It wasn’t a panic move. It wasn’t even really a gamble. When Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar decided to switch things up and go with Mackenzie Blackwood in goal instead of Scott Wedgewood in Game 4 of the Western Conference playoff series against the Minnesota Wild, he was simply returning to the successful formula that he and his team had used all season long.
This Avalanche team may not have a Patrick Roy between the pipes, but they do have a pair of top-shelf netminders, and all season long, Bednar has pretty much alternated them – with great success. Wedgewood has more starts – especially recently, when he’s been on a hot streak – but Blackwood has faced more shots this season. The two have been more or less interchangeable for much of the year.
Wedgewood was in net for all four games of the Avs’ first-round sweep of the Los Angeles Kings. He played so well that the idea of replacing him was considered crazy. But through the first three games of the Minnesota series, he began to show some cracks. It was predictable, given that Wedgewood hadn’t made that long a string of consecutive starts all season. He began the season as the starter while Blackwood recovered from an injury, but the most consecutive starts he had was just six. The Game 3 loss to the Wild was his seventh straight start, before he was relieved mid-game by Blackwood. With 20-20 hindsight, perhaps Bednar should have gone back to the plan sooner and played Blackwood for a game against the Kings?
Regardless, the timing was right. In his return to the starter’s role in Game 4 against the Wild, Blackwood was sensational. He stopped 19 out of 21 shots (one goal came on a power play) and made his biggest saves in the third period. The “other” Colorado goalie played a key role in the Avs’ 5-2 victory; putting them only one win away from moving on to the conference finals.
Lost on most hockey followers is the fact that these high-flying, high-scoring Avs have also been the best defensive team in the NHL. They’ve played better in front of Wedgewood most of the time, but regardless, they’ve been able to count on both goalies to give them a chance to win every night. Bednar and his coaches knew all this, and while those on the outside were allowed to hit the panic button after the first and only loss of the postseason, those in the team’s locker room don’t have that luxury. In this case, cooler heads – with long and accurate memories – prevailed.
In football, they say if you have two quarterbacks, you really don’t have one. That’s not the case in hockey. Having two really good goaltenders is the very best of plans. Injuries happen all the time, and depth – including in net – separates the contenders from the pretenders. The President’s Trophy winners have depth all across the board, and they’ll need it if they’re going to capture another Stanley Cup. Whether it’s Blackwood or Wedgewood in goal the rest of the way – chances are good that both will see important ice time… and play pivotal roles.
The only thing we know for sure is that there won’t be any panic moves.
