Image by JessicaAvsFan via Flickr

The Colorado Avalanche said goodbye to their last remaining veteran from two Stanley Cup teams on Sunday in Denver.  With a 4-3 Overtime victory versus the Edmonton Oilers, the Avs bid adieu to veteran defenseman Adam Foote.  The come-from-behind win was the closing note in a disappointing 30-44-8 season.

‘Footer’ will go out on top (franchise leader in assists from a defenseman) despite the Avalanche struggling to the second-worst record in the NHL.  Adam announced his pending retirement last week.  He has an outside chance at landing in Toronto at the Hockey Hall of Fame.  Foote played 17 of his 19 NHL seasons with the Colorado Avalanche.

“It was great to get the win for Foote. What a great career,” said sophomore winger Matt Duchene after the game.  Duchene has been living with Foote since coming to Colorado last season, and credits Adam with his immediate success at the NHL level.

Duchene assisted on both Milan Hejduk’s game-tying goal early in the 3^rd Period and David Jones’ game-winning goal 3:57 into OT.  The Avs came from behind to tie it twice after falling behind 1-0 just 1:26 into the 1^st Period and then handing Edmonton a 3-2 lead in the 2^nd.

Milan Hejduk’s goal moved him ahead of Peter Forseberg on the Colorado/Quebec all-time scoring list with 756 points.  Hejduk is now the only remaining player from the 2001 Stanley Cup Champion Avalanche still playing in Colorado.

Foote won Stanley Cups with the Avalanche in both 1996 (when Hejduk was still playing in the Czech Extraliga) and in 2001.  Said Foote to the Avalanche faithful and his teammates after his final game at Pepsi Center, “Thank you for your support, and I love you all.”

Following Joe Sakic’s retirement before last season, Adam Foote was named Captain of the Colorado Avalanche.  Many expect Hejduk to be offered the C if he is retained through a new contract for next year.

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The Avalanche did not play Sunday and it cost them.

Colorado moved up to second in the West Saturday night after winning consecutive games at Atlanta & Washington to finish a six-game East Coast road swing.  But a Sunday win by the Canucks bumped the Avalanche to 2^nd in the Division, and the Ducks brutalized the Wild later in the day to knock Colorado back to 9^th in the Conference.

Now the Avalanche sit at 34 points with seven teams ahead of them at 34, 35 or 36 points.  That’s right… the 9^th place Avs are two points out of 2^nd in the Western Conference.

I’m running out of ways to talk about how competitive the NHL West is this season.

To stay afloat, the Avalanche will need to beat some good teams this week… starting with a home-away series versus the Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks.

Monday, December 13^th vs Chicago Blackhawks (7:00 MST)

A win tonight in Denver over the Blackhawks would immediately propel the Avalanche back into the playoff field.  Chicago sits one point ahead of Colorado with an extra win but two more games played.

Chicago’s first visit to the Mile High City came in their season opener.  Colorado skated away with a 4-3 OT victory.  Tonight’s forecast calls for similarly tight play, speed through the neutral zone, and an 80% chance of overtime with scattered penalty shots likely.

PREDICTION: Avalanche 4, Blackhawks 3 (SO)

Wednesday, December 15^th @ Chicago Blackhawks (6:30 MST)

The Blackhawks and Avalanche played up to each other last season and the result was some of the best hockey the NHL has to offer.  These teams match up in such a way that, by the third period, both clubs are skating freely and exchanging scoring chances.

For that reason, and because the Blackhawks are sorely in need of home victories to stay in the running for another Cup, this home-away tilt between Colorado & Chicago will likely end in a very spirited split.

PREDICTION: Avalanche 2, Blackhawks 3

Friday, December 16^th vs Ottawa Senators (7:00 MST)

The Senators will be coming to Denver after a physical contest in Minnesota the night before: advantage Avalanche.

Ottawa has a ton of talent but is severely lacking in team chemistry and a will to win: advantage Avalanche.

The Sens have not scored more than 3 goals in a game since November 9^th, and the Avs average 3.5 goals per game… see where I’m going with this?

PREDICTION: Avalanche 4, Senators 2

Sunday, December 19^th vs Montreal Canadiens (6:00 MST)

Montreal plays Western Conference style hockey in the East.

Colorado plays Eastern Conference style hockey in the West.

When the two meet, the Canadiens will have the upper hand because they have been getting solid defense and great goaltending all season.  Netminder Cary Price has been lights-out most of the season, and the Avalanche are still struggling with injuries to key forwards (especially those with left-handed shots.)

Defense probably wins this battle, but Colorado’s offensive prowess and Craig Anderson’s stellar goaltending give them a chance in any contest.  Likely not a blowout, but the boys in burgundy are looking at a split in Week 10.

PREDICTION: Avalanche 2, Canadiens 3

**BONUS COVERAGE**

The Avalanche defense has gotten a bad rap this year because it is soooo young and inexperienced, but bear in mind that Craig Anderson’s absence from the Colorado net was a huge factor for a month.

