Avalanche 2 - Flyers 4, Quick Thoughts Edition

After defeating the Stanley Cup winning Chicago Blackhawks, the Avalanche turned their attention tonight to the Stanley Cup losing Philadelphia Flyers. Unfortunately the Avs walked away with their first loss of the season thanks in large part to an abysmally atrocious first period which included two shorthanded goals against. Two.

EDIT: As Tapeleg points out, technically the second goal wasn't a shortie. I still count it in my mind [since the giveaway which kickstarted the play occured while still on the PP] . I'd be open to settling on one-and-a-half.

The Avalanche started the game as a turnover machine and it burned them. You can't turn over the puck as many times as they did and expect to win a hockey game. It was an unbelievably frustrating thing to watch and I can only assume Joe Sacco tore them a new one during the intermission.

As per standard fare, the Avs turned it on in the second period and got within one. In fact, they nearly pulled even but Sergei Bobrovsky made a great save with about 0.01 seconds left on the board to preserve the lead.

Sidebar - Try to say "Vladimir Bobrovsky" fast. I had a heck of a time not bumbling that one. You might wonder why I was calling him Vladimir when his name is Sergei. I'll leave that for you to chew on for a while.

The third period was an exciting, wide open hockey game that had me on the edge of my seat. I subsequently fell off the edge of my seat just as Jeff Carter's game winning goal crossed the goal line, which was awesome.

What a rough way to end a game for Craig Anderson who played great in turning aside 35 shots. I understand the instinct to sweep your legs closed like that but every time I see a goal go in that way, I have to wonder why these guys aren't able to supress that urge.

Quick thoughts
John-Michael Liles had two assists on the night leaving him with just 36 points to go to hit 40 on the season.

Hey, there's Brandon Yip! Scoring a goal and taking a penalty that likely prevented a goal. I wonder what changed tonight that really lifted his spirits...

David Jones still doesn't have the explosive speed he had in seasons past. Let's hope it's not a permanent loss, just a part of his final sprint of rehab.

What the hell was Kyle Quincey doing on his shorthanded breakaway? What looked to be poetic justice turned into something more resembly a poetry recitation.

How about that Giroux kid, eh?

Ladies and gentlemen, your ice-time leader for the Avalanche tonight - Kyle Cumiskey with 22:22! Next up? T.J. Galiardi with 22:05.

Next up - the Detroit Red Wings tomorrow night. Please step it, boys. You know why.

So it's not just the Avs

Flyers rushing injured players back too soon?

How Badass Does Biron Look?

Is it just me or does this picture of Martin Biron make him look like a violent psychopath who will not only stop the puck, but then chase you down and bash your head in with it?

Sharks Edge Flyers in Barn Burner

Tonight the San Jose Sharks and Philadelphia Flyers had a combined goal count of an even dozen in the Sharks 7-6 shootout win. That's more goals than the Islanders, Lightning and Leafs have scored all season long. 

I only caught the last two minutes plus OT and shootout and those few minutes were as entertaining as they come.

Patty Marleau had two goals on the night but was also in the box when the Flyers tied the game late in the third.

And watch Joe Pavelski show you how to fire off a wrist shot. None of that leg kick crap was necessary for him to blow one past Biron.

Avalanche vs Flyers, Game 5 Thoughts

(Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

Cody Mcleod is making me eat my words. He has looked great in the first four games. He's got two goals on the season and has only taken one penalty, the fighting major as he defended Ryan Smyth's honor against Steve Staios.

Ryan Smyth has been absolutely rocking on the forecheck in the first four games. He's got one goal and two assists in those four games but that doesn't do justice to the energy he's brought in the offensive zone.

David Jones is on the cusp of breaking out. Again. He was driving the net hard and has deceptive speed and strength. On one drive, he got past the Flyers D and then gave a little shrug to knock him down along the way. It was exactly what you want to see from a power forward. He got his first assist of the night and I think his first goal is only a couple games away. And that first assist was a beauty threaded through two Flyers defenders.

