Avs morning skate notebook: "No matter the opponent, it doesn't matter"

SAN JOSE, Calif. – On March 15, the Avalanche lost to the Anaheim Ducks 5-3 at home, and Nikita Zadorov said how the Avs “didn’t deserve it right now” when asked about the playoffs. The Avs looked lifeless, with nothing left but to play out the string on a season gone awry.

Saturday morning at the SAP Center here in Silicon Valley, Zadorov talked about the Avs’ upcoming playoff schedule, who they might still play and how it all happened. The bottom line of how it all happened: the Avs went 8-0-2 from that game against the Ducks, got some help from other teams and…here we are. A playoff series will start later this week, against either Calgary, Nashville, Winnipeg or St. Louis. We’ll know the opponent later tonight.

For Zadorov, what the Avs did speaks to the good chemistry in the locker room. Yeah, the team was really down after the loss to the Ducks, he said, but nobody gave up and everybody was still pulling for each other. And, there never was a big team meeting or anything, that turned things around. They just went out and kept playing, kept believing.

“I don’t think we like those closed door meetings, or sitting there, talking about bull****,” Zadorov told BSN Denver. “No matter what, after the losses, we came to the rink with a good mindset and good attitude. We enjoy playing with each other. We’re a really, really close group.”

Only an Avs win and a Dallas loss tonight in regulation will prevent the Avs from playing Calgary in the first round. So, the odds are still highest they’ll play the Flames, but Zadorov believes the opponent won’t matter.

“Personally, I don’t really care. I like playing against Nashville, personally, I like playing against Winnipeg personally and I like playing St. Louis, personally. Calgary is going to be a great series, too, if we play against them. They’re a big, heavy team, fast. It’s probably going to be a little bit more dirty against them. Their guys like to compete, just like our guys, so it would be something. But it doesn’t matter. To win the Stanley Cup, you have to beat everybody,” Zadorov said.

NOTEBOOK

• Semyon Varlamov will start in goal against the Sharks. It’s assumed that Philipp Grubauer will be the starter in the playoffs.
• Mikko Rantanen skated with the team at the morning skate, in the orange non-contact jersey. Jared Bednar said he is “hopeful” he’ll be ready for the playoffs.
• If the Avs play Calgary in the first round, Games 1 and 2 would likely be Thursday and Saturday. Hockey Night in Canada would definitely want to showcase the Flames for their Saturday schedule.
• The Avs will play a full, regular lineup tonight, as will the Sharks.