With Andy returning to top form and coach Joe Sacco (hopefully) committed to giving him more rest in favor of above-average plug-in Peter Budaj, we should see the defense lock down as the season wears on.

Gone via trade is veteran defender Scott Hannan.  In his place young lefty Matt Hunwick (25) and big righty Ryan O’Byrne (26) will see more ice time.  Rookie Kevin Shattenkirk (21) is already making his presence felt in the Avs’ offensive flow, and he is learning from John-Michael Liles (30) how to be an excellent two-way player.

Ryan Wilson (23) returned from injury and scored a huge goal (his first of the season) at Washington on Saturday.  Kyle Quincey (25) was bit by the injury bug the same game (shoulder), and will miss some time.  That means Wilson, a sophomore with another big left-handed shot, will need to elevate his game right away to keep the Avs rolling.

No doubt, all of the youth along the blue-line is a liability against veteran clubs like Detroit & San Jose.  However, these kids are all coming up together and stand to gel into a formidable defensive unit capable of contributing heavily on offense in the months and years to come.

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Mon @ Philadelphia, Tue @ Detroit, Fri @ New Jersey, Sat @ NY Islanders

After a rousing Overtime defeat of the Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks in their Home Opener, the Avalanche hit the road… and hard.

That makes the 4-3 defeat of Chicago to begin the season just HUGE for the Avalanche.

Not only did the Avs go toe-to-toe with an outstanding offensive hockey team, but they won the game largely on the strength of young defenders like Ryan Wilson.  The 1996 Cup Champion Avalanche were in the stands to watch as the New Look Avalanche outhustled, outchecked, outskated & outshot the 2010 Stanley Cup Champs.

Mon, Oct 11^th @ Phildadelphia Flyers (5:00 MST)

After ruining the Pittsburgh Penguins’ Grand Opening of their new digs (the Consol Energy Center) with a driven 3-2 regulation win, the Philadelphia Flyers were stymied in a defensive showcase at St Louis’ Home Opener 1-2.  Now the Flyers return to Philadelphia for their own Home Opener hosting the Colorado Avalanche.

The Flyers are the defending Eastern Conference Champions and will be playing in front of a notoriously nasty Philadelphia crowd.  The young Avalanche look to keep it close after what they showed against the Blackhawks, but the Flyers are an even more physically imposing hockey club than Chicago.

If the game goes past regulation, Colorado stands a chance to render an upset.  Otherwise Philly will almost certainly find a way to win in a tight contest.

PREDICTION:  AVALANCHE 2, FLYERS 3

Tue, Oct 12^th @ Detroit Red Wings (5:00 MST)

Not only did the Avalanche & Red Wings split the 2009-2010 Season Series 2-2, but they each scored 11 goals through those four games.  Each team enjoyed a road win in the other club’s house, and both managed a 2-goal advantage in their home wins.  Neither the Avs nor the Wings scored more than 4 goals on the other in a single game, and both lost to the San Jose Sharks in the Stanly Cup Playoffs to cap their season.

Some circumstance is involved here for sure, but the point is that the Colorado & Detroit are largely on equal footing these days.  Both clubs went through an abbreviated rebuilding phase in recent years and are now on their way back to the top of the Western Conference.  Unlike last season, however, the Red Wings are off to a convincingly strong start having routed the Anaheim Ducks and roughed up the Blackhawks on unfriendly ice.

It will take more than a spirited effort for the Avalanche to grab a win in the Motor City, and Colorado will be coming off another tough road game the night before.

PREDICTION:  AVALANCHE 1, RED WINGS 3

Fri, Oct 15^th @ New Jersey Devils (5:00 MST)

To put it plainly, Devils goaltender Marty Brodeur has been awful in the young season.

The man who trumped many of Patrick Roy’s NHL goalie records has been syrup-slow in net, and could not hold onto a 2-0 lead in New Jersey’s Home Opener versus the Stars.  Loui Eriksson scored off a partial break for a 4-3 OT Dallas victory on a shot that Brodeur routinely stopped until last season.

One night later the speedy Washington Capitals lit Brodeur up for 7 scores, include 4 in the 2^nd Period.

Now, the Great Martin Brodeur is playing behind the most questionable defensive front of his long, storied career.  But excuses won’t cut it when the lightning-quick, hungry for a road win Avalanche come to town off consecutive losses an on plenty of rest.  Sorry Marty, better luck next time.

PREDICTION:  AVALANCHE 5, DEVILS 2

Sat, Oct 16^th @ New York Islanders (5:00 MST)

The Islanders were having defensive issues before studly young blueliner John Tavares went down with a mild concussion.  A 5-4 loss and a 6-4 win combine for 8 goals allowed in two games.  And that was on home ice.

Now NY-I has to go through Washington & Pittsburgh before coming home Saturday to host Colorado.  Unless Tavares can make a speedy return, both teams will be seeing a lot of open ice in a free-flowing offensive showcase featuring goals by the bucketload.

