The Avalanche continued to put together wins, finding ways to do so even when they aren't playing poorly. This week they went 2-0 including their 7th shootout win of the season (18 for their last 19) and are 9-2 in their last 11 games. They have charged back into playoff talks sitting in a group right around that 8th spot and even held that position for a brief time this week.
at Anaheim : Well it took until the last day of the year but the Avalanche finally managed to get back to back regulation wins for the first time since December of 2010. After beating the Coyotes, they went into Anaheim and controlled much of the game against the Ducks even without Duchene in the lineup. Giguere got the start in his first return since being traded by the Ducks getting a number of rousing ovations from the crowd and made 18 of 20 saves en route to the 4-2 win. Kobasew's 100th career goal would be the game winner but the offensive stars were Hejduk who scored a pair of goals off great feeds from O'Reilly.
at Kings : This is a game that the Avalanche had no business even being in. However at the end of the night they found themselves back in a position that a month prior would have seemed nearly impossible ... back in the playoffs. Of course they have more games played than everyone else, including 6 more than San Jose, but it's something fans will take for now. Early on it was all Kings as the Avs just didn't seem to get it going, however they would catch a break as a Williams re-direct was deemed to be hit with a high stick and the War Room didn't see enough to overturn it. May have been a bad call but it remained 0-0. Varlamov was incredible all game, making a number of saves that would make highlight reels, but even he wasn't invincible as the Avs got caught flat footed and Brown was able to put one through his legs. Varly would ensure that would be the end though, and while the Kings missed shots and hit a post or two anything that was on net he stopped. Galiardi would get a penalty finishing his check which no Avs fans agreed with when replays showed that he was hit with a stick from the bench, but the Avs PK which has been good of late would kill it off. The Avs would never really get going but they hung around until the MVP for the Avalanche season thus far, O'Reilly, would put a move on his defender coming off the wall and would place a perfect shot past Quick and off the far post. A penalty in overtime would give the Kings nearly 2 minutes of 4-on-3 hockey, but a bad PP and a good kill by the Avs would send things to the shootout. Hejduk would bury his chance as always and Varly stopped all three shots he saw giving the Avs their 18th shootout win in the last 19 chances and 7-0 this year. David Jones played his 200th career game, and O'Reilly's goal gave the Avalanche a league high 34 goals by players 20 or under. The back to back wins over the Ducks and Kings mark the first time the Avalanche have ever swept the two California teams on the same road trip.
Brad Malone despite having some good games for the Avalanche was returned to Lake Erie where he could continue to get more playing time, having been a scratch after Jones's return to the lineup.
Wednesday Mueller skated with Hejduk and Landeskog as O'Reilly was given a "maintenance day". O'Reilly said he's nursing some bumps and bruises and a little lace bite. Mueller remains out indefinitely while Wilson is close to returning and while he may not play will likely travel with the team on the upcoming road trip.
Cedric Desjardins who continues to play well for the Monsters made the AHL Western All-Star team.
Sami Aittokallio is having a very good World Junior tournament. He has made four starts, posting a 3-1 record with a 2.14 goals-against average and .944 save percentage in 250 minutes. While he won't make the gold medal game it was in a shootout loss in which he had 55 saves (counting the shootout) that he lost that chance, which in tournaments such as this games shouldn't come down to shootouts. His first win was a 38 save 4-1 win over favored Team USA, then he shut out the Czechs in the next game. Justin Goldman had a good article on Aittokallio (http://thegoalieguild.com/2011/12/sami-aittokallio-skewers-team-usa/).
