The Avalanche offense, once the best in hockey, has fallen apart in January.  An attack that averaged 3.5 goals per game through December has put up a paltry 2.4 goals per game in January.

With Craig Anderson and the Avalanche defense struggling mightily with consistency, 2.4 goals just doesn’t win a lot of hockey games.  Especially when your defense offers up an average of 3.4 goals per game to opposing offenses.

Now the Avalanche have been bumped out of the playoff picture following dismal performances at home versus Nashville & Boston.  A week that began with a rousing 4-3 win over the league-best Vancouver Canucks sputtered into futility after it was learned that speedy Czech winger Tomas Fleischmann will miss the rest of the year due to blood clots in both lungs.

Colorado’s offense needs to collect itself and rediscover the flow that made it unstoppable early in the season.

Colorado’s defense needs to buckle down and start making stands at the blue line instead of playing chase after the seal has been broken.

Monday, January 24^th vs St Louis Blues (7:30 MST)

After finishing December on a five-game winning streak against some top West competitors, the Blues have struggled even more mightily than the Avs in January.

Like Colorado, the Blues’ defense has been a sieve this month.  Top goalie Jaroslav Halak occasionally backstops a gem, but gets flustered by early goals and gives up 4+ with regularity.

The Avalanche absolutely must come out blazing in this game if they hope to salvage their five-game homestand going into the All Star Break.

PREDICTION: Avalanche 5, Blues 3

Wednesday, January 26^th vs Phoenix Coyotes (7:00 MST)

The Coyotes have come on strong after struggling early in the year.  They play the speedy Avalanche forwards tough and force action to the boards better than any team this side of Detroit.  In fact, their style of play reminds of a Detroit-lite… as in lite on talent.

What they lack in big-name talent the Coyotes make up for in grit and hard-nosed play.  Bad news for the Avalanche.  Phoenix shut out the Avs earlier this month in Colorado, and will be coming off a cupcake home contest against the pathetic Edmonton Oilers.

If the Avalanche want a win, they will either need Peter Forseberg to sweep in and save them, or they will have to simply outwork their opponent in the little battles that decide most hockey games.  Avs fans are praying for the former.

PREDICTION: Avalanche 2, Coyotes 3

**BONUS COVERAGE**

The triumphant return of Foppa?

Looks like it.  Peter Forseberg flew to Denver late last week and has been skating with the team in practice ever since.  Word on the street has Foppa signing with the Avalanche once both parties are convinced that he has his legs back… and that his troublesome foot will hold up under the wear-and-tear of NHL play.

Unlike previous comeback attempts, Forseberg has been resting instead of rehabbing through Swedish league play.  He is reportedly at his best health in years, even at the advanced age of 37.

Here’s hoping for a career Renaissance for our beloved Foppa, Peter the Great, the Swedish Beast.  Although hoping that Forseberg will save our season may be a bit too much to ask.

If Peter does sign with the Avalanche this week, do not expect him to play until after the All Star Break.

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Mon @ NY Rangers, Thu vs. San Jose, Sat vs Los Angeles

The Avalanche are 3-2 after a long first week that included four straight road games following an Opening Day win over the Cup Champion Blackhawks in Denver.

Colorado’s three victories have all come by a single goal, one of those in Overtime and another in a Shootout.  The third saw Craig Anderson stop 41 shots on the way to a tough 3-2 victory in New Jersey.

Oh, and the Avs bumped off the hated Red Wings in Detroit to kick off the teams’ four-game season series.

In two losses the Avalanche have played well.

They came out strong and couldn’t convert good chances in a loss to the high-scoring Islanders.  More impressively, Colorado came from two goals down to tie the defending Eastern Conference Champion Flyers in Philadelphia before the home team bounced a mucky game-winner past Andy with a couple minutes to play in the 3^rd Period.

In all, the Avalanche are making the best of a very tough opening schedule, and the hits just keep coming in Week 2…

Mon, Oct 18^th @ New York Rangers (5:00 MST)

The Rangers make the most of their few offensive chances, and the Avalanche will need to be very focused defensively in this game as a result.

That said, expect Colorado to push the play more often than New York and generate lots of shots on goal.

This early in the season the Avalanche have an odd advantage; they have played five games to the Rangers’ three.  The Avs’ young guns are warmed up and ready to hit high gear.  Meanwhile, New York is already down two top scorers in Marian Gaborik & Chris Drury, both out for multiple weeks after a rough ‘n tumble loss to Toronto.