PREDICTION:  AVALANCHE 5, ISLANDERS 4 (SO)

WEEK 1 PREDICTION:  2-2

**Bonus Coverage**

The NHL scheduling czars did the Avalanche no favors in setting up the opening leg of Colorado’s season.  You may remember that the Avs were picked to finish among the worst in the West last season before skating out to the league’s best record through three weeks.

This season Colorado was set up to fail early once again.

A Home Opener versus the Cup Champ ‘Hawks followed by a Road Opener against the East Champ Flyers and a visit to D-town versus those dastardly Red Wings.

After five consecutive road games following their Home Opener, the ‘Lanche roll back into town to face the team that knocked them out of the 2010 Cup Playoffs (Sharks) and the second-best team in that rough ‘n tumble Pacific Division (Kings) before hitting the road again to face stout divisional competition at Vancouver & Calgary.

If the Avalanche come out of that three-week stretch better than .500 they have a lot of home games and some light competition to look forward to in ensuing months.

And if Colorado races out to the top of the league again with THIS opening schedule?  Well… look out world.

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The 2010-2011 Avalanche Season started with some familiar themes.

First, the Avalanche continued a budding rivalry from last year with a fast, tight thriller versus the Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks.  Three of four 2009-2010 contests between Colorado & Chicago went to shootouts.  Two of those three ended the same way this new season began; 3-4 post-regulation style.

Matt Duchene played beyond his 19 years, another theme from last season, scoring a 2^nd Period goal and assisting on the OT winner by Paul Stastny.

Chris Stewart, another standout youngster from ’09-’10, made the Blackhawks’ old-new goaltender Marty Turco (35) look his age.  Stewie opened the Avs’ scoring with a pass-deke to flip-shot that had the former Dallas Stars netminder falling backwards into his own crease as the puck spun past him.

The most exciting trend that the Avalanche carried from last season into this one is a major victory for the whole team…

Colorado brought forth the tenacious, physical play they developed in April through their heroic playoff effort against the San Jose Sharks.

In that 2010 Cup Playoff Series, the young Avalanche were decided underdogs against a tough, veteran San Jose club.  It took a stunningly rapid improvement in energy level and execution just to hang in through that series, but the Avalanche took two of the first three before losing in six.

Tonight the Chicago Blackhawks skated into Denver as Cup Champs, and the Avalanche pressed back from a 0-1 deficit to take a 2-goal lead.

No small feat with Colorado getting just one Power Play to Chicago’s five through two periods.  More impressive, though, was how the Avs pushed back; with a tough, aggressive presence along the boards.

Colorado played defense-first hockey tonight, and it was good enough to stymie the reigning champions for most of the game.

Second-year Avalanche defenseman Ryan Wilson was lights-out in this one, and looks to be developing into the big, physical shut-down defender that Colorado will need to succeed in the postseason.  Offense-minded defenders Kyle Cumiskey and John-Michael Lyles were both +2 on the night.

The Avalanche’s next stop on the long road to the playoffs is in Philadelphia versus last year’s runner-up, the Eastern Conference Champion Flyers.  That stop in Philly followed by a visit to Detroit will kick off a 5-game road swing before the Avs return home to welcome those burly Sharks to town… heckuva way to start the new season.

For now, Colorado has a solid first victory to celebrate with the 1996 Cup Champion Avalanche in town for the home opener.  If the young Avs can carry their momentum through a week on the road and back home, they will be playing on another exciting 2009 theme… a red-hot start.

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As the Stanley Cup Finals wrapped up in Philadelphia last night, we in the television viewing audience got to witness another in a long series of disgraceful acts by Philly sports fans.

The arena-shaking boos that rained down as Lord Stanley’s Cup was carried onto the ice highlighted a classlessness that is unparalleled throughout the rest of the hockey world.  However, to understand the depths to which Philadelphia sports fans sink in order to maintain the image of “Worst Sports City in the World” we have to go back…

Way back.  All the way to 1949, in fact, for the first noteworthy self-shaming in Philly.

That was when the Philadelphia Phillies were forced to forfeit a game against the Giants after an onslaught of glass bottles from the stands lasted over 15 minutes.

At the 15-minute mark, fans were surely finishing freshly-purchased containers to rain down onto the playing field, and umpires wisely ended the contest.  This first (and only) attempt at public art in Philadelphia was widely misinterpreted as anger at a blown call against Hall of Fame Phillies outfielder Richie Ashburn.

By the 1960’s Phillies fans had learned to focus their rage.

Dick Allen, the first prominent African-American player to don a Phillies uniform, was initially only the subject of racial epithets and casual obscenities when he joined the team in 1963.

That all changed when white teammate (also a noted bully & racist) Frank Thomas whacked Allen with a baseball bat during practice and a fist-fight ensued.  Thomas was subsequently fired from the team, and Philadelphia’s fan base responded by throwing fruit, ice, trash and flashlight batteries at Allen… every time he took the field.  The abuse prompted Allen to wear a batting helmet while fielding, earning him the nickname “Crash Helmet”.

By the late 60’s Philadelphia’s bad manners had spread to the NFL’s Franklin Field, where the Philadelphia Eagles were wrapping up a 2-12 season.

