The Colorado Avalanche pulled out some character wins over the past week to regain and defend the eighth Wild Card spot and bring them closer to the Nashville Predators.
THE GOOD
1. The Colorado Avalanche won three straight games this past week despite the fickle hand of fate working against them. The team was without captain Gabriel Landeskog for the first two games, without young defenseman Chris Bigras in the first game, without leading scorer Matt Duchene for the last two matchups, lost Nathan MacKinnon and Eric Gelinas in the second game, and had to call up Mikko Rantanen to play fourth line center in the final game of the road trip.
The team as a whole stepped up to the challenge and faced down adversity to regain the eighth playoff slot. They have won five of their last six games and six of nine for the month of March. At some point, one can hope, their grit will open the door for their fortune to improve and get some of their players back. Until then, way to overcome and win!
2. The coaching staff and the front office deserve special recognition for adding quality players before the trade deadline and for the creative line combinations Coach Roy rolled out Sunday night to compensate for the rash of injuries. In particular, the Gabriel Landeskog, Carl Soderberg and Shawn Matthias line dominated Sunday night’s contest. Keeping them together and rearranging the other lines to run effective combinations revealed keen tactics and good strategic problem solving.
3. Only six Avalanche players from the team March 20, 2015 hit the ice for the March 20, 2016 contest, meaning the team played 13 different starters than this time last year. Technically Francois Beauchemin was also on the ice since Colorado lost 2-3 to the Anaheim Ducks, but he was not in the burgundy and blue. Just in case anyone was still wondering if the Avalanche have improved in the past year.
4. Congratulations to Carl Soderberg who notched his 100th career assist in Sunday night’s matchup!
5. Colorado’s penalty kill play continues to impress as they now have successfully killed 32 out of their last 33 penalties.
6. Captain Gabriel Landeskog returned with authority from his three game suspension to notch his 10th multi point night of his career scoring a goal and an assist, putting four shots on net, logging 19 minutes in ice time, and helping his line dominate play throughout the contest.
7. Mikkel Boedker looks like he must have whispered some incantation like “Gate of the Elves, open now for me!” to the opposing net when acquired by the Avalanche. Boedker has tallied three goals, four assists, and a game-winning shoot out goal in his nine games with Colorado. Welcome to Avalanche country, Mr. Boedker! May you like it enough here to offer a home team discount when discussing your future contract!
8. The Colorado Avalanche have not lost in a shoot out this season. You may thank your goaltenders and maybe even buy them some lingering green beer. Or be truly kind and get them a Guiness.
9. Fourteen different Avalanche players earned at least one point in the last three games. Every member of the team seems to be stepping up, which bodes well for their playoff chances.
10. The Colorado Avalanche have come back from a multi-goal deficit to win five times this season, tied for the most multi-goal comebacks with the Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins.
THE BAD
1. Matt Duchene out with a knee injury after elevating his effort to playoff level intensity goes beyond the word ‘bad’. Can the team rally around losing their leading scorer to overcome adversity?
2. Nathan MacKinnon getting injured in a knee-on-knee hit against the Calgary Flames added fuel to the fear fire. The complete lack of credible information on the status of either players indicates the Avalanche are already in playoff injury report mode. Anyone else remember Joe Sakic’s post-season lower body injury which was later revealed to be a separated shoulder after winning the Stanley Cup championship? Looks like Colorado may keep any information about injuries on key players close to the vest.
3. Unfortunately, the Minnesota Wild remain only one point behind the Colorado Avalanche with the remainder of their schedule primarily against non-playoff contenders. The Avalanche play the remainder of their games exclusively against teams vying for position in the post season, seven of whom are in their own conference. When it comes to Western Conference matchups, only St. Louis has a better in-conference record than Colorado so the Avalanche’s schedule could by the catalyst to propel them to an exciting postseason.
THE UGLY
1. The injury to Eric Gelinas’ arm looked worse than bad, it was ugly. News he is out indefinitely raises concerns for his recovery process. In his brief time here, he showed flashes of being more than just a third line defenseman down the road. Unfortunately, the Avalanche could have really used his skill set for the playoff run as he seemed to pair well with Chris Bigras. Hopefully he can recover in time to help the team in the first round of the postseason.
2. For some reason, Altitude sports seems unable to respect people are watching the Avalanche games to watch HOCKEY. While the Colorado Rapids acquiring goalie Tim Howard represents big news in the soccer world, the Colorado Avalanche are a HOCKEY team contending for the postseason. It would be considerate of them to recognize their audience is interested in analysis of the hockey game they are watching rather than sit through yet another Rapids promotional piece. Respect your hockey team and cover them appropriately.
WHAT TO WATCH
1. Will Matt Duchene and/or Nathan MacKinnon return to the lineup this week? Will Mikko Rantanen continue to center the fourth line? Will Rantanen stay past the next two games with the club and activate his ELC contract? Stay tuned for “As the Skates Burn…”
2. The Avalanche will face off against the Minnesota Wild on Saturday afternoon in a matchup that could determine which team gets the eighth Wild Card spot. The Avalanche have yet to win an afternoon game this season. Could this be the game they reverse their record?
3. Only five points behind the Nashville Predators and with two upcoming head to head matchups, could the Avalanche overtake the Predators and gain the seventh Wild Card slot?
4. With Gelinas out indefinitely, are the Avalanche considering recalling Nikita Zadorov to help with their third line? Bodnarchuck is playing only very limited minutes, Redmond is in the doghouse, and Bigras needs a partner who can help lift the load off the top two defensive pairings.
5. There seems to be some confusion regarding what constitutes a kicking motion in goal scoring. The Avalanche encountered a questionable ruling when the Vancouver Canucks scored off a skate which deflected the puck past Semyon Varlamov. On Saturday, the Pittsuburgh vs. Philadelphis Flyers game elevated the confusion to a whole new level as the officiating crew ruled one way, waited for a ruling from Toronto, announced the ruling and then backtracked and changed it AGAIN immediately. Will the NHL clarify what constitutes an illegal kicking motion to score a goal?
6. With only nine games remaining and the Wild hot on the Avalanche’s heels, Colorado’s postseason has already started. Buckle up for the remaining games as the roller coaster ride to the playoffs continue, and everyone can enjoy the intensity and skilled play they hoped for this season.
