Game #63 Recap

I'm leaving after two periods of this slaughtering to go see a Clippers game. That's how bad this team is right now. I would rather watch the Los Angeles Clippers. Au revoir.

Also, I predicted to my friend, before the game, that the Rangers would win 5-1, which is the score right now. Who votes I shut my mouth on predictions from now on?

Avs get Thrashed early, can't fully recover.

Today, the Avs gave their best impression of a team who could care less about attempting to make the playoffs, at least in the first period. Shortly after the 11 minute mark of the first period, the Thrashers had a commanding three goal lead on our boys in burgandy. However, the Avs decided to show a sign of life as Milan Hejduk scored his 9th PPG of the year on a beautiful cross-crease pass from none other than Paul Stastny. That pass right there really showed what we have missed over the past two months with him out of the lineup. In the second, Hejduk cut the game to a one goal deficit for the Avs with a rocket of a wrister from the slot which banked off the inside of the post before finding the twine. Though, four minutes later, the Thrashers scored their second short-handed goal of the game, bringing their lead to two goals once again. The third period saw a lot of back and forth action with the Avs seeming to have a little bit of an edge. With Budaj on the bench, Chris Stewart scored his 9th goal of the year, but the Avs efforts to tie the game fell short and ended up with a 4-3 loss. The Avs showed a lot of resiliency in this game, but in all honesty, they shouldn't have had to battle back from a three goal deficit against a team like Atlanta. With Stastny back in the lineup, the Avs should be able to put goals on the board, but they can't keep digging themselves into the holes they've become accustomed to this season.

Rayzor slips in an Oil slick.

Just when I was starting to turn to the 'dark side' (yes, I've been watching some Star Wars this week) and become a Rayzor supporter, he goes and pulls something absolutely terrible and unforgivable like that third-period, back-breaking, game-winning, completely demoralizing goal that knocked me, and his own confidence in net, back down to planet Earth. There are no excuses for a bone-headed play like that, in a game as important as tonight's. He had no business coming out to play that puck. That's the kind of thing good ol' Patrick used to do in his many attempts to score that one goal he always dreamed of. That's something Marty Turco, or his one-time understudy Mike Smith, is allowed to do because they actually possess basic puck-handling skils and are able to clear the puck by an opposing player with relative ease. This is NOT something The Rayzor should be thinking of doing, no matter how confident he feels in himself at the moment. Yes, the Oilers probably outplayed the Avs a bit tonight and deserved to win, but the fact is the team stayed in the game, and, if not for the stellar goaltending by Mathieu Garon, probably would've won and gotten the two HUGE points up for grabs in tonight's contest. Once again, absolutely inexcusable on Rayzor's part and it's going to take another seven-game winning streak for me to trust him again.

In other news, at various points early in the game, I happened to say a couple bad things about Tyler Arnason and T.J. Hensick's lack of ability to put the puck in the net. And what did they do about it? Not one, but BOTH OF THEM scored and made me eat my words, which happened to taste pretty good at the time until the bonehead ruined it. Maybe the rant you see above will put some good karma on Raycroft's side, as the hockey gods obviously love to prove me wrong.

I think it's time to start singing the Budaj Blues.

As much as I love Peter Budaj, he is starting to wear out his welcome very quickly in my mind. Three out of four goals the Blues scored tonight (not counting the empty netter) were just plain awful. Just like the beginning of the season, that five hole is killing him, and the team's chances to stay in games. The team didn't play it's best game tonight, but they had a decent number of chances and managed to get two goals past Legace in the third to bring it to a 3-2 score. Cody McLeod brought his MVP campaign back to life tonight with his 9th goal of the season, and Guite returned to action, bringing mega-stache back with him just to make me happy. Stewart had a monster of a fight and is quickly moving up my favorite players list. Once again, Tucker was out on the ice in crunch time. WHY?!?!?! I don't know what's going on in TG's mind to think that he is worthy of this ice time, but hopefully it changes soon. Let's see if he decides to shake anything up for tomorrow's game. Maybe a Ledin call-up?