The halftime entertainment was supposed to be a cheery Santa Claus, but the man hired to play Santa never showed.  (Conversation with agent: “You booked me where?” “Philadelphia. Franklin Field for halftime at the Eagles game.” “Well I ain’t showin. That’s a death sentence. Those people are awful. I’d rather be in Jersey.”)  The hired Santa is reputed to have spent the day at a racing track in New Jersey.

The Eagles responded by picking a fan out of the crowd who was already dressed as Santa, handing him a large sack, and sending him out onto the field.  Because the float that was supposed to convey Santa Claus around the field got stuck in mud and slush, fan-Santa had to hoof it.  By the time 20-year-old Frank Olivo reached the south end of the stadium, hundreds of snowballs were raining down on him from all sides and heights.

“That’s when the booing started,” recalled Olivo. “At first, I was scared because it was so loud. But then I figured, hey, it was just good-natured teasing. I’m a Philadelphia fan, I knew what was what.”

If Franklin Field was bad, though, Veterans Stadium was pure hell.

It was due to the notorious violence and bloodshed in the 700 level of The Vet that Philadelphia became the first NFL team to build a courthouse and jail within the confines of its stadium.  The court, complete with a regular judge, expedited the weekly trips by Eagles fans from seats to cells.

But the proud tradition of going to a sporting event to make a monumental ass of yourself and your city had only just begun.

Philadelphia fans traveled to New York  in 1999 to boo future star quarterback Donovan McNabb at the draft.  They booed McNabb after he won the NFC title.  In fact, Donovan McNabb may be the most booed man ever to win 65% of his games.

Philadelphia booed the World Series Champion Phillies at the ring celebration, and brawls broke out as the title flag was raised at Citizens Bank Park.  They booed Sarah Palin as she dropped the ceremonial puck at a Flyers game last year, and they booed NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman as he walked onto the ice last night.

The only thing that Philadelphia fans have ever certifiably cheered for was Michael Irvin’s career-ending neck injury.  As the Hall of Fame receiver lay crumpled on the Veterans Stadium turf, Philadelphia broke into a rousing round of applause.

So it was no surprise when Flyers fans booed the Cup.

Nor when they booed the Conn Smythe Trophy and its presentation to Finals MVP Jonathan Toews.

It was not surprising when they booed as Bettman congratulated the Flyers on an excellent season, or when they booed (louder) as former Flyers player and draft pick Patrick Sharp hoisted the One True Cup jubilantly over his head.

No classless, horrendous act is surprising in Philadelphia after a fan intentionally vomited on an 11-year-old girl in May, another sprinted around the Citizens Bank field before getting tasered to the ground in April, and yet another drank from a beer bottle in June… did I mention that this particular beer-drinking Phillies fan was 4 years old?

It is expected now.  Par for the course.  A shame in the Land of Shame.

So when Flyers fans disgraced a noble presentation (The Cup) in a still-noble sport (hockey) it was not surprising.  But it was still disgraceful.  Still a pathetic example of a sports fan base with no regard for tradition, honor, or even their own players and teams.

As Flyers and Blackhawks players skated shoulder-to-shoulder after the game shaking hands in a long line of respectful sportsmanship that dates back more than a century, the Philadelphia fans booed.

Players who had moments before been waging bloody warfare, driving each others bodies into boards and ice, were still respectful of the game itself and of their fellow players who gave as much to get this far.  So these ice warriors congratulated each other on having played their hearts out for the game they love.

And Philadelphia booed…

The contrast could not have been more striking.

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Seven Game Ones have been played in the NHL’s Stanley Cup Playoffs.  All seven games have been won by a single goal.  Two were decided by late 3^rd Period goals (Red Wings at Coyotes & Avalanche at Sharks), and two were decided by Overtime goals (Canadiens at Capitals & Kings at Canucks).

Four series saw the lower seed upset the higher seed in a road opener, including both 8 seeds overcoming their Conference’s top-seeded team.

At the heart of these tight games and unpredictable upsets is more than just parity.  Hockey’s second season is simply a completely different brand of NHL play, with higher stakes accelerated by a singular desire to hoist the greatest trophy in sports history.

Lord Stanley’s big silver cup is the Holy Grail where the NFL’s Lombardi Trophy, the NBA’s Larry O’Brien Trophy, and MLB’s Commissioner’s Trophy are just shiny rip-offs of the One True Cup.

That’s why you see these NHL players elevate their game to Olympic levels every April.  What is at stake is a place in history engraved alongside the names of the game’s greats.  No other major sport remembers its Champions in this way, and the Stanley Cup Playoffs take on an epic tone as soon as the puck drops.

Compared to the me-first flavor of the NBA Playoffs, the NHL postseason exemplifies a purity and sporting excellence that has been exorcised from professional basketball.

The Cup Playoffs are destiny discovered shift by shift, hit by hit.

The NBA Playoffs are exciting for sure, the story unfolding in a series of highlight-reel scores & denials made by some of the greatest playmakers on earth.  But the whole event is mitigated by whistle-happy referees under the barely-concealed control of NBA Commissioner David Stern.

