Things had gotten pretty scary for the Colorado Avalanche. Heading into a critical game with the Anaheim Ducks on Oct. 18, the Avalanche had lost all four of their games to begin the season, giving up an avalanche of goals in the process. Thankfully, they won that game and the following matchup with the San Jose Sharks to right the ship.
Heading into Tuesday night’s Frozen Frenzy, the Avalanche traveled to Seattle to take on the Kraken. After a quiet first half of the game, the Avalanche rallied to hold off the Kraken on their home ice, picking up a third consecutive win. Here are the three takeaways of note from last night’s win.
Kivi Come Lately
It was no secret that the Avalanche desperately needed help in the middle part of the lineup, especially with so many key pieces out due to injury or suspension. So, when Joel Kiviranta scored twice on the night, it had to feel like a weight was taken off for the team’s superstars.
Casey Mittelstadt has been great so far, but it was nice to see someone else get in on the action. Kiviranta scored his second of the season near the end of the first period and then put the Avalanche up for good with his second of the night on a nice tip-in toward the end of the second period.
The best teams find contributions from throughout the lineup while being carried by their best players. Over the last three games, that is what the Avalanche have done. They’re behind the eight-ball already in the Central Division, but this helps them trend upward.
Makar Continues Feverish Pace
Though it is still early in the season, the fact that Cale Makar is leading the NHL in points is incredible. He has 14 points so far, powered by his NHL-best 12 assists after contributing another pair of them in this one. It has been an unreal offensive effort from the best defenseman in the NHL so far.
The “on-pace” graphics are always a bit ridiculous, but Makar is averaging two points per game so far this season. For any player, that is insane. For a defenseman, it is more so. He, Nathan MacKinnon, and Mikko Rantanen are all in the top seven in scoring right now, carrying the load offensively in every way.
Though it is a bit unrealistic to expect him to continue to be in the top handful of players in scoring, he could become the seventh defenseman in NHL history to register 100 points. It may also not be out of the realm of possibility to think that he could become the sixth player (and second defenseman) to tally 100 assists in a season.
Welcome to the Justus Annunen Era
After Alex Georgiev’s very sluggish start to the season, we finally got the first start of the season for Justus Annunen. He was stellar, giving up just one goal as the Avalanche defeated the lowly Sharks 4-1 on Oct. 20.
Annunen got the start in this one and looked no less impressive. He turned aside 25 of 27 shots on goal, though he was definitely aided by 23 blocked shots. Still, it’s hard to ignore how much better the team has been with him at the helm as opposed to Georgiev.
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If this doesn’t lead to Annunen getting the lion’s share of the workload for at least the next 10 games or so, it will be surprising. The Avalanche are tight against the cap, so making a move for another goaltender may not be feasible. If Annunen can step in and provide quality play, it would go a long way toward solidifying the Avalanche as a whole.
Trending Upward, but Work Still to Be Done
The Avalanche are still in a tough spot, sitting third from the bottom in the Central Division. That said, they have won their last three games. They’ll need to continue to string together winning streaks if they are going to keep pace with the Winnipeg Jets, Minnesota Wild, and Dallas Stars.
For now, the Avalanche need to follow the cliché and focus on the next game. The season is long, and the Avalanche went from “panic mode” to riding a three-game winning streak. Things start to get a bit tougher with the Utah Hockey Club, Ottawa Senators, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Nashville Predators coming in the next five games. That will be a crucial stretch that could tell us how the rest of the season will go.
