Some years ago, I found myself in a seat near the rafters at Pepsi Center watching the Colorado Avalanche skate against the Buffalo Sabres. The outcome of the game (an Avs win, I’m sure) was ultimately of less interest than a fellow seated a few rows down from me.
Midway through the first period he broke into a rather boisterous chant of “LET’S-GO-BUFF-A-LO!”
The gall! This was our arena! How dare he hope to rally his team and fans here?
I promptly shut down this gentleman and his fellow Buffalonians (sic) by rousing the Avalanche faithful in a “SCOTT-NOR-WOOD” chant. (A low blow, I know, but all’s fair in sports and smack talking.)
When he attempted the rallying cry again in the second period, a few quick rounds of “WIDE-RIGHT” promptly silenced him.
He did not bother a third try.
Come Jan. 20, however, I may be the one leading the charge of “LET’S-GO-BUFF-A-LO!” That’s when the Sabres next travel to Denver. And I won’t be cheering because I’ll be glad to see Ryan O’Reilly back on Pepsi Center ice. I’m too big a fan of Tim Horton’s and vintage Chevy pickup trucks for that to be the case.
I’ll be cheering on the opposition because it may be the best thing for the Avalanche.
With an impressive 3-0 win over the defending Stanley Cup champion Blackhawks in Chicago on Tuesday night, the Colorado Avalanche brought to an end one of the toughest NHL travel stretches in recent memory. A seven-game road trip opened a span of 36 days in which the Avalanche skated in 14 road contents, seeing home ice just four times.
In that stretch, the Avs went 9-5-0 on the road. They were 2-2 at Pepsi Center during that time, a marked improvement on their previous efforts on home ice. Having played the fewest home games in the NHL through the first two and a half months of the season, Colorado is a disappointing 4-7-1 at home.
Yet despite their poor record, the Avs have been putting up some fairly impressive offensive and special teams numbers in their home contests this season.
As MHS Avs writer J.J. Jerez pointed out recently, Colorado has a top-5 home power play. To boot, they are scoring 3.08 goals at home, more than a half goal better than they’re scoring on the road (2.55). The real difference has been in goals allowed, where the Avs are surrendering more than a full goal more per game at Pepsi Center (3.42) than on the road (2.35).
Semyon Varlamov and Reto Berra have been outstanding on the road, and Colorado seems to play more complete games away from Denver. When Patrick Roy’s team is holed up in a hotel, they’ve so far experienced much better results. (An idea for home games, following some NFL teams’ example, perhaps?)
At 15-16-1, Colorado is five points out of a wild card spot in the highly competitive Central Division. As of Wednesday, teams from the Central held five of the eight Western Conference playoff spots. If Colorado hopes to remain in contention when their schedule levels out in mid-January, they’ll need to turn around the results at home over the next month, a span in which they play just two road games.
Denver has developed an unfortunate habit, dating back to the AFC championship game in 2005, of letting opposing fan bases take over its stadiums. Terrible towels consumed Mile High on that sad Sunday. Go to Coors Field when the Cubs, Cardinals, Yankees or Red Sox are in town, or visit Pepsi Center when the Blackhawks or Red Wings are here for a visit and you’ll understand this phenomenon. This year, however, that could be a good thing for the Avalanche.
“Home feels a little like the road right now, in terms of being unfamiliar,” forward Matt Duchene told Jerez on Dec. 11 before heading out on the final leg of the 36-day stretch. “The road feels a little more like home.”
That’s why on Thursday I’ll be donning orange and blue in support of the New York (Brooklyn) Islanders, stopping on the concourse for a slice of “pie” before cheering on those “bums” from “The Island.” I can keep that same color-scheme intact when the Edmonton Oilers come to Pepsi Center two nights later. Now’s the perfect time to turn Chopper Circle into the “not so friendly confines,” as Colorado plays 11 of the next 13 at home. And during each of those contests you can find me in the upper reaches of Pepsi Center decked out in the opponents’ colors. It just may be the best way to help turn around Colorado’s fortunes on home ice.
Let’s go, Buffalo!