Bad habits and poor play combine to throw away a late two-goal lead

There are some game stories I’m just not sure what to say. Every win and loss is a team effort. They don’t just fall out of the sky, you know? Sometimes, though, it’s hard not to go into this wanting to single a player out because one truly abysmal performance stood out among the rest.

We’ve seen a bunch of players struggle this year. It’s a completely normal part of the process but one of the beauties of hockey is it’s such a team-oriented game that rarely does a single performance elevate or sink a team.

Unless that player is the goaltender, of course.

I don’t blame Hunter Miska for not being able to handle the job. It’s not his fault he was put in this spot. Hell, I don’t even blame the Avalanche wanting to see what a guy who had such a solid year with the Colorado Eagles last year could do in a limited NHL role.

It’s been only four starts but I think tonight’s should probably be the one that convinces them it’s time to make a move. Miska gave up five goals on just 27 shots, good for an atrocious .815 save percentage.

The Avalanche got down 2-0 early but roared back to tie in the second and then used a strong push early in the third to give themselves a 4-2 cushion. Just like the Arizona Coyotes game eight days ago, as the pressure ratcheted up in the third period, Miska folded, giving up two goals in the final seven minutes to get into OT and then the game-winning goal just 1:59 into the extra frame.

Now, this is where I remind everyone hockey is the ultimate team sport. The third goal by the Ducks is basically a Miska choke job on his own but the last two he had plenty of help. Andre Burakovsky took an ill-advised penalty to put the Ducks on the PP and they cashed in to tie the game.

In overtime, Mikko Rantanen wasted Colorado’s only offensive possession when he weakly turned the puck over and then moments later lazily tripped a player at the end of his shift. Once on the PK, the Ducks found space in between all three Avalanche PKers and Ryan Getzlaf tapped home a freebie on the backdoor as the passing lane was not shut down.

None of that is Hunter Miska’s fault. None of it.

But given the way the Avalanche played after a very lackluster first period in which Anaheim outshot Colorado 12-11, this should have been a relatively easy coast to the finish line. Colorado pushed back, tied the game at 2-2, and gave up just 13 shots in the final two periods.

The Avs allowed just 17 (11 in periods two and three) scoring chances and six (just four in periods two and three) high-danger chances across all strengths. That’s a great team effort defensively.

In the words of head coach Jared Bednar, the Avs “could have used a save on one of the two at the end.”

They didn’t get it and here they ended up.

TAKEAWAYS

• The Avs have to do something about the goaltending position. Philipp Grubauer has been excellent overall but and Hunter Miska’s results have gotten them by but a pretty cogent argument can be made they would be even better off in the games Miska has played had they gotten a more proven player. He’s just too much of an adventure. It would be unfathomable to me for him to play again after this performance. They locked down the quality and quantity of chances against after the first period and somehow it still wasn’t enough.
• I just don’t know what Andre Burakovsky is doing to get that high-sticking penalty in the offensive zone away from the puck with four minutes remaining in the third period while leading by one. It’s absolutely unacceptable for a player to make that kind of mistake in that situation. It usually drives me crazy when people talk about “what Cup contenders” do but one common thread among them is they absolutely do not beat themselves. The Avs did just that tonight.
• I don’t even know what to say or how to feel about Tyson Jost’s game. There are so many good things happening in his game right now and those two chances he created late in the third period were great individual efforts by him…but oh my goodness is that lack of finish a problem. We’ve been as patient as imaginable with him, too, as he in his fourth year of being a lineup regular but it honestly feels like the offense is taking steps backward. I just don’t really know what to feel. If he was the only guy in the lineup struggling like this, it would be one thing but there are several this year who have been nothing short of offensive black holes. J.T. Compher and P.E. Bellemare are similarly struggling and all three need the kind of breakout we’ve seen from Val Nichushkin in the last 48 hours. Those are huge contributions the team is missing right now, especially with the struggles of the offense to consistently get to that important three-goal mark. This isn’t even criticism or praise, just me being confounded on what to make of a player like this.
• I’m not a person who makes too much of physicality but oh my gosh do the Avs make themselves easy to play against sometimes. I’ve never been of the opinion that they are in desperate need of thumpers or anything to survive the rigors of the playoffs but a team HAS to be effective throughout the ice. That includes in front of the net, the corners, the board battles. Too often it feels like this Avalanche team isn’t committed to the little details in their game and are satisfied to just pump mediocre shots towards goaltenders. If they’re going to shoot so much from the outside, they need to do a much better job of consistently taking away the eyes of goaltenders. They just aren’t getting any tipped pucks going into nets this year. Some of that is puck luck but some of it is an inconsistent commitment to making life hard on opposing teams in shooting lanes. There’s so much room for improvement in so many small areas and seeing the team’s effort in these areas come and go has to be maddening to the coaching staff if it’s something bothering me.
• Val Nichushkin…great looks again. Kudos to two great nights.