Ruslan Salei led the squad in ice-time and a large part of that is due to the extra PP time. He manned the point on the second unit - and at least once on the first unit for a total of 4:05 on the PP. He seems to be settling into a groove and could still make me look like a genious after predicting he would be the Avs best defenseman.

Joe Sakic's post ringer in the second period woke up sleeping polar bears in the Arctic. He made up for that miss with three assists as he keeps inching closer to #10 on the all-time list.

The penalty shot call made on Liles on the Gagne break was the worst penalty shot call I can remember. It didn't look like much on the initial rush but on the replay, it looked like Liles maybe sneezed on him. His stick hardly made contact with Gagne and Gagne seemed to have no problem getting a shot off. Not getting a shot off isn't the only determining factor in awarding a penalty shot but I think an actual penalty has to occur first. I'm pretty sure.

The Avs were 3-for-11 on the PP (27%) while only allowing the one PK goal on seven shorthanded situations (85%). Putting Wojtek Wolski on the point in place of Sakic a couple times paid dividends. Wolsk did a great job at feeding the puck to open players and came away with one powerplay assist. Of course, as soon as Wolski gives up a shortie, I'll be preaching from the rafters that forwards should not play the point on the powerplay. Ah hell, I'll keep doing it anyways.

The big question coming out of tonight is whether the lineup stays the same, leaving Ben Guite in the press box. It was surprising to see Cody McCormick still in the lineup but he made a hell of a case for himself against Calgary as well as tonight.

The only goals against Raycroft, playing in his 200th game, were on a penalty shot and on a 5-on-3. Not too shabby. But we'll see the Buddah back in net on Saturday against the Stars. This is not the goalie controversy you're looking for.

Oh, and Brett Clark was representing Saskatchewan tonight with a nice goal. Good job, Brett.

Related Links

Power Play Propels Avs Past Flyers

NHL.com Event Summary

Raycroft secures Avs first win (makes it sound like Raycroft stood on his head, eh? yeesh)

Andrew Raycroft Post-game Video

Milan Hejduk Post-game Video

Avalanche Get First Win, Down Flyers 5-2

You move your feet, you win the game. It's an old adage and it works 95% of the time, every time. The Avalanche tried it tonight and scored their first win of the season on a fast-paced, skate flying adventure.

The Avs scored first, they scored often and they drew tons of penalties along the way. The Cody Macs were great, David Jones was pressing hard, Ryan Smyth was a beast down low, Milan Hejduk was a flat out beast and I could just go on and on. Even Tyler Arnason seemed to find his game legs again.

And the defense didn't take a backseat to the offense tonight as the skates kept moving on the backcheck as well as the forecheck. Flyers breakouts sometimes didn't even last beyond their own blueline before they were stripped of the puck. It was lovely to watch.

Andrew Raycroft needed to make just 16 saves in his regular season debut and, aside from his puck handling inabilities, looked half decent out there.

Unfortunately, I had company for a good portion of the night but I'll check out some of the taped action later tonight and will put up a few more thoughts in the morning.

In the meantime, Joe Sakic is still a god amongst men. And Paul Stastny is like his little Heracles.

Avalanche vs Flyers, Game 4 Preview

It's another battle of un-undefeated teams as the Flyers are in Colorado to take on the Avalanche.

This is the second time the Avalanche find themselves in this situation and it did not end well the first time.

Tonight, I have all the confidence in the world that the Avalanche will walk away with their first victory of the season.

Andrew Raycroft is in net which I'll admit had my confidence waver a bit. But I'm holding strong.

The team is loose, frustration hasn't set in in the locker room, and the guys know they need to play better. Three good signs which herald the coming of the dawn.

And after all the drama this morning, it has become apparent that the Avalanche need to win to save us all from turning on each other so I've got to believe. We're on the ledge, guys. Save us!

The puck drops at 9:00 ET, 7:00 MT and is the first game that I should get to watch on Altitude, assuming Center Ice uses the home team feed which they tend to do. Oh Haynes and Mcnabb, how I've missed you.

Related Links

Adam Foote Pre-game Video

Paul Stastny Pre-game Video

Tony Granato Pre-game Video

Granato Needs to Take Charge

I know a lot of folks are concerned about Peter Budaj. I am too. But right now I'm more concerned about Tony Granato.

