Post-game vs Chicago - Dec 23, 2006 - Colorado Avalanche Updates, News and Game Reviews at Avs Talk

Saturday, December 23, 2006

Post-game vs Chicago - Dec 23, 2006

Shut Havlat down, shut the Hawks down. The Avs came away with their own one-goal win against the Hawks tonight. The game got off to a wild start. A goal 2 1/2 minutes in by the Hawks was answered barely a minute later by the Avs. Then the Avs went up by one midway through and barely a minute later, the Hawks answered back. Thankfully, 5 minutes in to the 2nd and Sakic fed a gorgeous no-look backhand pass to Wolski who buried it for his second goal of the game and it held up as the winner.

From the sounds of it, Chicago took it to Colorado for the first period and got a lot of chances and took advantage of some sloppy play by the Avs. What's new. Then in the 2nd, the Avs turned it around and came out firing. What's new. They then held on for the win in the 3rd. That's new. And good to see.

So Wolski gets 2 goals tonight but should he really? If you get a chance to catch the highlights, be sure to do so. Wolski streaked in down the left side and Jason Cullimore swiped at the puck and promptly potted it top shelf past a surprised Khabibulin. Ouch. Apparently there is a "Let's get rid of Cullimore" thread on the Hawks message board. And that existed before this goal.

Sakic came away with one goal and one assist tonight. His goal was a bank shot off his skates which held up under review and his assist, as mentioned, was just beautiful. Not many people can toss a pass like that and have it land on the tape. However, he has to be careful not to do those no-lookers in the defensive zone. Less margin for error in that end of the rink so best not to attempt it. Even if you are Super Joe.

A shorthanded goal was given up which is about the 6th that the Avs have given up. I couldn't find the actual stat but it sounds about right. It's unfortunate to keep giving those up as they are real momentum killers. Thankfully the Avs were able to recover but you're not always so fortunate. We need to be sure that we don't get too aggressive on the powerplay. Which is funny because I always complain they aren't aggressive enough on the penalty kill. Maybe the players are misunderstanding when Q wants them to pressure!

The Avalanche came out ahead on faceoffs! They ended up winning 55% of them. As I've said, I don't think it's crucial to winning a game, but it certainly can't hurt. And they've got Turgeon to thank tonight for propping them up in that category. He won 6 of the 7 faceoffs he took for an impressive 85% win ratio. And on a complete side note, Turgeon is taking 51 second shifts on average. Get the hell of the ice after 40 seconds! He must think he's Joe Sakic or something.

It was a low-shooting game with the Avs walking away with 22 and the Hawks with 19. 3 of the Avs 22 came in the 3rd period. How terrible is that! They didn't get one shot away until midway through the 3rd. But you won't hear any kudos to Theodore or the D for keeping the puck out of the net during that time. I'll give it to them.

The Good
- a 1-goal win!
- Sakic stays on fire

The Bad
- a 1-goal win! - should be 2 or more ;)
- shortie given up

The Ugly
- I don't know, I couldn't see the game!

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