I'm starting to really dislike the Jackets..

Over the years, the Avs have never had a problem with the Jackets. Never, ever, ever! But now, the Avs have acquired zero out of a possible six points this season against the only club in the NHL who has never made the playoffs. What is going on here?! Yes, I know the Jackets have gained a lot of young talent over the years through the draft, but shouldn't the Avs at least be able to keep up?! Frustration at it's finest, ladies and gentlemen.

Personally, I figured this game to be a 2-1 final, with the winner possibly coming in OT or even a shootout, based on how the two starting goaltenders had been playing recently. Through two periods, I was ready to crown myself victorious in predicting the final.. until all hell broke loose. In a span of 3:41, five pucks (in order: CBJ, COL, CBJ, CBJ, COL) found the back of the net to give the Jackets a 4-3 lead, which also ended up being the final score. I couldn't really tell what brought on this offensive onslaught by both clubs, but it was definitely the last thing I was expecting.

JML had what I would consider his best game defensivly, as he was constantly out-muscling bigger forwards in the corners to strip them of the puck. This is the kind of play we need from him after his big contract signing this past summer. Let's hope it's here to stay. Marek Svatos scored his first goal in who knows how long, and one could only hope that he has figured out what he's been doing wrong this season and add the offensive firepower the team has gotten from him in the past. If Liles was the team's best player on defense, Chris Stewart was hands down the best on the offensive side of the ice. Not only did he notch an assist on Svatos' goal; not only did he score his own goal in the third to tie the game at two, but he also was credited with four hits in the game as well, and they weren't exactly small little shoves. Stewey was throwing his body around out there like there was no tomorrow, as he should with that size, and is definitely making a case to stay on the team once the injury bug leaves. Also, congrats to one of my favorite players, Cody McLeod. Although he didn't continue his MVP campaign by getting on the scoresheet, he was registered with five hits and three blocked shots. That, my friends, is how you earn a roster spot.

One more thing. I've just about had enough with Darcy Tucker. I've never been one to dislike players on the teams that I live and breathe for, but he's making a case to be the first of his kind. His bonehead move at the end of the Minnesota game last week definitely sticks out in my mind, but a lot of the time he does his best Tyler Arnason impression and just seems completely lost out there. I do not understand Granato throwing him out there with one minute left in a one goal game, but I guess he had his reasons. Unless his play and bonehead penalty-taking change in the second half of the season, I'll be hoping he receives his second contract buy-out in as many years. Good luck Tuck.

Empty.

I tried as hard as I could to think of one, single, solitary good thing that happened in today's game, but sadly, there is absolutely nothing worthwhile to write about.

Ouch!

CRASH!!!

That's the sound of the Avs falling back down to Earth after an improbable win last night in Detroit. And that's not to say that the Avs didn't play well tonight, because they did. But they just seemed to be a bit outmatched by a better team who wanted it more, and who managed a few lucky bounces on the way. And even as the diehard fans we are, did we REALLY expect the team to dominate a red-hot Flyers team in their home building while the Avs are playing the second game of a back to back? In my heart, I expect the team to win them all, but there's some games that I know will be tougher than others, and this, of course, was one of them.

The Avs started out strong, just as last night, and Paul Stastny was able to score a PPG off what seemed like a broken play as he won the faceoff, and pushed it off the boards to Hejduk or Smyth, but both of them were tied up and the puck managed to find it's way right back to Stastny's stick, which he quickly stick-handled to his forehand to put it in the net. The Flyers didn't allow that lead to last long however, as they got goals by Mike Knuble on the powerplay and a shorthanded goal by Jeff Carter before the end of the period.

The second period saw the Flyers extend their lead to a comfortable 4-1 before David Jones had an absolutely beautiful tip-in on a T.J. Hensick from the point. I was a huge critic of him earlier in the season, partly because Guite was being benched in his favor, but I really think this guy is starting to come around and find his groove on the ice. The second period also saw two fights, the first resulted from Chris Stewart standing up for Jonesy after he took a big hit from Aaron Asham into the Flyers bench. I love Stewart more and more each game, and I feel that he won the fight as well. The second fight was a bout between Lappy and Scott Hartnell. I never knew Hartnell to be much of a fighter, but he definitely was ready for this one with Laperriere.

