Avalanche goaltenders remain confounded by puck in loss to Flames

I don’t even know what to say about this anymore. The Avalanche play a hell of a game on the second night of a back-to-back in a building that hasn’t treated them kindly against a team that has been on fire and they find a way to lose.

A night after giving up seven goals on 21 shots, Colorado held the Calgary Flames to a shockingly low shot total of 16…and five went in. The Avalanche managed to score three of their own in a game that will only serve as a lightning rod for this season. How can a team roll into Winnipeg and Calgary and give up 12 goals on 37 shots on goal? What the hell?

With noted puck matador Philipp Grubauer sitting this one out, longtime Avalanche starter Semyon Varlamov got back into the comfy confines of the Colorado net and immediately proceeded to destroy all hope he was back to his early-season form.

Calgary scored two goals in the first period but the Avalanche found equalizers before the first intermission. Okay, great, something to build off of. Colorado’s skaters certainly did as they dominated the play in the second period, even killing off a penalty while allowing zero shots on goal. It took 13 minutes for the Flames to get their second shot of the period and wouldn’t you know it, it went in. Sports are cruel, y’all.

Then the Avalanche entered the third period chasing yet another game despite being the better team. A fourth goal, a total fluke of the highest proportions, pushed Calgary just far enough ahead that Colorado’s predictable late-game goal to make it 4-3 didn’t ultimately matter when the Flames scored an empty-net goal seconds later. A 5-3 loss despite giving up just 16 shots on goal.

The Avalanche need an injection of competence in net in the worst way.

Looking at you, Pavel Francouz. Do the Batman thing cause Gotham is burning.

Takeaways from the game

• Semyon Varlamov gave up four goals on 15 shots on goal. The Avs needed better than the .700 goaltending they got from Grubauer last night. Technically, they got it with Varlamov giving them .733. Cool story.
• Tonight was billed as a matchup between two of the best lines in the NHL. Just like when Colorado and Boston met earlier this year, Colorado’s top players rose to the occasion and shredded. They scored two of the three goals and were absolute monsters in shot share. Anytime these two teams matchup, Mikael Backlund is tasked with trying to slow down MacKinnon and he’s had success. Tonight, Backlund got taken to the woodshed and embarrassed. Shots on goal favored Colorado 11-1 when MacKinnon was matched against Backlund. Against Sean Monahan and Johnny Gaudreau, shots favored Colorado 10-1. There isn’t anything more Nathan MacKinnon and his linemates could have done.
• Gabe Landeskog had 12 shots on goal on his own. Calgary, as a team, had 16. This loss is the stuff that makes you hate sports.
• Colorado’s top line outshot Calgary on its own 23-16. If I wasn’t already bald, I’d be tearing my hair out. The more I look at this stuff, the more it drives me insane.
• The Avs have to try to do something different with their fourth line. I know we spend more time on it than it really deserves but this weirdly built trio of Andrighetto/Dries/O’Connor isn’t getting anything done and outside of drawing a penalty against Winnipeg they haven’t been close to a positive. They’re a weird mixed group of talents and I think this experiment needs to end. I’m not sure why O’Connor is even here, to begin with. Dries makes sense in light of the Kamenev injury but he’s been far less effective at center than he was on at wing earlier in the year. And Andrighetto…I’m just not sure what more there is to say about Sven. They’ve tried and tried with him and it just doesn’t seem destined to work out.
• There was a lot to like from Colorado’s second line the last two nights. Kerfoot made an ill-advised pass that helped lead to Calgary’s second goal but if Varlamov dares to be great and stops a very stoppable shot, it’s not something we even remember. I did like Kerfoot overall but I thought Tyson Jost was actually the best player on that line tonight. He helped created several quality scoring chances and was very good defensively. He snagged the quietest assist imaginable on the Johnson goal.
• Speaking of which, welcome back, Erik Johnson. He’s been a completely different player the last couple of games and it couldn’t have come at a better time. The Avs have desperately been waiting for their highest-paid defenseman to start playing like he was worthy of all that cash. He’s finally started to show the level of play we’ve grown accustomed to seeing more often than not the last few years.
• His partner, however, might need changing. I understand the Ian Cole-Tyson Barrie pairing has really worked out solidly this year so there’s a reticence to make any changes to the group but Sam Girard looks like he’s totally stalled out right now. He’s making poor decisions and isn’t creating anything offensively, especially at even strength. This isn’t a call to sit him down, just maybe reduce his role a bit, especially when Nikita Zadorov gets healthy. A reuniting of the “ZJ” pairing might be something that could help jump-start Girard a bit.
• Ryan Graves continued to show well. He’s now overtaken Patrik Nemeth in ESTOI the last two nights. With the way people talk about Bednar and Nemeth, you’d think that would never happen. But here we are. Good for Graves, whose decision-making continues to help him outpace his physical limitations.
• It’s drastic given your top goaltenders are healthy but I think it’s time to give Pavel Francouz a look over the struggling duo in place. A shakeup of some kind is appropriate when you’ve lost 14 of 20 games.
• Not really any kind of analysis here but just an appreciation for Matt Calvert. I enjoy watching him play hockey. He works hard and while he’s not a super talented player or anything, he maximizes his talent through force of will and I always love those guys. He’s a great locker room guy, too. I remember chatting with him earlier this season and his greatest lament about the Avalanche schedule was not getting to see his kids more. How can you not root for a guy like that?