How the Colorado Avalanche could use the road to get right

The Colorado Avalanche are currently being tested. The inevitable discussions about problems online only address part of the problem. As was said on MHS, the broader issue of team trust is a big issue.

Presumptive starter Alexandar Georgiev’s rollercoaster game was difficult to watch at times. No example is as clear as the number 40, which was retired after just 12 minutes on Tuesday. Allowing 4 goals on just 8 shots is a statistic that makes you want to reach for the next barf bag.

Make no mistake, Georgiev was bad. But the team around him was also terrible. The addition of new signing Scott Wedgewood to the first nightmare frame didn’t provide immediate relief. But it stabilized her and made her comeback possible.

Wedgewood’s 22 saves were great. It was exactly what the team needed. However, so far they have only saved a game that they probably should have lost. How can they carry on the momentum after such an exhilarating victory and collect more points in the standings?

In the short term, start tonight with Wedgewood in Carolina. All Avalanche fans would probably agree on that. This is a difficult task for any goalkeeper, but especially for someone new to the team. It helps that Wedgewood is a career backup. He’s used to the stress of being thrown in at the deep end and doing fewer reps.

Carolina now has a solid 16-8-1 season record. But they are currently in the midst of a 3-game losing streak. Two of those games came back-to-back against Florida last weekend. The most recent was Tuesday’s loss to the Kraken. Mentally, the Hurricanes could be in their own crisis. In other words, it could be a great opportunity for Colorado to reset the tone.

Their last road trip was a complete success: They picked up three wins before running out of gas in an 8-2 loss in Tampa. This game was terrible and in the end it was Justus Annunen’s last appearance between the sticks for Colorado.

Such catastrophic games certainly have consequences in a world-class league. By saving what could and perhaps should have It was an embarrassment on Tuesday, but the Avalanche instead reminded us why they can be great.

Nathan MacKinnon showed his MVP form, breaking his 10-game goalless drought with two goals. We’ve seen the depth ratings of Joel Kiviranta and Logan O’Connor. Artturi Lehkonen finished the job. Those were the headlines from the box score.

However, deeper down, something very encouraging happened. Calvin de Haan had two helpers. First with Joel Kiviranta’s goal and later with Nathan MacKinnon on Artturi Lehkonen’s winning goal. I’ve written before that an important aspect of a good Colorado performance is that the defense contributes to the offensive performance.

This became even clearer with de Haan’s about-face. On Tuesday he scored two of his five points this season. Most importantly, he was absolutely terrible conceding two goals in the first half. A goalkeeper’s confidence, or lack thereof, rubs off on everyone.

Colorado will need more consistency from de Haan and the rest of the defense with both Josh Manson and Oliver Kylington out. Both players left Saturday’s home loss to Edmonton with apparent upper-body problems. Manson was placed on IR on Monday. Kylington was originally everyday life, but it could be worse.

Until recently, avalanche injuries were all about a decimated front torso. Adding bruisers to the blueline is definitely not ideal.

Home disadvantage for the Colorado Avalanche

At the moment, the ball arena feels like home ice that has lost its luster. The Avalanche are just 7-7 at home (a strange reflection of Gerogie’s own overall record) and 7-5 on the road. Such divisions feel worse to fans than they are statistically. The avalanches are usually very good at home.

When we look at last season’s 31-9-1 mark, this year’s .500 pace seems shockingly depressing. Or, if we fondly remember the last cup-winning year in 2022, we will see another excellent home record of 32-5-4. Despite these rather stark numbers, I don’t think it’s worth despairing at the beginning of December.

For example, consider the year between the ones I mentioned. In the 2022-23 season, the Avalanche were just 22-13-6 with Ball. Meanwhile, they spent the season as absolute street fighters. They defeated Colorado, with all its perceived advantages, 29-11-1.

Also keep in mind that while neither of the last two seasons ended in a championship, the road-based 2023 Avs actually finished 1st in the Central. Although they didn’t have success in the playoffs, it highlights that every year is a unique challenge. If you make the playoffs, how you get there is less important than how you get there.

Of course there will be more to come about the goalkeeping situation. According to a simple eye test, Alexandar Georgiev has probably lost his goal twice this season. At first he seemed to lose against Justus Annunen after the 0-4 start. Now it looks like a different kind of 0-4 statistic has rocked Georgiev. (the score in the first game at Buffalo).

It seems ironic and cruel that Georgiev had such whiplash-inducing performances. His best game came at home against the Vegas Golden Knights, where he won a 2-1 shootout against Adin Hill. After this performance, I was both thrilled and amazed that Georgiev wasn’t even awarded one of the three stars after the game.

Georgiev hasn’t won a game since, losing tough games to Dallas and Edmonton and getting thrashed against Buffalo. Fans don’t want excuses from professionals, but if you ask Why The starting goalie is a head case who is currently losing faith in the team and the fans as they realize that someone in your home crowd decided to snub you after a shootout win AND give Adin Hill a star give – that has to shatter a guy’s heart.

Maybe I’m making too much of a small thing to find answers to sloppy play. But in any case, I think the Avs need the road now to refocus on the bigger picture. As always, I believe they can do it.

Tonight it starts with the familiar questions about what happens between the pipes. But it will take a total team effort if Colorado wants to get back to consistent, quality hockey. The key for me is that they start aggressively on offense.

After a period of play in Buffalo, Colorado only had 9 shots on goal. At the end of the furious comeback they recorded a strong 41! Give me that much effort with the puck and a whole bunch of problems will solve themselves. It sounds simple, but any goalkeeper in need of help would like to see these numbers as support.

It could well be that the away game would allow the Avalanche to get back to their system fundamentals and find their pace again. At home you sometimes see teams looking for some sort of change in mood that comes from the crowd. On the road you only have the guys on the bench next to you.