The show is the thing, fair competition is secondary.

The tight controls placed on basketball’s playoffs come as a stark comparison to the Cup Playoffs.  Hockey referees routinely receive criticism for swallowing their whistles in the postseason, but the result is a return each year to hockey’s gritty roots.  Steps have been taken to protect players in a sport played at increasing speeds, but the average penalty is called less as the passion and ferocity is jacked up a level with each step closer to the Cup.

In the humble opinion of this lover of all things sport, it is competition perfected.

Every moment of every game is contested, ever momentum change accompanied by a palpable shift in the energy on the ice.  This feeling is so profound that it can be sensed in High Definition through a flat screen TV.  Incredible.

MLB’s playoffs are always nail-biters, but the tension is felt in the moments when nothing is happening.  That 3-2 count with a running in scoring position and the game on the line is absolutely intense.  But baseball’s most exciting moments are felt when all movement is stopped on the field.  Hockey’s hottest games are a non-stop thrill ride; a war parsed out into a thousand battles large and small all over the ice.

The one-and-done appeal of the NFL Playoffs has made pro football’s postseason the most watched per game among North American sports.  But the final two minutes of a contested NFL playoff tilt pales in comparison to the 3^rd Period of a Game 7 in any NHL Playoff Series.  And when the Cup Finals stretch to that highly anticipated final frame, two teams battling for immortality in silver, the result is nothing short of awed breathlessness for 60 minutes of unparalleled sporting excellence.

With Game One finished in 7 of 8 Conference Quarterfinal Series, NHL audiences have already seen what makes the Stanley Cup Playoffs the premier event in pro sports.

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The San Jose Sharks have lost the opening game of their last 4 playoff series, each time on home ice.  This time it was the Colorado Avalanche destroying a full regular season’s worth of San Jose’s work in a single night.

See the Series Preview and details on the Sharks’ playoff woes

Colorado’s Chris Stewart launched a shot off San Jose Defender Rob Blake’s left skate with 49.3 seconds remaining in the 3^rd Period to send the Sharks faithful streaming for the exits.  Stewie’s goal capped a 2-1 road victory for the Avalanche in a game they entered as decided underdogs.  Colorado suffered a series of injuries to core forwards throughout the season, and the result was a decent from #1 in the West to #8.

Still, the 8^th spot is good enough for a birth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and San Jose’s epic postseason struggles prove that the competition is wide open in hockey’s second season.  The Avalanche went from worst in the West in ’08-’09 to a playoff team in ’09-’10 to an opening-game victory in San Jose Wednesday night.  Better yet, the Avs’ victory was no fluke; they played the Sharks even throughout the game.

San Jose came out strong to open the 1^st period, logging 7 quick shots, 6 of those coming on a Power Play that started 0:28 in.

Fresh off the Penalty Kill, Colorado opened up, taking the next 6 shots of the game.  The slugfest had begun.

That 1^st Period was a very tradition Cup Playoff contest, with neither team able to score.  The momentum simply swung back and forth, with both goaltenders making outstanding saves in the clutch.

Then, with 12:38 gone in the 2^nd Period, Avalanche defenseman John-Michael Liles broke the ice with a laser from the blue-line to the top right corner of the San Jose net.  Liles was the subject of trade rumors prior to the trade deadline, but has been redeeming himself ever since.

On the goal-scoring play, Liles moved right to left across the blue-line with a San Jose defender closing on the play.  John-Michael wound up and shot across his body in an amazingly graceful, powerful & athletic movement.  The shot was partially screened, and Sharks goaltender Evgeni Nabokov saw the puck too late to stop it.  Avalanche lead 1-0.

Colorado dominated the majority of that 2^nd Period with a tenacity that had been missing since the halfway point in the regular season.

Here’s my theory on why the Avalanche saved their A-Game for the playoffs…

The Avs suffered a major spat of injuries around the middle of the season, and suddenly Colorado stopped diving into corners for loose pucks.  They backed off high in the defensive zone instead of charging and blocking shots with their bodies.  In short, Coach Joe Sacco was not interested in losing the most ice-time in the league to injury.  (As it was, the Avs finished 2^nd to Edmonton in that dubious category.)

Then, like flipping a switch, Colorado took the game to the Sharks.

The Avalanche blocked shots, scrapped mightily for pucks, matched the physical Sharks hit-for-hit all game long, and rolled their 3^rd & 4^th lines with the same regularity as their 1^st & 2^nd lines, especially in the first half of the game.  Only 4 of 18 Colorado players failed to log a shot through this total team effort.

The result was Colorado beating San Jose at their own game, and throwing in a healthy dose of youthful Neutral Zone speed in the 2^nd Period to really set the Sharks back on their heals.  But San Jose would not go quietly…

With 12:00 left in the game, the Sharks’ Ryan Clowe put an ugly deflection shot past Craig Anderson to tie the game at 1-1.

That goal, which navigated three bodies worth of traffic in front of Anderson on its way to the net, was the only shot on the night that Andy couldn’t stop.

