Things have been all good for the Colorado Avalanche so far this season. Sure, the NHL-leading five overtime/shootout losses aren’t ideal, but those five points matter. Things are so good that the focus has been on contract extensions, both now and in the near future.
Tuesday’s matchup was an interesting one, a rematch of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Though the opposition made a push in the third period, the Avalanche held on to win again, picking up their NHL-best 21st point in the process.
Depth Scoring to the Rescue
Though the Avalanche have one of the best three-man cores in the league with Nathan MacKinnon, Martin Necas, and Cale Makar, they can’t dominate every game. Even if they show up on the stat sheet, they need help to give the Avalanche a chance to win every night.
Luckily, the Avalanche have one of the deepest lineups in the league. They got that depth scoring once again as Ross Colton and Victor Olofsson combined for all three Avalanche goals against the Lightning on Tuesday night.
Gabriel Landeskog has yet to score a goal this season but the Avalanche are getting contributions from throughout the lineup. Who had Sam Malinski (six points) outscoring Brock Nelson (five points) at any point this season? That’s the kind of depth the Avalanche have through 14 games.
Team Defense Deserves More Credit
For all the talk about the offense and the goaltending, the latter of which is among the best situations in the league, there hasn’t been enough talk about the defense. The Avalanche are third in the NHL at 2.50 goals against per game but that is just scratching the surface.
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Their expected goal differential is an NHL-best +13, nearly double that of the second-best team. They have the seventh-best expected goals against per 60 and are in the top 10 in terms of shots on goal against. They are the best team in the NHL in terms of score adjusted expected goals for %.
The simple fact of the matter is that the Avalanche are playing the definition of a 200-foot game. Combined with their explosive offensive potential, and it is easy to see this team going on a dominant run at any point. They have the most points in the NHL, but if they win even two of those five games lost in overtime, they look even more dominant.
The Power Play is Improving
If there has been one glaring weakness for the Avalanche, it has been the power play. Given all of the aforementioned names, it was downright shocking that the Avalanche were among a handful of the worst teams in the league with a man-advantage.
Things have been gradually improving, however. They scored in one of their four chances against the Lightning, bringing them to a 17% success rate (good for 22nd in the NHL). In terms of power play goals per game, they are 18th at 0.64. That’s progress.
If and when the Avalanche are able to climb into the top dozen power play units, opponents won’t stand a chance. This is as complete a team as there is in the league, and they have been operating with an ineffective power play. As they round into form, an extra power play goal here and there will mean the difference between one point and two.
On to the Next One
The schedule looks enticing for the Avalanche. Sure, they have a west coast trip with the Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks, but then they play the Anaheim Ducks, Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, and New York Rangers at home.
The Avalanche have the opportunity to go on a nice little run. That could be the kind of distance needed in a competitive division like the Central. Things are all positive for the Avalanche right now, they just need to keep the momentum going.
