Early in the season, when the Avalanche were struggling to maintain consistency and play complete games, many thought the hole they had dug themselves in the Central Division standings was too much to overcome. Less than two months in, there was fear the season might already be a loss. Now, approaching the 50th game of the season, the sentiment has changed and the Avalanche look like the complete team they were hoping to be and appear to be legitimate contenders. Colorado is currently sitting in a playoff position as they look to continue climbing the Western Conference standings.
Saturday’s game versus the Dallas Stars will be game number 50 of the season, just over the halfway mark. Since Dec. 1, the Colorado Avalanche have played 25 games, exactly half of their total to date. In that time they have achieved a 16-7-2 record, outscoring their opponents 2.56-2.28 on average.
Much like the beginning of the 2014-15 season, the Avalanche got off to a rough start this year. This time around, the Avs found a way to recover and improve, a sure sign of progress and growth in the process of returning the team to greatness that is constantly referenced.
Earlier in the season, one of the biggest issues for the Avalanche was their inability to finish games. Losing the game in the third period was beginning to look routine. Through a determined mindset from players and repeated emphasis from head coach Patrick Roy, the Avalanche have turned that part of their game around and resiliency is now one of their strengths.
The most recent 2-1 victories over both Buffalo and St. Louis show how resilient the Avalanche have been as of late, but even more so are their third period box scores. So far in January, the Avlanche have posted a 7-4 record and have outscored their opponents in the third period by a score of 10-3. Even in their losses recently, they have been fighting back and winning the third period, a huge step from where they were at the beginning of the year.
The blue line was another area where the Avalanche struggled early in the season. The defensemen were not playing up to expectation and were making many critics question the defensive structure in Roy’s system. Since then, the bar has been raised for the defense and expectations rose. Through constant change on the back end, Roy has elevated the level of competition for a roster spot and, therefore, raised the quality of play from the defensemen. Adding Andrew Bodnarchuk from waivers and continuous movement of guys to and from the San Antonio Rampage has helped keep guys hungry for their jobs and a spot in the NHL, ultimately improving the defense immensely.
The goaltending, while never really being an issue earlier in the season, per se, has been at the level the Avalanche needed in order to contend. Since Dec. 1, the goaltenders have maintained a .930 save percentage and a 2.24 goals against average. Semyon Varlamov, having played 20 of the 25 games, has been the team’s most valuable player with a .930 save percentage and 2.15 goals against in that time.
Despite a bad game in the 4-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, Varly has seemed healthy, sharp and focused. The 27-year-old from Russia shows no signs of slowing down this season; if that holds, the Avalanche will continue being one of the NHL’s biggest threats and could potentially even land Varlamov in Vezina and Hart Trophy contention again.
The growth the Avalanche have experienced already is impressive. As Roy loves to profess, the team stayed “even keel” and they didn’t get too low on the lows. Now, they must continue on the even keel path and not get too high on the recent highs. The Western Conference playoff picture is sure to heat up down the stretch; maintaining the current level of play for the Avalanche will be necessary to stay in that picture.
The Avalanche face the Dallas Stars Saturday at 6 p.m. MST. Colorado has not lost to Dallas since Dec. 17, 2013. In what is typically a high-scoring matchup, the Avalanche look to improve their record against the Stars to 9-2 in the Patrick Roy coaching era. Erik Johnson will be making his return to the lineup as well, while Varlamov will play the second night of a back-to-back for the third time this season.