PREDICTION:  AVALANCHE 4, RANGERS 2

Thu, Oct 21^st vs. San Jose Sharks (7:00 MST)

It’s too early to be sure that the NHL has passed the Sharks by, but still…

Goaltender Evgeni Nabokov tucked tail and headed for the Russian Kontinental Hockey League after failing to carry San Jose to the Cup Finals once again.  In turn, the Sharks signed the goalie that defeated them in their Western Conference Series loss to the Blackhawks.  German import Antti Niemi stood on his head in the final two rounds of the 2010 Playoffs for Chicago, but his body of work over the course of a regular season is less impressive.

The Sharks bankrolled new contracts for the same underachieving duo that has disappeared from five consecutive postseasons: Joe Thornton got a 3-year $21 million extension and Patrick Marleau, realizing he had less value on the open market, got four years at $27.6 million.

Meanwhile San Jose has started out a disappointing 1-2 and will make a tough road visit to hard-hitting Carolina before traveling to Denver.

The moral of this story?

The Sharks’ ship has sailed and this year is the beginning of their inevitable decline from the top of the Western Conference.  The Avalanche are young, talented, playing great team hockey, and coming home from an early gut-check 5-game road trip.  Colorado will play up for this game in a big way after getting muscled out of last year’s playoffs by these veteran Sharks.

PREDICTION:  AVALANCHE 4, SHARKS 3

Sat, Oct 23^rd vs. Los Angeles Kings (7:00 MST)

The Kings are the most dangerous team in the West for the Avalanche this season.

Colorado is the second-youngest team in the NHL with a scary-good nucleus of speedy goal-scorers.  The Avalanche have a chance to build a long-term Cup Contender starting now.  The youngest club in the league?  These LA Kings.

Los Angeles is every bit as potent with their expedient movement of the puck through the neutral zone, aggressive forechecking and underestimated goaltending.  They are the mirror image of our Avalanche, and the games between these teams this season will be the beginning of a long battle for conference supremacy.

As well as the Avs are playing this season, the Kings are playing better.

LA has allowed exactly one goal in three of their first four games, and the three goals allowed in that fourth game (their only loss) were scored on backup goaltender Jonathan Bernier in Calgary.  Starter Jonathan Quick is as good as any goalie in the NHL, and he is just beginning to hit his stride.

PREDICTION:  AVALANCHE 2, KINGS 3 (OT)

WEEK 2 PREDICTION:  2-1

**Bonus Coverage**

The Avs’ 2-5 loss to the Islanders on Saturday came the night after goalie Craig Anderson stopped 41 of 43 shots in a thorough out-dueling of future HOFer Martin Brodeur in New Jersey.  Earlier in the week Colorado backup Peter Budaj stopped all six Red Wings shooters in a 5-4 Shootout victory.

The Avalanche have two capable goaltenders, and Craig Anderson ended up overworked at the end of last season.  That cannot be the case again this year, and the obvious answer is starting Budaj more often.  He is a better post-regulation goaltender than Andy, and more than worthy of shouldering some of the burden.

Despite the ultra-tight Northwest Division and the equally competitive Western Conference, Colorado has to find a way to spell Anderson after taking on 43 shots worth of work the night before a road game.  No excuse for not doing so.

Hopefully in the future we will see a more liberal use of Peter Budaj and a more rested Craig Anderson when the games matter most.

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Is Drew Brees an Unstoppable Touchdown Machine?

Thanks to the miracles of modern technology, our guest commentary this week comes from Jerome Virnich from his cushy post as an English teacher outside of Seoul, South Korea.  Thank you Jerome for allowing me to expand upon and repost your comical musings…

Well, The Season is finally here, and with it comes five long, grueling months of amateur commentary and sadomasochistic stat-crunching that saves many a football fan from an honest days work.

Now, due to a glitch in the Matrix (and the glory of Justin.tv) I got to watch about 70% of all the snaps from this week’s games.  (Did you know that a football game is only, like, a half-hour of actual football?  The rest is just commercials and play-calling. That means that you can watch 6 games worth of play footage in the space of a regular broadcast.  I had no idea.)

So, without further ado, I give you…

Jerome’s Week 1 NFL Awards! (As edited, massaged & otherwise defiled by Ian.)

The Fetal Position Award

Jake Delhomme. Granted, the Eagles front seven dominated the line of scrimmage, but 5 turnovers and a benching?!  Even your own mother wants nothing to do with you on a day like that.  If this keeps up, I wonder if Carolina will be in the Shanahan sweeps.  Worse, Dante Culpepper could find his way back into the NFL!  What is certain is that the Panthers have officially missed their window for a Super Bowl victory this decade, and next decade is likely to include the term “rebuilding Panthers” well beyond the comfort level of the average Carolina fan.