In the third, the Flyers scored their fifth and final goal of the night, bringing the score to it's final, 5-2 mark.

I really can't put too much blame on the Avs as a whole for this one, as some goals were flukey, and others were just great goals that most goalies wouldn't stand a chance against. They obviously were a bit tired after the game in Detroit last night, and you could sense that about halfway through the game. Jones had another great game, as did Stastny and Smyth, as usual. The Avs travel to the state of Florida next for two games before coming home for one game before the holidays. Barring any unforeseen news in the Avs world, I will be back Thursday to talk about the game against Vinny LeCavalier and the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Blackhawk Down (opposite day edition)

After a two-plus week stretch where the Avs looked like the team that us Avs faithful had hoped and longed for, and gaining 11 out of 16 possible points, the team hit a monstrous wall in the third period (sound familiar?) and fell right back to Earth, where most "experts" had predicted.

The Avs gave up a very early goal on what seemed like a defensive breakdown in front of the net as a bunch of Avs players just stood around, letting Craig Adams skate right up to the puck and put it in the net on a shot that Budaj would've had on one of his good nights. The Avs didn't let them get that down though as MVP #2, Chris Stewart, shot an absolute BOMB from the point, Rob Blake-style, off of a beautiful drop-pass from Lappy, and beat the Bulin Wall top-shelf. This guy is here to stay, my friends, and I couldn't be happier for him. Lappy followed up his assist with a nice tip-in goal in front of the net, coming on the end of a great play by JM-Liles, who had by far his best game of the season. He took the puck from deep in the Avs zone and skated all the way down to nearly the Chicago goal-line, before feeding it to the front of the net as both Lappy and Stewy crashed the net for the tip in. Lappy got his stick on it, and then proceeded to give Johnny one of his patented post-goal kisses and exclaimed something along the lines of "What a f****n play!". As JM was skating across the red-line during the play, I said to my dad, "Look at Bobby Orr out there", and lo and behold, he actually finished the play in Bobby Orr fashion.

The second period didn't see much action, save for the Hawks tying the game at two on yet another goal that Mr. Budaj should've had. Four minutes into the third, however, Wojtek Wolski decided to take the game into his own hands, and made a play that Toews and Kane could only dream of, as he split through two defenders as he crossed the blue-line and made no mistake in burying the puck top-shelf. Could this be the start of a breakout year for Wooly? I sure f'n hope so! However, in the typical Avalanche style that we, as fans, have grown accustomed to since the lockout, the team decided to blow a third period lead, and not even get to overtime to secure a point. Hawks Goal #3 was ANOTHER goal that Budaj 100% should've had, as he let in an extremely weak five-hole goal to someone not necessarily known for scoring. Hawks Goal #4 came three seconds after the end of an Avs penalty, and I think was a result of the players just being dead-tired out there.

This was a very important game for the Avs, as a win would've put them within striking distance of the division lead, but this loss sets them towards the back of the pack, where they've spent most of the season thus far. This was a very winnable game, as the team had the lead with only 10 minutes to go. The loss is a bit inexcusable to me because I really feel they should've won this one, if it weren't for the bad goals Budaj let in. I am a big Budaj supporter, and maybe he was tired from being over-played due to the lack of a quality backup, but he really should've made those saves in a game with this significance. I know you can't win 'em all, but this was one that should've been won by the burgundy and blue.

Game #10 Recap

What could be said about this game? The Avs, particularly Andrew Raycroft, looked like an absolute disaster on the ice. The first two goals of the game were given up on nearly identical shots, beating Razor glove-side, top-shelf. To be honest, the only player I noticed making a constant effort on the ice was none other than the team's constant scapegoat for any and every problem, Tyler Arnason. What a shocker there. Maybe he finally realized that his job was in jeopardy and decided to play his heart out last night, and it showed. The only other positives to be taken from this game was the lack of penalties taken, zero minor penalties and three majors for fighting, and a 2 for 4 night on the powerplay. Let's hope the Avs got all of their bad play out of their systems over the last four periods and will come out flying on Sunday against the best in the west, the San Jose Sharks.

