The Avalanche are on a tear right now. After going 7-2 during their long homestand, they have scratched their way to second place in the western division. They are currently three games behind Las Vegas, and three games ahead of Minnesota. Colorado extended their win streak to seven games tonight after crushing the Arizona Coyotes 5-1 on the road.
Since getting over their midseason injury bug, the Avs have put their best team hockey of the season on display. They have been considered title contenders all season long, but their recent dominance should give fans confidence that they can outplay Vegas and Minnesota in their remaining 30+ games to win the regular-season division title.
Here is how the Avalanche can win the west.
Looking at the division
Here are the current standings in the Western Division:
| Rk. | Team | Points | Record (W-L-OTL) |
| 1. | Vegas Golden Knights | 45 | 22-7-1 |
| 2. | Colorado Avalanche | 42 | 20-8-2 |
| 3 | Minnesota Wild | 39 | 19-10-1 |
| 4. | St. Louis Blues | 37 | 16-11-5 |
| 5. | L.A. Kings | 32 | 13-12-6 |
| 6. | Arizona Coyotes | 31 | 13-14-5 |
| 7. | San Jose Sharks | 28 | 12-14-4 |
| 8. | Anaheim Ducks | 24 | 9-18-6 |
The Knights are on top, and rightfully so. They have won 11 of the 14 games since the last time they faced the Avs. Led by team captain Mark Stone, Vegas boasts great depth and arguably the toughest goaltender combination in the league with Marc-Andre Fleury and Robin Lehner. Colorado and Vegas split their first and only series this season winning two games apiece.
Minnesota and St. Louis remain in contention for the division at six and eight points out of first respectively. Minnesota is a much-improved squad this season. Forward Kirill Kaprizov and goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen are arguably the top two rookies at their position. Conversely, St. Louis has regressed. They’re 4-7-3 on their home ice and are atrocious on defense.
The Kings and Coyotes are in the hunt for the fourth playoff seed but don’t seem to have the makings of true contenders. San Jose and Anaheim will aim to spoil the playoff hopes of their opponents for the remainder of the season.
What is working?
They are getting a very healthy amount of production from their top three lines. They are putting up an insane amount of shots per game. Check out this tweet from AltitudeTV analyst Kyle Keefe:
This team never gets outshot. They put the rubber on the net as good as any team in the NHL, averaging 35 shots per game. They are also holding opponents to an average of 25 shots per game. This shows that the Avalanche are a deep team, the type that can go toe-to-toe with Vegas.
What must improve?
The argument could be made that the Avalanche would be in first place right now if they had a backup netminder. Pavel Francoz has been shelved all season with a lower-body injury, allowing Hunter Miska the opportunity to backup Philipp Grubauer. It hasn’t worked out for Miska; he is 1-3 in a pedestrian four starts.
Grubauer has shined, however. He has the most games played of any goalie in the entire league at 26 total games and still ranks third in the league in save percentage for goalies who have played at least five games at .930. For perspective, the highest save percentage belongs to Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy at .933.
Though Grubauer has risen to the occasion thus far, he needs support. General Manager Joe Sakic acquired Jonas Johansson from Buffalo last week for a 2021 sixth-rounder. The second-year goalie has a career record of 1-13-3. Granted, he racked up such pathetic numbers on what is hands-down the worst team in the league, but he still seems like a project like Miska.
The search for an alternate goaltender will continue until Francoz returns, and hopefully, he gets back in time to knock the rust off before the playoffs.
Looking at the back half
The Avalanche obviously won’t see anyone new for the remaining 30 or so games (the league is still rescheduling postponed games). They will see Vegas four more times, twice at home and twice on the road, and Minnesota twice on the road. Those six games will have the greatest impact on the final standings and West playoff bracket.
The top seed is especially valuable this season. Finishing first in the division will likely give the Avs a first-round matchup with St. Louis, Los Angeles, and potentially Arizona. That would certainly be ideal.
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