The Drew Brees Award

Drew Brees. 358 yards and 6 TD’s?! You get your own award for that.  That Saints offense looked like a surgeon operating on a sack of kittens with a laser.  The score was not so lopsided that the Saints were ever completely comfortable though, and they were facing a rookie quarterback on a team that won zero games last season.  Some pointed questions begin to bubble up… Is New Orleans this season’s Arizona?… Will Reggie Bush find himself taking up the rear of a three-back platoon?  If the Saints do make it to the Big Dance, how badly will the Steelers beat them?  Premonitions of a Pittsburgh repeat aside, I can’t wait for New Orleans vs. Philly in Week 2.  We may need to get the abacus out for that one.

The Most Improved but Still Mediocre Award

The Denver Broncos. The Broncos D looked fantastic against a loaded Cincinnati offense.  The pass-rush was in full effect, the scheme was aggressive, and the tackling was well above the expectations of years past.  Rookie CB Alphonso Smith looks to be the real deal.  He is a fantastic tackler, and he held up in coverage well enough for his first pro appearance.  That may quell the nay-sayers who berated Josh McDaniels for trading a 2010 1^st round pick to draft Smith in the 2^nd round of the 2009 draft.  (McDaniels said at the time that he was “first round talent in the second round.”  Kudos.)  However, the Broncos offense looked horrid.  Like, Cleveland bad.  So bad, in fact, that they are in the running for…

The Kyle Orton Award

This one goes to Jay Cutler. Cutler played like a rookie, and was in fact outplayed by actual rookies on other teams through Week 1 as Mark Sanchez and Matthew Stafford (barely) outperformed Chicago’s benighted savior.  Is Chicago cursed to never field a Class A quarterback?  Was Jay just a little overanxious in his first start?  Do the Bears find their wide receivers in the NFL bargain bin and just hope for the best?  I mean, Devin Hester is their #1 receiver and has had more success on special teams and equal success as a defensive back over the course of his career.  Maybe Cutler forgot that his top target is a Bears cornerback, not a Packers cornerback.  Easy mistake to make.

The Post Office Massacre Award

The Eagles. The defense got 7 turnovers and spent more time in the Carolina backfield than Delhomme did.  The offense moved the ball at will, their special teams got points, and Shady McCoy could be the steal of the draft.  And all of this without Michael Vick.  Super #5 needs a ring, and this could be the group to do it.  Although take note that the football gods were greatly angered by a designed QB sneak on the Eagle’s 5^th touchdown.  The mighty football gods are not pleased by the running up of scores in pro football (see ’07-’08 Patriots).  The play led to a McNabb back injury, and a possible reappearance of the Ghost of Jeff Garcia.

The Matt Cassel Award

Brodie Croyle. 24 points against the Ravens D?  I’m not sure that’s ever happened before.  Like, in the history of the world.  Sure, they lost – they are Kansas City, after all.  But the AFC West better take notice.  The Chefs are cooking up some upsets this year, and the Raiders’ spirited near-win against the Chargers goes to show how close the division is to relative parity.  Now if only the Chiefs could find an offensive line and two cornerbacks who have successfully navigated puberty (both starters are 23 years old) they may just find some consistency.

The Ground and Pound Award

Derrick Ward. The obvious choice is Adrian Peterson for violating the Browns D.  But that’s just too easy.  So I’m going with Ward, who might have challenged AP’s stats were he not in a committee with the ferocious Cadillac Williams. Together, the Tampa duo beat the living snot out of the Dallas D.  I mean, it was like watching The Who vs. a hotel room.  Absolute carnage.  Let’s see if they can keep it up.

Note: An honorable mention goes to Mike Bell, who averaged 5.5 ypc on what was mostly inside running.  Let’s see of he can do it against someone other than the Cowardly Lions.

The Division of Shame Award

The NFC West. Beating out the AFC West on the strength of the Ram’s utter ineptitude and the Cards’ loss to the 49ers (the Niners, fer !@#% sake!), the NFC West is poised to be the most consistently spanked division in football.  Sure, the NFC’s representative at the Super Bowl came out of this division last season, but the Arizona defense may actually be slightly worse this season.  Combine that with their continuing inability to keep opposing offenses out of the end zone in the final quarter of football games and a receiving corps that just went from three-deep to one and a half deep due to injuries, and suddenly the Seahawks are the best team in the division!  What is more depressing still is that one of these teams will make the playoffs while good teams from the stacked NFC South & East will have to stay home.

