The Colorado Avalanche have the kind of roster that makes almost any night look manageable, but the early part of this season has still produced a few eyebrow-raising developments. They sit third in the Central Division, and yet the mood around them feels a little uneasy after a loss to the lowly Philadelphia Flyers. The stars are doing their part - Nathan MacKinnon has six goals and 16 points, and Martin Necas is right behind with five goals and 11 points - but the biggest early story has been the unexpected help elsewhere in the lineup.
One of the clearest surprises has been Jaden Schwartz. After putting up his lowest goal total in five years last season, along with just 26 points, he wasn’t exactly penciled in as a major difference-maker.
Instead, he has opened with three goals and six points in the team’s first nine games, all while averaging 13:34 a night. That’s a strong return from a player in the middle of the lineup, especially with questions lingering there after the departures of Ross Colton and Valeri Nichushkin.
Schwartz also brings a shot that can fit on the power play, giving the Avalanche another wrinkle in an attack that already has plenty of firepower.
Artturi Lehkonen has been even more striking. In a contract year, he has come out flying, tying for the team lead with six goals and ranking third with nine points through nine games.
That’s a pace far beyond what he has shown at any other point in his career. The bonus for Colorado is that he’s not just producing at even strength - he has also picked up a pair of power play points and continues to work on the penalty kill.
He remains the kind of player who does a little of everything, and this start only makes his next contract more complicated for the Avalanche.
Then there’s the goaltending, which has settled into something much more ordinary than what Colorado had last season. The Avalanche own a .888 save percentage, which ranks 16th in the league, and Scott Wedgewood and Mackenzie Blackwood have mostly been fine.
That said, “fine” is a step down from being the league’s best tandem a year ago. Wedgewood still looks more like a 1B than a backup, though his workload has eased as the team tries to establish Blackwood as the clear No.
- Blackwood’s results have been inconsistent enough that he remains in trade rumors, and the sense around him is that he’s still the same goalie he’s often been: capable of strong stretches, but vulnerable to bad goals at the wrong times.
Even with those questions, the Avalanche have a chance to steady things quickly. The loss to Philadelphia doesn’t help, and injuries will leave them shorthanded, but the upcoming stretch is set up well.
Eight of their next nine games come against teams currently outside the playoff picture, with a matchup against the Tampa Bay Lightning standing out as the marquee game. Colorado can score with anybody, and that keeps them squarely in the conversation as a Stanley Cup contender.
The big watch point is still Blackwood; if he doesn’t find more consistency, the Avalanche may have to lean harder on Wedgewood or start looking beyond the current tandem.
In Other News...
Avalanche Suddenly Have An Early Problem Fans Cant Ignore
The early signs of a stumble are hard to miss for a Colorado team that entered the night expecting a cleaner response after its first loss. Instead, the Avalanche dropped another game, this time to the Devils, and the bigger concern was less the final result than the way it came together. Shot volume never tilted in their favor, and the power play came up empty again even as the penalty kill handled its lone test.
Colorado has only been into the season a short time, which makes the current dip stand out even more. A team with this much talent can usually rely on pace and special teams to steady things when the five-on-five game gets messy, but neither showed up consistently here. If the Avalanche are going to avoid turning a small slowdown into something more noticeable, those areas need to sharpen up quickly. [Read more 🡒]
T.J. Hughes Is Forcing A Tough Avalanche Roster Decision
T.J. Hughes picked a good night to make his mark, scoring his first NHL goal with help from Cale Makar and Nathan MacKinnon. It was the kind of moment that can change the tone around a young player quickly, especially on a team that leans so heavily on established stars and expects newcomers to fit into a very specific system.
Hughes has also started to complicate the Avalanches roster math because of the way he has looked on the power-play unit, where familiarity and shot orientation matter more than just raw skill. With Logan OConnor working his way back and contract considerations affecting other players in the mix, Colorado suddenly has a real decision to make about how much runway Hughes gets and whether his place in the lineup can survive once everyone is healthy. [Read more 🡒]
Avalanche Suddenly Have A Problem Fans Arent Used To Seeing
After a fast start to the season, the Avalanche have hit a small stretch that looks unfamiliar by their standards. A couple of losses have exposed some early warning signs, from slow starts to faceoff issues and a power play that has not been nearly as sharp as usual, even as Colorado still sits at 5-4-1 through 10 games and has had more good nights than bad.
Nathan MacKinnon and Nazem Kadri have also gone through scoring droughts at the wrong time, and the recent shot totals against have been higher than the Avalanche usually want to see. None of that changes the bigger picture yet, but it does add a layer of concern for a team that is used to looking cleaner and more dominant than this. [Read more 🡒]