Allie Monroy and Nathan Rudolph discuss the Avs recent success before the NHL All-Star break, what to expect in the second half of the season and more! https://youtu.be/gZit4ZgzmDc

Rookie Sensation Cale Makar is no stranger to highlight-reel scoring plays that get widespread coverage. Those plays are the results of the hard work and immense talent he puts to use on nearly every shift. Part of what makes Makar such a special rookie is all of the little things he does. On this roll of The Tape we look…...

Welcome to the weekly Avs mailbag, where we answer whatever Avs questions you have on your mind. If you have any questions for the mailbag, leave them for Evan Rawal on twitter or respond in the comments.

Pierre Edouard Bellemare – C Bellemare didn’t do much to give Zadorov an outlet on the first goal, but there’s not much you can put on him there. Other than that, a relatively quiet game from him overall and did decently on the Avs only PK of the game. Andre Burakovsky – A Another game where Burakovsky’s playmaking shined through.…...

There’s taking care of business and then there’s taking care of business. Colorado came into today’s matinee showdown against former rival (forever rival?) Detroit needing to win to have an eight-point homestand and go into the All-Star break trailing the St. Louis Blues by just six points. Two minutes into the game, Nikita Zadorov turned himself about like he was doing…...

One month. That’s how long it had been since Andre Burakovsky had buried a puck behind an opposing goaltender. The 24-year-old started his Avs career looking unstoppable, picking up 13 goals in his first 31 games, but things have not been coming as easy for him lately. The lack of scoring didn’t bother him…as long as the team was picking…...

Pierre Edouard Bellemare – D It really felt like that third line struggled all night long, whether it was clearing the puck or just making smart plays in the neutral zone. An uncharacteristic game from that trio, as Bellemare, in particular, had a lot of issues with the puck. They got hammered in shot metrics. He did manage to pick…...

Style. Systems. Regular season success versus postseason success. Nothing brings these discussions to the forefront of Avalanche hockey quite like matchups against the St. Louis Blues. After the Avs lost both games in St. Louis earlier this year, making it six losses in a row against the Blues, the writing on the wall appeared clear: the Avs were not built…...

Allie Monroy and Nathan Rudolph discuss the Avs recent shutout win over the San Jose Sharks, Cale Makar missing the NHL All Stars, and more! https://youtu.be/4ysfdV0jepo

The Avs penalty kill has been a mess lately but you wouldn’t know it from the Sharks game.  The Avs have a bottom ten PK in the NHL but managed to suppress San Jose effectively through four minutes of 5 on 4 play. While some of that can certainly be credited to the Sharks ineptitude the Avs can use this…...

Pierre Edouard Bellemare – B+ Bellemare already has his career-high in points with 35 games left in the year. Just let that sink in for a second. Great play by him at the defensive blue line to deflect the puck away for Calvert. He had a strong game and even though it wasn’t at even strength, it was nice to…...

We talked on the podcast this week about how Colorado can turn around this losing skid of theirs. It wasn’t a complicated formula. Don’t lose the special teams battle. Get saves. Win at even strength. We said two of those three would be sufficient to get Colorado over the hump and help them close out an opponent. In a 4-0…...

Pierre Edouard Bellemare – C I think tonight was a pretty good example of who Bellemare has been most of his career. A solid NHL player with a very limited offensive ceiling and who helps in niche ways, one of which is faceoffs. He got crushed in the FO circle tonight and that’s not great. The rest, though, I think…...

I don’t even know what to write about this game. I’ve been sitting here for several minutes just kind of lost in thought. It was all just so…familiar. Avs played well? Got an early lead? Check. Avs lost the special teams battle? Check. Avs had a lead going into the third period? Check. Avs blew it thanks to a combination…...

Pierre Edouard Bellemare – D Bellemare had just come off the bench on the Malkin goal and got a little too aggressive, which left Malkin open for a split second. That’s all a guy like that needs. Smaller mistakes like that are things Bellemare typically avoids. Andre Burakovsky – C Like we said last game, Burakovsky just isn’t scoring goals…...

60 minutes of hockey and the outcome can come down to something as small as one shift, one decision, one save made. Or in Colorado’s case, one save not made. Again. Entering another third period with a lead in front of their home crowd, the Avalanche once again found their way to a loss, this time 4-3 in overtime to…...

Allie Monroy and Nathan Rudolph discuss the Avs season through the halfway point, Nazem Kadri’s fight, Joonas Donskoi’s injury and more! https://youtu.be/EqejJfKBYNk

In an Avalanche season highlighted by rookie sensation Cale Makar’s fearless dominance and success from all of Joe Sakic’s offseason additions, it’s easy to lose track of Nathan MacKinnon. Take last week’s 7-3 blowout of the conference-leading St. Louis Blues for example. Sam Girard clearly raised his game in an uncharacteristic four-point explosion. The newly-signed defenseman stole the night’s storyline not because he…...

The Colorado Avalanche have played over 24 minutes of hockey with an empty-net this season, placing them squarely in the middle of the league. Despite having the highest-powered offense in the league the Avs have yet to score a goal with six skaters on the ice (only the Carolina Hurricanes can say the same). This time on The Tape we…...