Avs Talk - A Colorado Avalanche Blog

What happened on Thursday? I have this blank spot in my memory and every time I try to recall it, my head starts hurting. I'll just assume it was something horrible and stop trying to remember it at all. For today is gameday! And the Colorado Avalanche have rolled into Anaheim to take on the Ducks. Even though Anaheim isn't on the greatest of streaks lately, they are still the top team in the NHL and the Avalanche will have their hands full tonight.

To answer what appears to be Avs fans most pressing question these days, Peter Budaj will get the start tonight. His last outing was a complete desertion of him by the team. So Q does what most people asked of him for the entire first half of the season...give a goalie a chance to rebound from a tough game. I'm sure this is tough on Theodore but at some point this season, he will get another start. At that point, it will be up to him to prove that he still has it.

Ilya Bryzgalov will be starting for Anaheim tonight as Giguere is still out with a strained groin. I'm sure we all remember the 6'3 Russian wall from the 2nd round of the playoffs last year. Hopefully the Avs will see the back of the net a little better than they did in their first 3 games of that series. And hey, maybe Bryzgalov will decide not to play very hard tonight. He might have some philosophical issue on his mind and we know he doesn't like a "game" to get in the way of those.

The most pressing question that I have waiting to be answered tonight is how the entire team responds after their worst game of the season. Defensive coverage was non-existant, battles were given up on, hits were shied away from, and the team lacked a level of grit that is sorely needed. It's time to see who can step up and add that needed grit to bring this team back into a playoff position.

Brad Richardson will be back in the lineup tonight after a 3-game stint in the minors. If he responds anything like Wolski did after being benched, he should put on a good performance tonight. The biggest problem with Richardson is that he seems to be capable of playing on the 2nd line or 3rd, but there just isn't a full-time spot for him there yet. However, he is capable of helping the team, even in a 4th line role. The big question is whether it's helping his development by being in that role.

Injuries
Leopold - groin, IR
Liles - foot, IR
Brisebois - back, day-to-day

Pronger - foot, IR
Giguere - groin, day-to-day
Beauchemin - spleen, IR

Hot
Sakic has 18 in 15, Brunette has 17 in 14, Wolski has 10 in 9, Hejduk has 5 in 5.

Niedermayer has 10 in 6, McDonald has 5 in 2, Selanne has 4 in 2, Kunitz has 3 in 3.

Cold
Laperriere has 0 in 14, Turgeon has 0 in 8, Svatos has 1 in 4.

Thornton has 0 in 3.

Goaltenders
Peter Budaj - 12-9-2, 2.59 GAA, .905 save pct
Ilya Bryzgalov - 5-3-2, 2.46 GAA, .905 save pct

Standings
Colorado - 21-19-3, 5th in NW, 10th in West
Anaheim - 30-9-7, 1st in Pacific, 1st in West