Avalanche 6 - Flames 5; Sieve Edition

In one of the great goaltending duels of our time, the Avalache came away with what some are calling a steal of a win. I don't consider it a steal myself. It may have been a late goal that won it but it was hard work that made it happen.

What did play nicely into the hands of the Avalanche was the Flames giving Henrik Karlsson the start. I have my doubts that Miikka Kiprusoff would have let in half the goals tonight, most notably the Yip goal.

The same could be said in the other direction as Peter Budaj did not have a solid game. I tried to get on the Budaj bandwagon way back when and I'd love it if I could jump on again. Problem is I can't bring myself to do it.

What can be said about Chris Stewart's hat trick? Kids a beast and has shown himself to be worth the contract extension he earned this summer. I wonder if it's time to give Stewart a shot at being that big right-handed shot from the point on power plays?

Once again, Daniel Winnik proves himself to be the best acquisition of the offseason. He's got more goals than Kovalchuk at approximately 1/100th the price and puts in 100x the effort each shift. I'll take it.

Joe Sacco told Ryan O'Reilly to get more aggressive. Result? This beauty of a forecheck leading to Stewart's second goal of the night. Three assists? Just another day at the office for O'Reilly. The kid's smart, motivated and listens to the coach? Love it.

Jonas Holos recorded his first NHL point tonight which is great. His defensive play had a few blunders stil which is not so great. Hopefully those go away as he could be a great asset to the blueline.

One person who did not record a point tonight was John-Michael Liles. Thwarted at nine in a row. What a great start to the season for Liles and here's to another 9-game streak starting with the next one! The countdown stands at 31.

NHL.com Highlights


Related Links
NHL.com Event Summary
Burgundy Blog Recap
Put it on Ice Recap
MHH Recap

Avalanche 3 - Canucks 4; Injury Edition

Short thoughts from me to close out the game:

Johnny Liles with the NHL record! 9 straight games with an assist to open the season as a defenseman and he's now in the record books. Time to trade him while his stock is high. EDIT: I really simplified that record first time out, now corrected.

What in the blue hell was Jonas Holos doing driving the puck towards his own net on the game-winning play? I've been loving what Holos has brought to the team but that was a dandy. Oh well, call yourself an idiot, shake it off and don't do it again.

Does Manny Malhotra have a gold tooth?

How about the Duke defying age and his gimpy knee? He's still got silky smooth hands. And he's a pretty good stickhandler too... Too much? Yeah, moving on.

Conversely that Duchene kid hasn't brought anything this year and I'm surprised he hasn't been sent to the AHL yet.

Daniel Winnik continues to be the best free agent signing of the year with his hard working play. He got rewarded with a goal tonight and 18+ minutes of ice time. Well done, sir.

Where's Brandon Yip?

How about those injuries and close calls tonight? Liles gets cranked from behind , Stastny ate an elbow to the face and David Jones did something to his leg/knee/foot. All of them returned to the game but there was a lot of breath being held until they did.

I feel like I'm forgetting something. What was it? Oh that's right...ohmygodIhopeAndydidn'tblowouthiskneeduringwarmup!

Dater posted the injury video (embedded below) and it looked odd. It looked more like a tweak than a blown knee but let's wait until tomorrow before we start speculating, pontificating and prognosticating on how bad it is and what it means to the team. Or freak out now. Dealer's choice, really.

Budaj played a solid game tonight and it looks like he might be needed for a couple more upcoming starts. I think the updated hairdo is providing a solid aura for him so I'm not concerned if he has to fill in for a bit.



Related Links
NHL.com Event Summary

Colorado Avalanche Roster - 2010-2011 Edition

After final cuts, our 2010-2011 Avalanche roster is set for opening night.*

The surprise player making the team is Mark Olver who I know absolutely nothing about other than being the smallest player on the roster at 5'10" and 170lbs. His college stats show he knows how to score which is great but that size doesn't appear conducive to playing on the fourth line. So where does he fit in?

Ryan Stoa continues to disappoint, getting sent down again even with a wing spot opened up with Peter Mueller's concussion. He's heading towards bust territory but still has time to turn that around.

Jonas Holos made the squad as most people were expecting as he apparently had a solid preseason. I'm really looking forward to seeing him in action come Thursday evening.

Other than that, there isn't much of note as to how the roster shaped up. Now we have an exciting four days to wait for opening night. This is our Dec 21st people. Savor the wait!

*As of this writing, they still have Ryan Stoa and Colby Cohen listed on the roster which is not accurate.

Related Links
Avalanche focus shifting to Chicago
Avs make three cuts