I was worried about the TG signing when it happened and over half you of you responded in the poll that it was the wrong move. One of you said "Hell yes" and I think I know who it was ;)

So far it appears Granato has: solidified the lines (good), opened up the offense (good) and put faith in the #1 goaltender (good). However it appears to have come at a cost. A lack of role identification.

Is Jones a power forward or a defensive specialist? Is Sakic a forward or a defenseman? Should players collapse low or stay high? What do players do if stood up at the blueline? 

The Avalanche still look disorganized on the ice and that can only be fixed by a coach grabbing control of his team, implementing a defensive system to complement the offensive one and holding players accountable for mistakes.

It's only three games in so there's still time to fix the problems. But they have to admit they are problems and not just bad bounces before they can move on to step two.

Case Study: Special Teams
Special teams were atrocious last year so what happened? The guy in charge of them - or at least in charge of the PP - got promoted to the head coach position.

So far this year Granato has used over a dozen players on the PK including the young David Jones. Jones has actually spent more time on the PK than Joe Sakic has. He also spends more time on the PK than he does on the PP. Isn't that a bit odd for a power forward?

Backdoor passes are always wide open, except with Ian Laperierre who has done a good job covering the middle of the ice, and the team seems to get mesmerized by the puck as opposed to worrying about coverage.

The disorganization and holes on the ice make me wonder if they actually practiced to look this confused.

The failure of special teams falls squarely on the coaching staff to fix and regardless if TG is in charge of them, he is still in charge of the team and is accountable for the shortcomings of the systems. Or lack thereof.

Columbus Trades the Avalanche's Pick

The Columbus Blue Jackets just traded the pick they received from the Colorado Avalanche in the Adam Foote trade to the Philadelphia Flyers as part of a deal for R.J. Umberger.

So in the A-to-B-to-C line of things, we received Adam Foote and Columbus received R.J. Umberger. Hmm...I'm still ok with the deal.

Forsberg Nearing Return but Likely Not With the Avalanche

In the ongoing Peter Forsberg saga, it appears that he is closer than ever to making his return to the NHL. TSN is reporting that a Swedish newspaper is reporting that Peter Forsberg is reporting that he won't sign with Modo in hopes of making an NHL return this season.

If all the rumours are to be believed then the main teams in the running are Ottawa, Philadelphia, Detroit and Colorado. Forsberg in a Wings jersey? I shudder at the thought. I hope he does too.

If Forsberg were to come back, he's not looking to be a fill-in on in injury-ridden club. He's looking to raise that silver cup over his head one more time. Adrian Dater thinks that makes Forsberg a bit Roger Clemens-ish.

If I was in Forsberg's shoes, I would be very torn between playing for a contender and my original franchise. And given the possibility of any team being knocked out in the first round of the playoffs combined with my loyal-to-a-fault attitude, I'd be signing with Colorado. But I'm not in his shoes and wouldn't blame him for going somewhere else. Even Detroit as much as it would pain me to watch.

We're nearing the trade deadline - just 26 days away - and you would think that any team vying for Forsberg's services would want things settled before the deadline is up. How brutal would it be to miss out on a needed trade for a cup run because you were holding your breath waiting for Peter the Great to give you his final answer?

My bold prediction: Forsberg signs with the Flyers.

Avalanche Bounce Back With 2-1 Win Over Flyers

(Steve Dykes/Getty Images)

Now that's what I call a hockey game. From start to finish the Avalanche, led by the fourth line (that's right), played a solid hockey game. And I would have said that even if the Flyers got the tying goal in the third.

Theodore was solid in goal including making a game changing stop on a Mike Richards breakaway to keep the game knotted at zero. Hannan and the defense played a solid game, the fourth line provided tons of energy and offense and the first line were always a threat.

The penalty kill was superb in killing off 5 penalties against the 4th ranked PP in the league. The powerplay still left a bit to be desired but they didn't look terrible.

So nearly every aspect of the game was solid from start to finish and that's how you win hockey games. Nothing complex, just getting the basics right.

