The NHL elected to suspend the Colorado Avalanche’s season for three games due to a spike in positive COVID-19 cases on their roster. The league’s point total leader hopes to resume its dominant run against the St. Louis Blues on Thursday after nearly a full week off.
Let us take this hiatus as an opportunity to grade the Avs’ recent activity from a variety of angles before the final stretch of the regular season.
Trade Deadline Acquisitions: B
GM Joe Sakic and the asset-loaded Avalanche remained relatively quiet during last week’s trade deadline. In the end, they gained Chicago centerman Carl Soderberg, Detroit defenseman Patrick Nemeth, and San Jose goaltender Devan Dubnyk. Soderberg and Nemeth are set to rejoin the Avalanche after brief stints with their other respective organizations.
Colorado missed out on the Taylor Hall sweepstakes for a second time. The talented young forward would have added even more firepower to an already elite scoring attack. Instead, Hall will be making his contributions for Boston, a potential postseason opponent for the Avs.
Though their acquisitions are not very exciting, they add depth, size, and experience for a relatively low cost; they gave up the rights of two prospects, Greg Pateryn, and a couple of mid-round picks. Soderberg and Nemeth could come in handy in the playoffs against teams who will look to slow the Avalanche down by playing extra physical.
Jared Bednar: A+
The fifth-year head coach has been outstanding for Colorado this season. He is now the fourth-winningest Coach in franchise history with 145 total wins. Bednar has worked seamlessly well with the front office in defining the identity of their current roster.
The greatest improvement of his club has been on the blue line this year. The Avalanche’s incredible scoring differential of +54 is largely due to Bednar’s emphasis on limiting opponent scoring chances. They have given up the second-fewest total goals this season.
Penalty killing: D+
The Avs’ special teams are not what they were at the beginning of the season. In the month of April, they have only killed 67.7% of their penalties. Only a month ago, they were killing 84.3% of opponent powerplay opportunities.
They are still scoring at a premium rate on their powerplays, but the penalty kill can make or break games in the postseason. They must get back on track in this category if they want to make the run they think they’re capable of.
Staying healthy: C
This is the second time this season the Avalanche have been forced to postpone multiple games due to multiple positive coronavirus cases. This time around, the Avs lost star Joonas Donskoi, Bowen Byram, and star goaltender Philipp Grubauer to COVID-19 protocols.
The absence of Grubauer will allow Dubnyk to prove himself a worthy backup netminder heading into the postseason and give Grubauer some well-deserved rest.
Resilience: A–
Colorado remains atop the league standings and is regarded among many NHL pundits as a top contender to win the Stanley Cup this season. They have won 9 of their last 10 games and are 19-3-3 since the beginning of March.
They may have not made the biggest splash at the trade deadline, but I think that says a lot about their confidence in the group they have now. They have been a hallmark of consistency this season, especially as of late. This team has proved that they can handle any team in the western division when they want to; they have another gear that other teams can’t handle.
They’ve been resilient night after night. They’ve been resilient week after week. This team could be dangerous down the stretch and is primed for a title run.
The Beat @APU 