Speaking of Justin Goldman and the Goalie Guild, he recently replied to a post on MileHighHockey regarding the true need of a goalie coach in Colorado and a couple posts directed his way with an article of his own. Great read about the goalie situation in Colorado and the need for a goalie coach as well. (http://thegoalieguild.com/2012/01/the-importance-of-a-full-time-goalie-coach/)
Todd Bertuzzi has dropped his lawsuit against Crawford for his part in the Moore incident. Moore's case should still take place this year finally as he looks for damages against Bertuzzi (who has already pled guilty to assault) and the Canucks to the tune of $38M. Per the article Crawford is covered by the Canucks insurance policy up to $10M but Bertuzzi is not covered for criminal acts and would be liable for any part of a settlement against him. http://www.vancouversun.com/news/national/Bertuzzi+drops+third+party+lawsuit+against+Crawford/5951849/story.html
The DenverPost recently had a couple more articles on O'Reilly, commenting that he'd best get a suit for the All-Star game as he's the best suited to represent the Avs this year and also continued to comment on his work ethic this time mentioning his practice of Yoga and also that he does some stickhandling resistance training drills in a swimming pool. Hejduk had pretty high praise for O'Reilly as well. The article states "Hejduk said O'Reilly is equally as good as (Sakic and Forsberg) defensively and sees flashes of greatness on offense. 'It's tough to put him in that category, but one day he might be there.'" (http://www.denverpost.com/avalanche/ci_19677503) They also linked a good article from "GoErie" about his dad, Brian, and his hockey camp and his work. It isn't hard to see where the O'Reilly brothers get their work ethic from. http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100801/HOCKEY01/308019869/-1/RSS
Midseason Report Card
41 games in and the season is halfway on the books. The team sits at 22-18-1, 45 points, which is 2 less points than at the 41 game mark last season. Here's my mid-point take on the team...
Offense - D+ : The team has really struggled to get goals this year. They currently sit 24th in Goals For per game this season and have no players on pace for 30 goals. The blueliners are chipping in with plenty of points however, but the lack of top 6 talent on the Wings is apparant this year as is the lack of depth scoring. Of the defensemen that started the season for the Avalanche, only EJ of the first 6 is NOT on pace for a new career high in points.
Defense - C+ : While the team sits 19th in Goals Against per game this season, the defense hasn't been horrible. Overall the group has played some very good games and individuals are performing well other than a few exceptions. The forwards as a whole have done a decent job of helping in their own end with some being better than others.
Goaltending - B : Overall the Avalanche are getting good enough goaltending to be in most games and at times are getting good enough tending to steal games. There have been a couple bad games, yes, but overall the goaltending has been good though not great.
Special Teams - C : The Power Play early in the year was excellent, but has since dropped off though they still are 8th in the league. The PK on the other hand struggled early but has been solid of late and is now back in the top 20. Overall the two have simply balanced each other and it would be nice to see the Avalanche get the PP going again and keep the PK solid.
Coaching/Management - D+ : Management has made no moves thus far on the year, and their last move of sending two picks for Varly is still looking questionable at best. Also bringing in Kobasew and Lindstrom as your top 6 winger solution, along with injury prone Mueller, wasn't a good decision when other options were out there and Wings were a known area of weakness. Coaching has been ok, neither horrible or great most nights, and while I don't question coaching too much I do question a number of the moves Sacco has made. Most recently keeping a healthy Quincey out after his injury just because the team had won a couple games, but before that moving Duchene to wing, then after having some success moving him back to Center on the 2nd line. Sacco has done a good job of keeping lines that work together, and in giving the callups chances as well as giving ice time to those that deserve it, but has also made some changes that I haven't quite understood.
...and the individuals...
FORWARDS:
Ryan O'Reilly: A+ : Easily the MVP of the Avalanche first half. It was always known just how much of a hard worker and leader O'Reilly is, and his defensive game is what earned his spot on the team as an 18 year old, but this year he has often carried this team on his back and his offensive game has found a new level. Already he has surpassed his point totals from his first two years in the league and leads the team with 29 points. He is also one of the better faceoff men in the league and leads the league in takeaways while constantly having his line take the duties against the opponents top players. It is only right that he leads all Avs forwards in Time on Ice currently.
Gabriel Landeskog: A : While all Avs fans would like to see him put the puck in the net a bit more that will come and all the other parts of the game are as everyone described going into the draft. Landeskog is a complete player and a leader, never taking a shift off. He finishes his checks (top 20 in the league in hits), plays hard, plays the entire length of the ice (top 10 in takeaways in the league and is an Avs best +9 and 2nd among Avs forwards in blocked shots), and does all the little things. While other players may have more offensive flair coming out of last year's draft and may have better scoring numbers down the road, there is no question the Avalanche got a player that plays to win games and will do everything. He may just be the most complete player of the draft.