First Period
The Smyth-Stastny-Hejduk line stayed together and were the opening line tonight. Good to see Q keeping this crew together.

Ben Guite took an early holding penalty to send the Avs onto the PK. And it was good. They put pressure on the puck carriers and never gave them a second to get set up. At that point, I felt very confident about this game.

About halfway through the period, the Avs started tossing the body around as a pre-emptive strike against the Flyers. Led by McCormick, Finger and Smyth, the Avs knocked a few Flyers to the ice and gave the fans something to get excited about.

Ryan Smyth generated a solid chance bulling in towards the net and feeding a good pass to Richardson. Biron was up to the task as he was for much of the night. Shortly after Brett Clark then blocked a hard shot off the front of his foot but it didn't seem to bother him. I guess those extra guards some defencemen wear work pretty well. Oh, and Steve Downie totally fanned on a great drop pass. I laughed.

The team then took a too many men penalty and got another chance to showcase their skills. The best skill showcased was when Hannan absolutely flattened Jeff Carter as he tried to get past him along the boards. Carter lost his helmet on the play and looked a bit shocked at what happened. The crowd was really getting into it at this point and it was another solid kill.

Sami Kapanen then took a hooking penalty to give the Avs their first powerplay chance. It was...ok. Hensick made a great play on the way into the zone dropping to Liles but Biron was there with the glove. Liles made a terrible pass at one point that went directly to a Flyers D - under no pressure - and the D then dumped it down the ice.

Second Period
Scott Hartnell started off the period by running over Jose Theodore and heading to the sin bin. And then good ol' Jimmie Dowd took a hooking penalty to give the Avs a 5-on-3 opportunity for about 30 seconds. They didn't get much done and shortly after going back to a 5-on-4 chance, Mike Richards nearly turned the tide of the game. He made a terrific read on a pass to Hejduk and sprang open. And I mean O.P.E.N. He had all the time in the world but Theodore stayed right with him and denied him from going five-hole. A huge, huge save.

McCormick then turned into McCrusher and laid out a Flyers D after an outlet pass. And the crowd roared their approval and it made me smile to see the fans into the game like that.

Karlis Skrastins then played Daniel Briere very oddly but Theodore was there with a save. Skrastins looked almost scared and not sure whether he should take the man (YES!), take away the pass, or get the hell out of the way. So he kind of did all three at once and failed at all of them.

Shortly after those 2 solid saves by Theodore, Hlinka broke down his off wing on a nice feed from Brunette and buried a shot on the near side over Biron. It was a pinpoint shot and was a very Hejduk-style goal. *Ding* off the post and in. Love that sound.

Hannan then took a holding penalty and gave the Flyers yet another chance on the PP. Joffrey Lupul ran into Theodore but got away with it. Ben Guite put in a supreme effort to kill off some precious extra seconds by diving at the puck and the continuing to go after it. Theodore then sent the puck towards the glass and Hejduk got it with his stick and sent it over the glass. And he ended up the in the box.

Now, I understand the whole delay of game for shooting the puck over the glass penalty. Understand. Not agree. But I need to go read exactly how that rule is worded. If the puck has already been shot and gets tipped over, then that's a tip over the glass and not a shot over the glass. Whatever, Flyers 5-on-3 and the Avs were up to the task and killed it off.

Later in the period, Clark took a hooking penalty and the Flyers finally cashed in. After Timmonen had blasted a few shots, he faked this one and fed a wide open Briere who had all the time in the world to feed the puck into the open net.

The Avs then had a late PP opportunity and I thought "Wouldn't it be great if..." and before that thought had run through my head...they did it! Smyth fed Hejduk from behind the net and Hejduk buried it past Biron to put the Avs up by one heading into the third.

Third Period
This was a different third period for the Avalanche. After giving up a two goal lead on Wednesday, they seemed determined to not let that happen again. Marek Svatos, in one of his limited shifts, had a great chance early but Biron denied him.

Wolski had an even better chance but Biron snow eagled for the save. On the replay, you could see the puck went right under Biron and into the crease and a Flyers D then directed the puck back under Biron for the whistle.

