Short Week, Hugely Important
The Blackhawk game was a shame, and it can be blamed in part on the loss of Paul Stastny to a non-hockey injury. His appendix was removed a week ago and it will still be another week to two (and possibly three) before he’s back on the ice. This was another major blow to our already struggling offense. As a friend said to me, “Holy ****, we have an All-Star line on the IR.” To which I responded, “We have a future Hall of Fame line on the IR.” Surprisingly, the Avalanche have continued to pressure their opponents. The loss to the Predators started out as I expected with Nashville coming out hot in the first period and getting up a goal. After that, it was really a matter of the Avalanche getting good shots on a hot goaltender (Chris Mason) and getting shut out over the course of the second period. By the time the third rolled around the Avs were out of gas and the Preds took advantage. Voila! 0-4 loss.
Our young forwards will get their goals, however, and this week will undoubtedly be the key time for them to come. We play Minnesota tonight at home, and the game couldn’t be bigger. We trail the division leading Flames by two points and the Wild and Canucks by one point. Calgary and Vancouver have both played their 50th game of the season already, leaving the Avalanche and the Wild with a game in hand… tonight’s game. With a win the Avalanche catapult to the top of the division (by a mere point, but that’s a big victory in this division with the injuries we’ve sustained going into the All-Star break.) With a loss Colorado remains number four in the division with a week off and a week worth of tough games to come. What’s more, the Avs and Wild have split the season series at two games apiece, and head-to-head tiebreakers in our division are more than likely to decide playoff spots come April. (We’re 3-1 versus the Flames and 1-2 versus the Canucks.) I haven’t said it yet this season, so I’ll say it now; this is the biggest game of the season so far and we MUST win it. Tonight will come down to execution, and my feeling is that a loss tonight or a win tonight will roll over to the Blackhawks game next Wednesday.
Following tonight’s game we have six days to look back at the enormity of the implications of a win or a loss. Then the Blackhawks come back to town. All-Star week is a weird week for sure. For the Avalanche it means two games six days apart both at home and the crux of our season on the line. With all of the injuries the Avalanche have had offensively and defensively this season, it’s a wonder we’ve done this well. But every player on this team knows that there are no excuses in hockey, you just go out as a team and play hard. The fact that such a mentality is present on such a young team (increasingly younger with each injury and call-up) is amazing. The fact that the Avalanche have stayed competitive in a tough division is also worth noting. The Blackhawks are another young team that has stayed competitive in a division that’s as thick (maybe thicker) top to bottom as ours is, and games between two such teams almost always come down to emotional play. If the Avs spend a week hung over from a loss in a big game, they lose to Chicago at home as the ‘Hawks try to start a seven game road trip off on the right foot. If the Avs spend a week feeling good about a big win at home with another home game to come, they jump on Chicago early and send them off on the rest of their brutal road trip with a loss. But I’m here to predictify the unknownicles, and so I shall.
1/24 vs. Minnesota Wild
Because it’s such a huge game, because the puck has not bounced our way the last few games, because our team is wrought with young talent that is sure to be emotionally charged going in, I say we win the damn game. It’s going to be close, and it might go to OT, giving Minnesota (at least) one point that I would rather they not have. (That point would mean that the Wild would join the Flames at the two-spot in the division.) But I’m calling it a 3-2 regulation win with each goal being a spectacle to behold. Jose Theodore has played well these past few weeks, and it’ll likely come down to how many saves he can make. Go Jose go. Please, oh please, don’t let me down just when I’ve found it in my heart to have faith in you. Avs win 3-2.
1/30 vs. Chicago Blackhawks
Like I said, the outcome of this game will ride on the outcome of the last game. S’nuff ‘t be sid n’ that, s’nuff. Avs win 4-2.