Game #3 Recap

Another game, another loss. I don't know about you guys but I'm not exactly fond of this trend, and there's still 79 games left to play. For the third straight game, the Avs were tied going into the 3rd period, SCORED A GOAL in the third period, but managed to let in not one, but TWO goals in the 3rd and were never able to overcome that deficit in any of the three games.

As with last year, the Avs biggest problem seems to be the PK unit. Last year, the team finished 28th in the league on the penalty kill. As of right now, even though the season is only a week old, the Avalanche are ranked dead last in the league with a 58.3% Penalty Killing percentage. The Flames came into this game 0 for 13 on the powerplay on the season, yet somehow managed to overcome their previous shortcomings and burn Budaj for THREE powerplay goals against. I don't know what it is about this group that has so much trouble killing penalties, though I'm pretty sure that David Jones isn't the answer to this team's problems. He somehow racked up 2:17 of ice time on the penalty kill last night, but, at least to me, remained pretty much non-existent out there, as he has during even strength situations as well so far this season.

In my opinion, at least for now, David Jones should be riding the bench in favor of Cody McCormick as he had an excellent game out there last night, racking up an assist on the first goal of the game scored by his fellow Cody Mac, a +1 rating on the night, and a fight against Jarome Iginla, who was so scared of him that he wouldn't even remove his helmet with a visor. Talk about a baby! I think Cody made an extremely solid effort out there last night to try and convince Granato that he's worthy of a roster spot each game, and to be honest, I hope Granato rewards him with that.

As for the rest of the game, the Avs powerplay unit has been looking better than last year already, scoring two goals last night on six chances, leaving them with a 21.4% powerplay conversion percentage to start the year. Not too shabby, if you ask me. However, I still strongly believe that Sakic needs to be moved off of the point once and for all. No goalie is going to be scared of a Sakic slapshot from the point. But put him on his off-wing side by the net and goalie's league-wide will be shaking in their skates in fear of that deadly wrister that he's so famous for. If this was my team, my first powerplay unit would consist of Hejduk, Stastny, and Sakic up front, with Liles and Leopold manning the points. Someone please pass this along to Tony so maybe we can finally see this in action!

Tomorrow is Game #4 against our old friend Ossi Vaananen and the Philadelphia Flyers. I will have a quick pre-game write-up at some point before the game tomorrow so be on the lookout for that.

One more thing, Cody McLeod scored YET AGAIN (and received the Mike Haynes call of the year thus far, "THE CODY'S DID IT!"), putting him on pace for a whopping 55 goals on the year. MVP! MVP! MVP!

Game #1 Recap

So the season, and home opener, has come and gone, and has left us with a loss. Starting the season 0-1 is never the way you hope for, but with 81 games remaining, an 81-1 record for a 98.7 winning percentage is still possible.. pretty good in my books. While there are many question marks on the back-end with the defensemen and Budaj giving up five goals (I'd only put the blame on him for two of them, however), we can take many positives from the team's offensive production from this game. Coach G wasn't lying when he said that he would bring an up-tempo offense to our team this season, as opposed to Q's dump and chase method. The team seemed to be buzzing in the offensive zone for a good portion of the night, and fired off 39 shots on goal, compared to only 20 for the Bruins. Looking at that stat only, you'd almost guarantee a victory, but alas we could not put the cat in the hat, as the coach on the NHL network commercials would say. It's always nice to see d-men getting involved offensively, and we seemed to have a great night on that front as Liles had two assists, Leopold had a goal, and Salei added an assist as well. All in all, we can take a lot of good and a lot of bad from this game. I think the team knows what they need to do and will be able to make the necessary adjustments to pull out the first win of the season tonight in Edmonton.


Also, Cody McLeod is currently on pace for 82 goals this season. Hart trophy anyone???