After a solid month of questionable goaltending, the real Craig Anderson stood tall his first playoff game.  Craig looked liked the goaltender that sparked this young Avalanche team to the top of the West a month into the season, and he only had to face 25 shots.  That is well below his 30+ shot average from the regular season.  Anderson looked fresh late in the game as a result of tenacious defense and shot-blocking by Colorado defenders.

Return now to Chris Stewart’s game-winning goal with under a minute to play.

We have to remember that Rob Blake knocked the Avalanche’s top late-season forward, Peter Mueller, out of the last week and at least the first two games of this series with a dirty blind-side hit that resulted in a concussion.  And so, it was only fitting that Stewart’s bad-angle shot (Stewie specializes in these) would carom off of Blake’s skate and past the San Jose netminder for the deciding goal.

Rob was brought in to shore up the San Jose defense, but the aging blue-liner only slows them down.  A statue in front of the net, Blake never moved as Stewart skated around the net and unleashed the game-winner.  Rob Blake posted up outside the crease, a relic of a bygone era of hockey, and the young Avalanche exposed the disadvantage of a big, veteran defender with limited movement in his own zone.

And with that, San Jose’s home-ice advantage in this series evaporated into the thick California air.  Game 2 is Friday night in the Shark Tank at 8:30 pm MST.

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The Colorado Avalanche had the worst record in the Western Conference in 2009.  Now they have the worst record of the 8 West contenders for Lord Stanley’s Cup.  That is an impressive leap for one of the youngest teams in the league.

But can Colorado manufacture a first-round upset in hockey’s second season?

Starting this Wednesday, April 14^th the Avalanche will travel to San Jose to open their 12^th trip to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.  Colorado began their surprise season with a 5-2 thumping of the Sharks on the same night that the Avalanche retired Joe Sakic’s #19 to the Pepsi Center rafters.

In fact, Colorado split the season series with San Jose 2-2 on the strength of that opening win and a 5-4 OT victory on April 4^th.  The two games between were tight, evenly-matched affairs that ended in 1-3 & 3-4 losses at San Jose.

The top-seeded Sharks play incredibly well in San Jose, and the Colorado Avalanche will need to find a way to win a close game at the Shark Tank to steal the series.  For all the Sharks’ regular season success in San Jose, playoff demons lurk there as well…

San Jose Sharks recent playoff history

San Jose has made an early exit from the playoffs every year since their ascension to NHL elite status during the 2003-2004 season.

2003-2004 the Sharks upended the Avalanche on their way to the Western Conference Finals.  San Jose lost that series in 6 games to the Calgary Flames, and their playoff troubles have been well documented ever since.

2004-2005 season was cancelled due to a league-wide lockout.  The Sharks would have had considerable momentum going into that season, and the labor dispute definitely played a part in killing San Jose’s newfound playoff mojo.

2005-2006 ended with a 6-game loss to the Edmonton Oilers in the second round after the Sharks took a 2-0 series lead.  The Oilers would go on to play in the Cup Finals.

2006-2007 fizzled as well, as the Sharks dominated the Nashville Predators for the second consecutive season with a 4-1 first round domination, only to give up a 2-1 series lead to the Detroit Red Wings in a 6-game series loss.

2007-2008 was another disappointment with the Sharks ceding to the middling Dallas Stars in another second round fade that carried on the home-ice killing tradition of losing in 6 games to lesser teams.  Head Coach Ron Wilson was fired as a result, and Todd McLellan took over in the offseason.

2008-2009 may have been the most damaging playoff series in San Jose’s history (remarkable considering the history) as the Sharks dropped another 6-game series on the road to the division rival Anaheim Ducks.  That loss to the 8^th-seeded Ducks came after winning the President’s Trophy for the best regular season record in the NHL.

Upset Special, Made to Order

The Colorado Avalanche are a matchup nightmare for the Sharks for a lot of reasons.  Chief among them is San Jose’s propensity for losing to scrappy young opponents in the playoffs, but just as important is Colorado’s offensive depth.

Because of a season filled with injuries that have effected every single scoring line, the Avalanche can roll out a wide assortment of forwards that have well-established chemistry.  Each line is capable of rolling through the neutral zone with incredible speed, and even the team’s muckers sport a surprising scoring touch.

The Avalanche have nowhere near the defensive fortitude that the Sharks have, but they can score on anybody.

The Avs can throw their own recent playoff history out the window.

This Avalanche squad bears only a vague resemblance to teams of playoffs past.  And that resemblance is born out only in the grizzled visage of veteran blue-liner Adam Foote, and the still-youthful speed of Milan Hejduk.  Even with the re-acquisition of former Colorado stalwart Stephane Yelle, the new Avalanche are young to the core.

The Avs’ Centers read like a who’s who of North American Junior & College Hockey over the last 5 seasons.

Matt Duchene, Ryan O’Reilly, Kevin Porter, Paul Stastny & Ryan Stoa are all under 25 years old.  Only Chris Durno (mucker), Matt Hendricks (hammer) and Yelle are older.

