because we can do different things with our size and using our length and our speed, Westbrook said.Here are some things to watch for the Thunder:STEVEN ADAMSThe 7-footer from New Zealand was already a top-notch defender and rebounder before stepping up his offense and averaging 10.1 points during the playoffs last season. In his final two preseason games, he scored 20 points against Minnesota and 17 points against Denver. He could be a breakout star.I think weve had an opportunity these last two nights (against Minnesota and Denver) how good he is around the basket, how smart he has become and how much of a presence he is in the middle, Westbrook said.ddddddddddddENES KANTERThe natural expectation was that Ibakas departure would prompt coach Billy Donovan to move Kanter, who finished third in balloting for the leagues sixth-man award last season, into the starting lineup. Instead, Donovan started Sabonis throughout the preseason. Perhaps Donovan knows best -- Sabonis showed he can hang with the starters, and Kanter averaged 17.8 points and 9.4 rebounds while shooting 61.7 percent in the preseason.DEFENSIVE DROPOFF?Oklahoma Citys defense could slip with Ibaka in Orlando. Sabonis has great potential, but hes young, and NBA defense takes some time to learn. Donovan said Sabonis has caught on quickly, but there still could be a dip early because Ibakas level of play is difficult to replace -- he was a three-time first-team All-NBA defender and a two-time blocks leader.FOREIGN EXCHANGEThe Thunder added several foreign players to the roster who will add depth -- Spains Alex Abrines, Frances Joffrey Lauvergne and Turkeys Ersan Ilyasova. Donovan said he likes the maturity foreign players add to a team. Abrines played for Spains national team that earned bronze medals at the Olympics. Lauvergne played for France in Rio.FORGOT ABOUT `DRE?Andre Roberson has shifted from the starting shooting guard to starting small forward. That means the Thunder still have Robersons dynamic athletic ability, defensive prowess and nose for the ball on the boards in the lineup. He was a liability on offense in the past, but he started becoming more of a factor on offense during the playoffs last season.I think he feels more comfortable and confident offensively, Donovan said. Hes put forth effort in that area. Its just him continuing to grow offensively and trying to put him in situations where he slashes to the basket and he can cut and he can get out in transition and he can take his open corner threes.---Follow Cliff Brunt on Twitter (at)CliffBruntAP ' ' '