Jay McClement: A- : Some might consider this a generous rating for a guy with 9 points and only 14 minutes of ice per game. However McClement gets much of his time on the PK and has been a huge piece in the turnaround of that unit of late. He gets the hard minutes killing penalties but does so with tenacity and works every shift. He doesn't contribute much offensively but has been a big part of the team in his own end.
Milan Hejduk: B : While Hejduk isn't always as flashy as he was he is still a reliable guy on pace for his 20+ goals again. He remains responsible on all ends of the ice and is a veteran presence on the team. He still shows great skill with the puck and an ability to get around the ice and maintain possession, then get off a shot when others would lose the puck, but he did go through a bit of a scoring drought for a while.
Daniel Winnik: B : Winnik is one of the leaders in ice time for the Avalanche. He often has seen top line type minutes though is better as a third line guy where his ability to forecheck and play solid defense really shine. He's smart and works hard every shift and can make things happen and is a key piece to the Avalanche PK. His ability to play on any line is useful, though doesn't have the scoring touch for the top line you'd like to see.
David Van Der Gulik: Inc. : DVG hasn't gotten a ton of games in this year and thus the incomplete. From a small sample size it is hard to judge where a player really sits because you don't know if that is their every game or their excitement of playing in the NHL. DVG has looked good in his limited time, being agressive and chipping in a bit on the scoreboard, but more time is needed to properly judge him.
Matt Duchene: C+ : Duchene has been inconsistant this season and hasn't played up to the level where Avs fans hoped to see him. Yes he's second in team scoring but at times he seems to struggle and try to do too much on his own. His move to the wing seemed to free him up to be more creative and it seemed to work for the team, but they really need him to come back from his injury strong and get a better performance on a regular basis from him. Defensively he hasn't been bad and leads team forwards in blocked shots, but the team will lean heavily on him for more offense in the push to the playoffs.
David Jones: D : Jones has struggled this year. He started strong with 5 goals in 8 games but has just 2 since, and has not scored since mid-November. His ice time has shrunk lately as well because of his play and the team really needs to see him turn things around, especially during the injury to Duchene.
TJ Galiardi: C+ : Part of this grade is his own, part of it is on Sacco. Early in the year he saw 4th line minutes regularly and was scratched a few times as well. Galiardi appeared to be working hard when on the ice but Sacco continued to state they needed more from him. Of late he has either been given more minutes or has earned them and is starting to turn his season around with play that reminds Avs fans of the SJ series where he was a pest flying around the ice being physical. He's chipped in some big goals of late as well.
Cody McLeod: C : McLeod is having a better year than last year, but he isn't to Highlander status yet. His line generally does a pretty good job controlling play and providing good energy, and he is willing to drop the gloves as needed, but doesn't do much offensively not that that has ever been his strong suit. He has taken a few bad penalties this year as well.
Brad Malone: Inc. : Another player with only a few games in the NHL, but he gave glimpses of what fans are hoping he becomes playing a high energy game with a physical edge and perhaps a hit of offensive upside. While up he played well and deserved more minutes, but will have to get them in Cleveland as he has been sent back down just so that he gets the added playing time.
Kevin Porter: C : Another person commented that they couldn't respect or scorn Porter because he hasn't earned either and that he's ok at everything without being good at anything. To that end he isn't really bad at anything either, just a guy that goes out and plays and for the most part isn't noticable but isn't making mistakes either.
Paul Stastny: C- : Where is the Stastny that we all fell in love with in Colorado. Yes, he is still responsible defensively and that is great, and he's great on faceoffs as well, but his offense just isn't there. Maybe its linemates, maybe not, but he's just not scoring and not getting the assists that one would think he's capable of. He used to be a point per game player, but it seems to have dried up and he's on a 42 point pace this season. Still he's good in his own end and at winning draws but the team needs his ability to set up the scorers and occassionally chip in a goal and he hasn't delivered that.
Chuck Kobasew: D : Perhaps part of this grade is in that Sacco tried to use him on the top lines and that just wasn't going to work. Still he hasn't brought a lot to the table in Colorado and overall seems to be a weak signing by the front office.
Joakim Lindstrom: F : Another player from overseas brought over by the Avs just not to cut it. Had a promising first game with a pair of goals but after that just didn't do anything. Quickly sent down, or rather back across seas, where he will likely finish his career.