The Youth Movement extends through the team’s wingers as well.

Cody McLeod & David Jones toe the line at 25 years old, while TJ Galiardi, Peter Mueller, Chris Stewart & Brandon Yip are younger.  The rarely-used David Koci is 28 and speed-demon Marek Svatos is 27.  Only Darcy Tucker (35) and Hejduk (34) could truly be considered veterans out of the team’s 10 wing-men.

And while the Avalanche defense is thick with veterans, three of eight defenders stand out as shockingly young.  Kyle Cumiskey (23), Kyle Quincey (24) & Ryan Wilson (23) each skate in a defensive pairing with a much older teammate, and they facilitate the speed-first attitude of this Colorado team.

Which brings us to the #1 reason why the Avalanche have a very viable opportunity to upset the San Jose Sharks.

Colorado is fast.  Really fast.  And the Sharks are slow.  Really slow.

San Jose predicates its game on disciplined movement out of their defensive zone, and methodical, cycling hockey in the offensive zone.  The Sharks are a hulking team that prefers to set up screened shots high and post mammoth centers up front.

But the Avalanche have within them two great assets against such a strategy: dedicated shot-blockers that have the speed and gall to disrupt up high, and a quick, agile goalie that, at his best, sees the puck through screens and eats up rebounds with regularity.

Now, Avalanche goaltender Craig Anderson has had a rough time over the last 15 games, and there is very real possibility that he carried too much of a burden through the regular season (most ice-time and most shots faced in the league).  No doubt, Colorado will need Andy to be at the top of his game against the Sharks, or San Jose’s superior puck control and defense will steamroll the Avalanche into submission.

But the ingredients are all there for Colorado to extend San Jose’s playoff woes.  If Peter Mueller can come back healthy at 100% for this series, and Anderson can step up the way he did in the first half of the season, then the Avalanche could be looking at Saturday, April 24^th at Pepsi Center (Game 6) as the day they swallowed the Sharks.

COLORADO AVALANCHE VS SAN JOSE SHARKS SERIES SCHEDULE

Wed, Apr 14 @ San Jose 8:30 PM MST on Versus

Fri, Apr 16 @ San Jose 8:30 PM MST on Versus

Sun, Apr 18 @ Colorado 7:30 PM MST on Versus

Tue, Apr 20 @ Colorado 8:00 PM MST on Versus

Thu, Apr 22 @ San Jose 8:30 PM MST on Versus

Sat, Apr 24 @ Colorado TBA

Mon, Apr 26 @ San Jose TBA

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The Vancouver Canucks matched the Colorado Avalanche goal-for-goal through three periods of hockey Tuesday night.  But it was the Avalanche fighting for their playoff lives, and Colorado brought the fight to the Canucks’ doorstep early and often.

The Avalanche scored first on an unassisted Darcy Tucker tally through Robert Luongo’s legs just over 6 minutes into the opening salvo.  It was only Tucker’s 9^th goal on the season, but it couldn’t have come at more critical time.  With Peter Mueller downed by a dirty Rob Blake hit two nights ago, the Avalanche were undermanned offensively going into this crucial final 4 games of the season.

Daniel Sedin tied it and TJ Galiardi put the Avs back up by a goal in the same minute late in the 1^st Period.

At the end of one, Colorado managed a 1-goal lead in hostile territory.

Neither team could establish a clear advantage coming out of the break, but the 2^nd Period served to catch the Canucks up to the Avalanche in shots on goal.  Mason Raymond was able to bring the score back to even at 7 minutes.  Vancouver was playing determined hockey, matching Colorado stride-for-stride in their push toward the playoffs.

Future Captain Paul Stastny put the Avalanche right back ahead 7 minutes later off a flawless cross-ice feed from Chris Stewart.  These two are the heart and soul of this Avalanche offense going forward, and it’s an indescribable pleasure to watch them execute in the pinch.

Somewhere around the middle of the 3^rd Period, Calgary lost at home to San Jose.

An Avalanche win would lock up the 8^th seed for a 12^th trip to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The Avalanche played some premature defensive hockey, sitting back in their zone for much of the 3^rd Period.  A one-goal lead in a tight divisional road game is as unsafe as they come, and Daniel Sedin got his second score to match Colorado’s 3 on the night.

It seemed like the Avalanche were waiting for that goal, and immediately went from resting on their laurels to pushing the action deep into the Vancouver Zone.  But the even score held through regulation, and Sedin’s goal score pushed the action to Overtime.

In OT, Daniel Sedin got a clean break in 4 on 4 play coming out of the Vancouver end.

Sedin had already put two shots past Craig Anderson on the evening.  Terror time for the Avalanche.

Daniel slowed his momentum to make a play on Craig 1 on 1, but John Michael Liles, chasing the play hard from the breakout pass, dove and got a clean stick on the puck just as Daniel cocked to shoot.  This is the same J-M Liles who was benched repeatedly this year for his lack of defensive fortitude.  The same J-M Liles who scored the game-winning goal a game ago versus San Jose.

