Avalanche Roundtable: Avs players at the Olympics are showing up

The Colorado Avalanche may be on Olympic break, but the eight members of the Avs who are currently in Italy representing their countries are having a memorable experience as the tournament heads into the Quarterfinals tomorrow.

Because we’ve been a little quiet around here (on the written side, anyway), I thought it was a good time to get the gang together for a little roundtable to talk about what we’ve seen so far.

Which Avs player has been most impressive so far?

AJ: For me, it’s clearly been Martin Necas. He has been Czechia’s best player by a wide margin and has been doing it both on the power play and at 5v5 while being split from David Pastrnak. The other guys have had plenty of help, but only Necas can definitively say he has been his team’s best player.

Bailey: As much as I might want to say Martin Necas (because holy moly has he been good for Team Czechia), I feel more inclined to say Nathan MacKinnon. He’s been a versatile piece in a good portion of Canada’s offensive production, whether it be as the second-line center or contributing on what has been dubbed the “Mac” line with Macklin Celebrini and Connor McDavid.

Five points (2g/3a) in three games played, and a +2 on the tournament so far, sitting him comfortably in the top 10 in the Olympics so far. Not only that, but he’s looked like a different being altogether in the three games Team Canada has played so far, on the power play (which has been money) and with his physicality, which has been a pleasure to watch given how rare that is to see in an Avs uniform.

Justin: It was cool to see Brock Nelson have a standout game for Team USA, and Martin Necas has been highly impressive as the headliner for Czechia, but Nathan MacKinnon has used the Olympics to once remind everyone once again that he is in the conversation for the best player in the world right now. Let’s hope some of the juice from that Canadian power-play line comes back to Colorado.

Rudo: I think it’s Martin Necas. The Czech team runs out of talent quickly and Necas has still found a way to be dominant as an individual. He doesn’t have the surrounding cast that the Canadians do, which leaves Necas to drive play and create as an individual for the team. He has been involved in over 50% of Czechia’s goals in the tournament so far and is proving he can be THE guy in a big-time environment, stepping up where his co-star, Pastrnak, has been just okay at best this tournament. It’s a pleasant reminder of just how good some of these guys are.

Which Avs player has needed this success the most for his own game?

AJ: I’m once again going with Necas. He has earned a reputation as a bit of a disappearing act in the postseason and while this isn’t the Stanley Cup Playoffs, this is as close as you can get without actually being there. You could make a cogent argument that last season’s series against Dallas was one of the better playoff showings in Necas’s career, which is good in that he’s trending in the right direction and bad in that it was still a disappointing series relative to expectations.

Seeing Necas pop off for Czechia in the way he has is very encouraging. I keep calling it “practice playoffs,” and if he can channel this level of play into an Avalanche sweater, I would feel quite confident about Colorado’s chances to make a deep playoff run. The Avs won’t win the Stanley Cup without a great performance from Necas and I’m hoping that his playing as well as he has will give him the confidence to translate that into the springtime.

Bailey: For me, it’s easily Martin Necas. He’s been a streaky player his entire career, but he’s a superstar in his own right. That has been evident in how much he has taken the stride as Team Czechia’s best forward in this tournament.

His success in this tournament, I think, will be a huge boost to his confidence, which he needs. Desperately. It shows not only him, but also fans, that he knows how to show up in the big moments, in the big games when it matters. Not just that, but it also shows that he’s capable of showing exactly the kind of superstar player he is when his teammates and linemates may not be picking up the slack that they should be.

Justin: Cale Makar has another level he can go to that we haven’t seen with enough consistency this season. It seems to me that representing Canada might just have awoken the beast.

When Makar is at his best, there’s an element of swagger to his game. For anybody else it might seem arrogant to even attempt to drive the play like he does, or to rip a wrist shot from the blue line with the confidence of Steph Curry pulling up from deep. If the Avs can get this version of him in the postseason, start planning the parade. And a lot like what I wrote about MacKinnon, let’s just hope the Makar we’ve seen on the power-play in the Olympics is the same guy we see back home.