Rory Fitzpatrick nabbed himself a delay of game penalty as he blatantly knocked the net off while Stastny was circling around. And then during the powerplay, Timmonen knocked the net off even more blatantly and got away with it. That was a case of the ref putting the whistle in his pocket and not wanting to "help decide the game."

The Flyers then started to pour on some pressure but the Avalanche were up to the task. Theodore made some solid saves and the Avs were able to maintain composure and not start running around too much in their own zone.

The Avs then applied some pressure of their own, mostly thanks to the fourth line, and had a couple decent chances.

They continued to kill time well while not getting too lackadaisical and sitting back on the lead. However the Flyers were still confident enough to pull Biron with over a minute and half left to go. And who was there to help out? The fourth line of Guite-Richardson-McCormick. And it wasn't just a reward for that line, it was actually the best line to have out there at the time.

After Mike Richards made a rather odd play by trying for a shot from his own blueline with nearly 10 seconds still left, there was a Flyers zone faceoff with 5 seconds left. The Flyers bench wanted to make sure that the clock had been stopped at the right moment and got a full 0.2 seconds added back to it. It was ridiculous as they would need at least 7 seconds to get up the ice and the timekeeper was not that slow.

And so the time runs out and the Avalanche have a solid rebound game after a devestating loss.

Notes
- Laperriere sat out after tweaking his knee against Columbus
- Smyth was creamed by Hatcher late in the 2nd and was slow getting up and off the ice
- Hatcher also snapped on Richardson which made him look like a giant bully
- Cumiskey has some amazing wheels when he turns the jets on
- I still wish Richardson wouldn't be on the fourth line all the time
- Hannan was a decent choice for mic'ing up as he actually said things other than "Yeah!" and "Whoo!"
- Downie had a full 5:38 on the ice and really did nothing with it
- Scott Hannan had a very solid game tonight
- Ben Guite showed tonight why he is valuable to this team

Stats
Scott Hannan was the ice-time leader with 25:21 in ice-time. Paul Stastny was just behind him with 24:48 as he also had a monster game. T.J. Hensick and Marek Svatos were on the low end of the scale with 8:31 and 8:24 respectively.

Ben Guite fired off 5 shots while Richardson and Hejduk had 4 each. Paul Stastny didn't actually register a shot tonight but he was still a force out there.

Finger and McCormick dished out 3 hits but Ryan Smyth led the way with 4. But I trust those hit statistics less and less each game.

Related Links
NHL.com Event Summary
TSN Recap
ColoradoAvalanche.com Recap
In the Cheap Seats Game Notes

Gameday: Avalanche vs Flyers

You know what the biggest thought on my mind is for this game? Not who's in net (which never is my biggest thought anyways) but whether the Flyers are going to continue their run of questionable hits and possibly send an Avalanche player to the sidelines.

After Riley Cote became suspension #5 on the season for the Flyers, the team itself was "put on notice." Whatever the hell that means. In the circle of suspensions, Steve Downie has been called up from the AHL to replace Cote. And if you think Downie has learned his lesson, think again. Check out the scoresheet from a recent AHL game between the Phantoms and Monsters and total up his penalty minutes. Good grief.

Anyways, there'll still be a hockey game to watch tonight so let's get down to it. First off, Jose Theodore is in net. I usually don't weight in too much on goaltending but...are you kidding me? After each had 2 consecutive starts, Budaj now gets one shot and it's back to Theodore. And if the team is to win, does Theodore get the next start? Or is the rotation still on? Does Q even know what his own plan is for goaltending or is he just tossing darts at names on the wall?

Joe Sakic will sit out this game as well and be re-evaluated this weekend. In other words, as was speculated here and elsewhere, it's not a minor injury as initially reported. Jordan Leopold participated in full contact practice yesterday but isn't quite ready to return yet. And Kurt Sauer is still out with a neck injury.

I'm still looking forward to this game as I'm a Mike Richards fan and it's not often we see the Flyers come to town. Puck drop is at 9:08 ET and it should be a good game. But I think that every game.

Related Links
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Liles as Trade Bait?
Rocky Mountain News Avalanche Report
Terry Frei on the Avalanche's Underachievements