…and finally…

The Crystal Ball Award

JaMarcus Russel. Russel gets the award for having watched the Bucs game and realizing that he is the next Byron Leftwich.  Byron, meanwhile, is the next Daunte Culpepper.  And Daunte is the next applicant to your local Mervyn’s store.  Revelations all around.  The pressing question then becomes; if Leftwich is the next Culpepper, and the Jaguars let Byron walk two seasons ago, then who the hell is David Garrard and why is he quarterbacking a professional football team?  More questions and surely some answers as we charge awkwardly into Week 2…

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Nuggets sixth-man JR Smith

The Denver Nuggets may have won by 21 points on Wednesday night, but this game was not as lopsided as the Nuggets’ three other victories in this series. Denver trailed the New Orleans Hornets by 9 in the first quarter, were tied at the half, and withstood a barrage of inspired play from Chris Paul and the New Orleans bench.

Even a solid effort from the Hornets was not enough to derail the Nuggets on this night; their first chance to win a playoff series since 1994’s upset victory at Seattle. In fact, this was the Nuggets’ first winner in a best-of-seven series since a four games to one triumph over Utah in 1985. And this dangerous Denver squad played like a team that could afford the luxury of enjoying this win.

Despite their early struggles, the Nuggets stood tall and delivered late in the third quarter when they turned a tie game into an 86-66 lead on the wings of a 24-4 run. By the fourth quarter, J.R. Smith was calmly burying deep threes, and Carmelo Anthony was brutalizing a tired and resigned Hornets team with powerful drives through the lane. The Nuggets knew that New Orleans would come to play in an elimination game, and they patiently produced a resounding victory.

Chauncey Billups brought more than just playoff swagger and consistent play to this undisciplined Denver team. He also sparked the Nuggets to victory with his 36-point performance in Game 1 of the series. In the Game 5 finale, Chauncey took a back seat to the Nuggets’ talented offensive core, instead dishing out 11 assists. Carmelo rang up 34 points as the top scorer for the Nuggets, but was paced by an impressive performance off the bench as J.R. Smith scored 20 in limited play.

By beating the Hornets in five games, the Nuggets stayed on-par with the Dallas Mavericks, who finished off the San Antonio Spurs in Game 5 of their first round series on Tuesday night. Denver will tee off in the Western Conference Semifinals series at home versus Dallas Sunday afternoon at 1:30pm MST on ABC.

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The Avalanche continued the Magical Mystery Tour by bringing the old coach in to be the new coach. Now it could be argued that this was how it should have happened… more time on the bench to learn the gig. I suspect the Avs just wanted something with stability. I’m honestly ambivalent about this choice. I think it could work remarkably well, and I think it could blow up in ol’ Francois’ face. Either way, I am much more concerned that Joe comes back. I think he will, but the day he finally announces his decision, regardless of which way he goes, will be the biggest news day in Denver sports this year.

The Rox continued their slide into anonymity and irrelevance. It pains me to say that, because those of us close to the team, who attend the games, and watch these guys day in and day out, know that this is a talented roster. Maybe last year’s run was a perfect storm, but that doesn’t diminish the talent it took to execute said run. But this year, between the injuries, the inconsistencies, and the statistical settling back into expected performance levels (I think they call that ‘regression to the mean’), things aren’t quite OK in Rockies-land. Over the last couple weeks, we’ve seen some offensive spark (Barmes anyone? I tell you, if he’s not playing 2B when Tulo returns, Hurdle needs a swift kick in the teeth) and some glimmer of hope from the youngsters (Jimenez – finally pitches a sweet outing, and they can’t come up with the W). So what’s going on with the Rockies? As Ian put it, what signs are there that they can at least make the next 4 months bearable?

Here are my top reasons why the Rockies don’t suck as much as it appears:

1. Barmes. Barmes. Barmes. Did I mention Barmes? Dude is a stud.

2. Atkins. Atkins. Atki– you get the point. I fear they might not be able to sign him to a long term deal, so enjoy him this year.

3. Cookie. The other pitchers will settle in. Outside of the 2 guys above, the offense is just not doing its thing. The pitching will resolve itself. Let me take this opportunity to say that anyone who thinks we need to trade Holliday mid-season for some “quality pitching” IS A FULL-ON RAVING MANIACAL DUMBASS. I’ve never agreed with the “trade him now because the season is wasted” mentality, especially with another year left on his deal. And the “quality pitching” trade never works out in favor of the team getting the pitches. Well, rarely. Who is really available? The only pitchers I would trade Matt for are untouchables to their current teams.

So that’s the last couple weeks in review. We’ll have to do this again someday.

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Of course, it’s been a solemn week here in Colorado sports land. I don’t even want to do a full week in review. I’ll keep this short and sweet (or bitter, as the case may be).