Rudo: Cale Makar. While Makar’s version of mortal still puts him in the upper echelon of the NHL, it’s been clear he was not his alien self for the last few months, if not this entire season. At the Olympics, Makar has looked like an absolute monster, the unstoppable force he has always been, a man playing with confidence, particularly in the offensive zone and on the PP. The Avalanche are built around Cale being not just elite but truly special and he needed to find that next level in Italy.

Which team do you think wins the Men’s gold medal?

AJ: Canada. Coming in, I thought Canada and the USA were pretty split on chances, but having watched both teams play, the Canadians look incredible and the Americans look pretty good. Anything but a Canadian gold medal at this point would be a significant upset.

Bailey: Team Canada.

Connor McDavid. Nathan MacKinnon. Macklin Celebrini. That’s just three of their top players, not even talking about Nick Suzuki, Mitch Marner, Cale Makar, Devon Toews, Thomas Harley, and the plethora of depth they have beyond that. Goaltending is more than a question mark, but that’s proven to be something of a non-issue when they’ve dominated every single one of their games in this tournament. It’s depth that maybe makes this team a little more “human,” but again… non-factor where this team is concerned.

Team USA may give them a run for their money, but where my money’s concerned, it’s Canada. All the way.

Justin: It’s easy to bet on the favorite and say Canada. That roster is ridiculous. But there’s something about the way Team USA plays that makes me believe we could see the Americans find a way to steal one. This team isn’t as good as their foes from the North but they believe that they are. And they play with an intensity that both gets under the skin of the opposition and fuels this group. I’ll take the United States over Canada in an electric game that comes down to the wire. Do you believe in Miracles?

Rudo: Canada. Their lineup is comical. There’s a strong argument that their PP has three of the five best players in the world on it, and their fourth line would be a top line on more than a few NHL teams. Their defense is imperfect at the bottom and it’s fair to have questions about some of their goaltending, but we’re splitting hairs about what is the best hockey team, certainly in the modern era and maybe ever assembled? USA has a puncher’s chance if things go their way, but Canada is the favorite for a reason. Anyone else it would take more than a miracle.

What has been your favorite part of the hockey portion of the Olympics (men or women)?

AJ: The men’s side has been fun, but I think the wire-to-wire dominance of the American women’s team is my favorite story of the tournament. They still need to finish the job against Canada this weekend, but they’ve allowed one goal in their run to the gold medal game. How is this not a bigger story? They’ve not allowed a goal in 16 straight periods.

I know the Americans are dominant, but I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a more dominant performance than this on a stage as large as this. Now that I’ve said this, I’m sure Marie-Philip Poulin will score in the first five minutes of the game this Thursday, but I’m here to appreciate how special a run this has been to witness. No offense to the Avs players, but this has been my favorite story so far.

Bailey: As much as I have maybe complained about the lack of competitiveness in some of the games thus far, I am ultimately a fan of watching players pop off. I have loved watching the ultimate domination in some of these games. The adrenaline rush of watching a one-goal game is an unbeatable experience, but I have to admit, watching the 11-0 game from Finland was kind of a blast. 5-0, 5-1, and 10-2 finals for Team Canada are also a huge thrill, not to mention the way Team USA has also dominated their games, too.

That… and as someone who covers the Avs, watching them have so much success in this tournament has been very exciting to watch. I mean, who had Joel Kiviranta being tied with Nathan MacKinnon in goals on their Olympics bingo card?

Justin: It’s got to be Avalanche captain Gabe Landeskog being able to return from injury to represent his home country of Sweden. After covering the comeback tour and being in the building for all of those games last spring, I just have such a deep appreciation for how much this all means to Landy. I’ll never forget how stunned he was in the locker room in Dallas after the heartbreaking Game 7 loss, the sadness in his voice that it would be a few more months before he’d get another chance to play hockey again. It would have been tragic if he hadn’t able to go.

Rudo: It’s a homer answer, but watching all of the Avs dominate. This was, of course, the expectation for the top guys, but to see guys like Joel Kiviranta and Devon Toews find the back of the net, Gabe Landeskog returning from injury and playing real minutes, and a guy like Artturi Lehkonen finding more success than expected, this Olympics have left me feeling like the Avs are the most talented team in the NHL.