A healthy scratch mid-season, Liles was trusted to be on the ice in crucial situations throughout this game, and that trust paid off in a big way for coach Joe Sacco and the Avalanche Tuesday night.

The Canucks pressed the Avalanche Zone for the rest of the extra period, but Anderson made a series of great stops to maintain the tie.

With 0:10 left in OT, the Avalanche made a couple of nice passes to break the Vancouver pressure and dash through neutral ice.  With less than a second left, Matt Duchene controlled the puck to the net, but couldn’t manage a shot as the Vancouver defense caught up and disrupted the threat.  Matty looked devastated that he couldn’t at least level a shot at Luongo… keep that disappointment in mind.

The Shootout was a goalie dual to the end.

Through two shooters, Craig Anderson & Robert Luongo were playing their opponents flawlessly.  Anderson was making the high, glove-side saves that have eluded him for a solid month, and Luongo was using his big body to start high in his crease and eliminate shots in stages.

In fact, Luongo played Matt Duchene perfectly on the Avalanche’s 3^rd shot.  Anderson had stonewalled three Cancucks, and it looked like this one would go to extra shooters.  Then Duchene showed the goal-scoring flare that has eluded him through an untimely dry spell.

Moving right to left, Duchene lifted an unstoppable shot past Luongo’s glove.  As puck met net, the Colorado bench erupted onto the ice to chase down rookie hero Matty D.

Avalanche clinch a playoff birth with three to play.

For all the trials, injuries and setbacks that have marred this surprisingly successful Avalanche season, Colorado is a Stanley Cup contender at last.

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It’s the little things that are going wrong for the Colorado Avalanche as the playoffs approach.  Friday night versus the Calgary Flames was no different.

The Avalanche had their chances, moving the puck well, attacking with speed through the Neutral Zone, and generally controlling the flow of the game.  However, the Avalanche simply failed to convert good scoring chances into goals throughout the game.  And the little breaks that decide games all went Calgary’s way.

The first goal of the game went to the Flames, and the blame falls half-and-half on the Colorado coaching staff and Craig Anderson.

The Avalanche were battling for the puck at the far point in the Calgary Zone when Colorado called for an inexplicable defensive change behind the play.  This was the 2^nd Period, so the Avalanche bench was nearer to the play and further from its own goal.  The Flames broke free with the puck and an immediate 2 on 1 developed right past the defensive change.

The Avalanche couldn’t get back into the play fast enough, and Craig Anderson overplayed (again!) a simple move across his crease.  Calgary’s Nigel Dawes scored easily shooting back across Craig’s movement, which had just vacated half the net.

Miikka Kiprusoff outplayed Craig Anderson throughout, but it was the closing period goaltending that was truly decisive.

Anderson was scored on again, this time on a partially-screened, partially-tipped shot from the high slot.  Craigers could have made the save, but it would have needed to be an outstanding play.  He didn’t and the Calgary lead stretched to 2-0.

Rene Bourque, AKA the Colorado Killer, got the tip-in for his 6^th goal in 6 games versus the Avs in ’09-’10.  Rene simply elevates his game against the Avalanche, and he got to play hero tonight as a result.

The Avalanche turned it on through the remainder of the period.

Colorado was outskating, outpassing, and outplaying every Calgary player… except Miikka Kiprusoff.  The Flames’ goalie made three brilliant saves, and his right post made a third.

Brandon Yip, in his first game back from injury, and Chris Stewart, who got the first assist on the Avs’ only goal, both skated with speed and authority throughout the final frame.  But it wasn’t enough, and Anderson’s failure to make one tough save and one amazing save was the difference.

In the rare instances where Calgary was able to establish possession in the Avalanche Zone, the Flames ate up big chunks of clock.  Their boring, muckish board play is their strength, though, and it stymied Colorado’s quick-hit attack late in the 3^rd.

The final score was 2-1 Calgary, and now the Flames have tied the Avalanche at 89 points.

Colorado still leads for the 8^th and final playoff spot by virtue of their greater number of wins, division series win over the Flames, and a game-in-hand.  However, the Avalanche have a lot of tough games to close out the season.  Three of their final five are at home.  That helps.  One road game is in Edmonton, a trappish but winnable contest.  That helps too.

Right now, though, even with all of those plusses, the Avalanche have still lost 7 of their last 8 games.  They are playing at a playoff intensity level, but can’t control their own energy.  Colorado’s offense, for all its raw power, looks skittish.  Determined, yes, but still uneven at the moment of truth.

From Craig Anderson on down to Ryan O’Reilly (who had an outstanding game that resulted in 0 points), the Avalanche do not seem ready for a Stanley Cup Playoff series.

So, with 5 games left in the regular season and needing every point they can muster, Colorado’s mettle will be tested every other night for the next week and a half.  If the Avalanche can rediscover their offensive timing, and if Craig Anderson & crew can harness their excess energies, Colorado will be there for the playoffs in mid-April.

If both of those things don’t happen, the Avalanche will have a lot of time to look back on how it all went wrong down the stretch for this young, talented Colorado team.

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