Nuggets found out how good they really are.

The Avs finally had time catch up with them.

The Rockies… well, the Rockies. What do you say? Can we have a re-do?

The Broncos made an interesting draft… but it’s hardly worth commenting on until training camp.

That’s all I have to say today. Later this week, I’ll post a write-up of my first ever Arena Football game.

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We’ll start with the Rockies, who started the week in San Diego with another crushing defeat, this time at the hands of Randy Wolf and the Padres. Ubaldo melted down something fierce. The Rocks came back with a resounding 10-2 win on Wednesday, then on Thursday they played what amounts to an unscheduled doubleheader-and-a-half, an epic 22-inning, 6-hour-plus affair that finally ended in the wee hours of morning with Tulo doubling in the winner. So much has already been said about this game, so I recommend you just take a peek at the box score and enjoy. After the marathon game, the Rocks flew into Houston, and rather than come out flat, they dropped a couple solid wins on the Astros (with Kaz Matsui and his surgically repaired posterior in tow) including another solid outing by Aaron Cook. The week wrapped up with the Rockies dropping the final game of the set. This week, the Rocks come home for a pair of two-game sets (is there anything positive about that?) with the Phillies and the Cubs before hitting the road for a set of divisional matchups with the Dodgers and the Giants.

The Nuggets found themselves in the playoffs, and had just enough time to soak in the sweet smell of victory before getting doused with the stench of The Buss Family Fortune. Anything better than a 4-1 loss will be a miracle. Thankfully, the NBA draws the playoffs out for a solid 2 months, so we’ll get to enjoy this for a while.

And, of course, saving the best of the week until last…

The Avalanche dropped an OT contest to Minnesota, which left them trailing the series 2-1. But Game 4 brought the onslaught, and after a 5 goal lead, things got messy. The Wild showed who they really are as a team, and never recovered. The Avs went back to Minnesota, and despite being brutally outshot in the game, rode an unbelievable performance by Jose Theodore to what some might term a “stolen game” victory, and the series lead. The Avs never looked back, and the Pepsi Center was rocking in playoff form again for Game 6. The Avs played tight defense, Theodore kept up his high level of performance, and the boys in maroon skated to a 4-2 series victory. Now the Avalanche wait for the result of the Calgary/San Jose game (who knew it would go 7?) to determine their next opponent. Should the Sharks win, the Avs head off to Hockeytown to reignite a rivalry that has gone a bit chilly since the days of Roy and Osgood. Should the Flames pull off the upset, the seeds get flipped over and Colorado heads to Dallas to take on the Stars, the team that formerly called Minnesota home. Either way, goaltending performance will be key. And either way, there promises to be some good hockey in the Rocky Mountains again.

That’s it for this Week in Review. It’s supposed to be a nice week, so grab some Rockpile tickets and enjoy an evening at the ballpark this week.

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The Avalanche split overtime wins with Minnesota, the first being a SuperJoe Miracle, the second being a well-fought game that would have been a gift win, but it’s still heartbreaking to lose in overtime. The series returns this week to Pepsi Center, and you can bet the hockey-loving hordes of Denver are clamoring for the return of playoff hockey.

The Rockies took the previous week’s beatdowns and passed on the favor to the Atlanta Braves, making little girls of them and getting the 3-game sweep, with contest number four being relegated to a random June off-day due to the April snow-dump. They travelled to PHX, hoping to reverse the bad fortunes of the opening series, and got pretty handily spanked for two games before finally unloading on the tail end of the Diamondbacks rotation, making them 1-5 against the division rivals, getting outscored 43-23 in the six games (that despite a 13-run Sunday). September will tell whether this matters, or if it’s just true early season jitters. This week, the Rox head to 3-game sets in San Diego (more 2007 missed-playoff angst to deal with) and Houston (hello, Kaz Matsui), before coming home for a pair of obnoxious 2-game mini-series with Philly and the Cubbies.

The Nuggets made the playoffs, missed the playoffs, made them again, missed them again, before finally possibly maybe if everything falls right landing in the driver’s seat for the eighth playoff seed, which earns them the privilege of playing Kobe and the Lakers in the first round. Hello, early exit. Good-bye, George Karl. I’d say we hardly knew ye, but let’s be real. We knew ye.

The Broncos argued about whether Cutler is a leader or a prick. Even John Elway got into the discussion. Draft day’s a-comin’.

That’s ProSportsColorado week in review. Stay tuned as Ian will likely talk some more hockey as the week goes on (Game 3 tonight – don’t miss it!), Dan will regale us with tales of baseball prognostication unlike any other, and I will probably cry like a little girl if the Avs lose this series.

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