In the final stretch of the regular season, the Colorado Avalanche did not put their best foot forward and desperately needed redemption. In their last 10 games, the team sported a 4–3–1–1 record and suffered several disheartening losses.
In their recent streak, they lost a three-goal lead in the final period against the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday and a staggering 7–0 defeat to the Winnipeg Jets the night before.
The Edmonton Oilers provided just the confidence boost the team needed. In their last meeting, the Avalanche fell in a 6–2 loss on April 5.
Though the Oilers scratched most of their top players, it was still an opportunity for the roster to be put back into the winning mindset.
The good
The Colorado Avalanche came out of the gate hot, scoring four goals in the first 10 minutes of the game. Valeri Nichushkin kicked things off just over one minute into the period, setting the pace.
Mikko Rantanen lit the lamp at the five-minute mark. Nathan MacKinnon, who marked his 139th season point, assisted his goal and tied the franchise record.
Nichushkin tipped in his second goal of the evening on the man advantage, helping MacKinnon break the franchise record for points scored in a single season. Cale Makar secured the secondary assist, tallying his 250th career assist. Nichushkin’s goal was his 200th of his career.
Josh Manson found the back of the net to conclude the first period, and Zach Parise secured a goal at the end of the second period. Parise’s goal marked the last goal he would ever score in a regular season game, making it even more special.
The prolific offensive performance resembled the team playing against the Golden Knights. The challenge would be holding onto it, which the team struggled to do in their last game.
The team recorded 27 shots on goal, 13 of them from the first period alone. The early jump on the Oilers was a promising look, especially on the doorstep of an undoubtedly challenging first round opponent.
The Avalanche posted Justus Annunen in the net, who looked confident and composed. He sported several massive saves for the team, showing his promise for a solid performance in the upcoming series.
The Avalanche only found themselves in the penalty box twice. Despite having a strong penalty kill, penalties can be costly and change the course of games.
The bad
Despite having a very successful game, Colorado still fell short in several key areas.
The team only won 32.7 percent of face offs and only capitalized on one out of four power play chances. The Avalanche also had seven giveaways. Most concerningly, the team only put up four shots in the final 20 minutes of the game.
The ability to finish a game is everything, and putting less than ten shots on the net in a period is asking for a last-minute comeback.
Alexandar Georgiev has had a spotty performance in the last games he has started. While Annunen is a reliable goaltender, relying on him for a deep playoff run is not a reasonable expectation. Georgiev had an opportunity for a get-right game against the Knights, but ultimately, he could not keep things under control in the net.
Arguably the most concerning aspect of the rest of the season is the health of the players. Jonathan Drouin went down hard on the ice in the second period and quickly limped off to the locker room. He is now listed as a lower body injury and head coach Jared Bednar had no comment regarding his timeline after the game.
Samuel Girard is in concussion protocol after a collision with his own teammate in the contest against the Jets. He is a fundamental defensive player, and his absence was noticeable. Coupled with the loss of Logan O’Connor, the Avalanche are catching the injury bug at a catastrophic time.
What’s next?
The Avalanche will be on the road for the first game of the seven-game series against the Winnipeg Jets. They will be on the road Sunday and Tuesday but return to Ball Arena on Friday and Sunday, April 28.
Colorado is 29–11–1 on the road but will have quite a matchup against Connor Hellebuyck.
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