After taking pretty much the whole year off from writing anything, I figured rather than making another Broncos post I would write about the Avalanche, and how they might not be as ready to dominate as a lot of people around town might think!
Growing up an Avalanche fan in the 90's and early 2000's I didn't realize how spoiled I was as far as hockey teams go. Watching guys like Peter Forsberg, Joe Sakic, Patrick Roy, Adam Foote, and the countless others that made those Avalanche teams perennial Stanley Cup contenders was amazing. When you look at the rosters of the Avalanche teams that won the Cup there is literally no real weakness to be found. They had the star power, leadership, and of course goaltending to give themselves a chance in any game they played.
Coming into the 2020-2021 season it is very easy to be just as excited for the current team playing down at Ball Arena as it was in either one of the years the Avalanche won the Cup. The 20-21 Avalanche might be the best all around skating team we have ever had in Colorado, and that is saying something considering the players I mentioned above. When the Avs put out their top line of Gabriel Landeskog, Mikko Rantanen, and Nathan Mackinnon along with defensmen Cale Makar, and Devon Toews it is the equivalent of another teams number 1 power play unit, where teams put their best players on the ice at the same time in hopes of scoring. Their second line would be the top line on most other NHL teams, and they have kids like Bo Byram, and Samuel Girard on the blue line with the big veteran Eric Johnson. When this team is skating well watching them play is a thing of beauty. Add in steady goaltending from Philipp Grubauer, and there's no stopping this team right? Not so fast!
The sport of hockey has gone through a variety of rule changes to make the game safer. These rule changes have all be in favor of creating more scoring, creating harsher penalties for getting too physical, or dirty play. Despite all that, hockey is still a very physical sport, and as such you need a couple guys on your team that play with an edge, or are what some people would call "dogs". The days of the 'goons' are gone in hockey, so I am not talking about specifically fighting (though players like this should be able to at least be proficient in fighting). I am talking about guys who take pleasure in going into the corners and fighting for the puck. The big bodies that just grind on people, and wear them down especially over course of say a seven game series? Guys who finish checks, and don't let their teammates get pushed around. The Colorado Avalanche, as currently constructed don't really have anyone who fits this role.
What 'role' am I talking about? I can't really say, but the best way to describe it is by mentioning players who fit this role. Looking at the '95-'96 Avalanche roster players who fit this role are guys like Adam Foote, Mike Ricci, Mike Keane, Claude Lemieux, and others. The '00-'01 team had again, Adam Foote, but also guys like Dan Hinote, Rob Blake, Eric Messier, and others that fit the role I am speaking of. In a game of pond hockey with no walls, and no real physical play to speak of this Avalanche team might be the greatest team ever assembled, but when you add in the physical play suddenly that huge gap in talent becomes a little closer. Currently the Avs are ranked number 24 out of 31 as far as team size goes. The biggest team in the NHL is currently Las Vegas tipping the scales, on average at 203lbs, the Avs are number 24 weighing on average 197lbs. So if the difference isn't just being a smaller team, what is it? In my opinion it is attitude. Comparing rosters there is nobody on this team like Adam Foote who was big, played with an edge, and could shut down just about anyone in the NHL in his prime. I of course am not talking about his skill, as that is very tough to replicate, I am talking about his willingness to do the dirty work for his team. He, and others brought an edge to this team that was very important to have in my opinion with the star power that team could put on the ice.
My hope is that the skill on this team, and the way the league has changed will help the Avalanche in the playoffs when those bigger teams like Las Vegas, Dallas, Anaheim, St. Louis, etc start literally throwing their weight around. I think at some point the Avs will need to look to make a move or two in order to bring in a couple bigger bodies, that like to play physical to go along with the guys they have now like Matt Calvert, Eric Johnson, and Nazim Kadri who on the team now.