Brandon Yip: F : While no one expected him to continue to score as he had a couple years ago when he burst on the scene it seems that Yip has completely gone the wrong way. He is often invisible and isn't doing what he needs out there on the ice anywhere on the ice. He needs to play with energy, speed, and physicality to maintain a spot going foward.
Peter Mueller: Inc : How can you really grade a guy who plays three games then is out again with concussion like symptoms. This could be another career that has been ended by the injury, though he continues to try to come back and skates for a while before regressing. It seems to be a loop he's stuck in.
Evan Brophy: Inc : Another incomplete, Brophy played three games in which he only managed a bit over 4 minutes per game. He didn't do anything memorable good or bad in that limited time.
DEFENSE
Kyle Quincey: A- : Quincey needed to come back strong this season and he has. The best defenseman for the team on both ends he has been good all season. He had a minor injury which he sat out for a couple games, then was sat for four more because the team was winning which no one seemed to agree with, but since returning from that he has continue to put points up and play well in his own end.
Ryan Wilson: A- : Wilson could also be considered one of the Avs best as he was having a strong season, putting up a few points, playing well in his end, and putting the occassional big hit on someone. A head injury which he's about to return from interupted his season but hopefully he'll be back soon and in top form.
Stefan Elliot: B+ : While he hasn't made fans forget Shattenkirk yet, he has provided glimpses of why the Avs felt he was expendable. He moves the puck well and skates well, and his wrist shot is incredible. He doesn't seem to have much of a slapshot or at least doesn't use it, and his strength against bigger opponents needs to improve, but he's been good positionally in his own end. Thus far it has been a good showing from the rookie that Avs fans hope he builds on.
Erik Johnson: C- : Blame expectations if you want for this grade but EJ just needs to be better. There are times when he is a beast, but then there are times when he isn't moving his feat and is causing the puck to end up in the wrong net. He leads the team in turnovers and that can likely be directly attributed to when he stops skating or tries to get too fancy in his own end, something I've seen too much from him. If he can become consistant and keep skating and not try to take too much on himself he can be the staple #1 this team needs and hopes he is, but he doesn't need to carry the team himself every shift and seems to get stuck trying to do that all too often.
Ryan O'Byrne: B : Yeah you don't get anything flashy from O'Byrne, and he might not be your top pairing guy, but he plays a solid defensive game and hits a lot, near the top for the Avs. Overall he's not flashy nor great at anything but a very solid defenseman on a team that needs guys being "solid" on the back end.
Shane O'Brien: B : O'Brien is something the Avs desperately needed. He is gritty and tough and doesn't take crap nor allow anyone to give it to his teammates or goalie. He is also decent in his own end and has a surprising shot and ability to carry the puck. Sometimes he gets caught trying to be too much like an offensive defenseman but most of the time his carries can keep a play alive or get the puck deep at the very least. That was a part of his game that I wasn't expecting and was pleasantly surprised by.
Jan Hejda: C- : Hejda is another player that needs consistancy. At times he has been solid, and on the PK is generally just that. However at other times he has made some big, costly mistakes. His +/-, while not being a great stat to use in any arguement, does seem to back up this though. He needs to be more consistant and just make the simple plays and concentrate on his responsibilities.
Matt Hunwick: C : While only having played in a handful of games, the guy who was one of the worst on the team last season actually wasn't too bad. He didn't try to do too much, didn't make a lot of glaring mistakes, and overall just played a safe game.
GOALIES
Semyon Varlamov: C : Consistancy. Again there is that word but again it applies. Varly has allowed 28 goals against in 13 wins and 51 goals against in 14 losses. When he's on he looks unbeatable. When he's not it's like he's not even the same guy. He is extremely athletic and has made a number of incredible saves, but he also seems to give up a lot of rebounds as well at times. If he could get some consistancy and control his rebounds a bit better he could be one of the best in the league.
Jean-Sebastien Giguere: A : Perhaps the most underrated signing of the offseason, Giguere has played a huge roll for the Avs in a number of ways. When he is in net he is solid and constantly provides big saves and gives the team a chance to win. When he isn't in net he is a great mentor for Varly and a great leader for the team, one of the most outspoken of the bunch. Between his on ice play and his leadership for the team he would be in a race for 2nd most valuable player on the squad during the first 41 games.
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