Coming off a dominant Game 4 win, the Colorado Avalanche felt like they were ready to take control of this series. With news that star defenseman Miro Heiskanen would not return for Game 5, it felt like the Avalanche had the Dallas Stars right where they wanted them.
Yet here we sit, 60 weird minutes later, and the Stars have a 3-2 series lead. It is a massive blow in what has been a tough series for the Avalanche, but let’s get into the takeaways from the 6-2 loss at the hands of the Stars.
Special Teams Continue to Have a Negative Impact
With a power play featuring Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Martin Necas, etc., you would think that the Avalanche would be dominant every time they got the advantage. Yet here we are, five games into the series, and the power play may be the difference between leading and trailing.
The Avalanche went 0-for-3 in Game 5, bringing their total to just 3-for-17 on the power play in the series. In Game 3, they lost in overtime in part because the power play unit went 0-for-6 throughout the course of the game.
In the playoffs, a goal or two could swing the momentum of a series. If the Avalanche could have capitalized on a power play in Games 3 or 5, things may have gone differently. Instead, we continue to see the Avalanche struggle with an extra man.
The Bounces Went Dallas’ Way
The Avalanche didn’t play well, but all fortunes seemed to fall the Stars’ way. Just nine seconds into the game, Wyatt Johnston fired an unsuspecting shot from Mackenzie Blackwood’s left that somehow managed to squeak in. It would set the tone for the night as a whole.
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The Stars’ second goal, with less than a minute to go in the first period, deflected off Blackwood, straight into the air, then off his back and into the net. On Johnston’s second goal of the game, right after the Avalanche scored a pair of goals to cut the lead to one, Joel Kiviranta lost his stick while killing a penalty.
It was just one of those nights where things felt like they were against the Avalanche. Even after they managed to build a little momentum, something immediately went wrong. Watching Blackwood, he had a solid game, but every puck found a way to get by him in the most unlikely manner.
Letdown Performances
The Avalanche are getting the best of a few guys, namely MacKinnon (five goals in five games) and Logan O’Connor (two goals). But there is a glaring lack of offense from more than a few critical players. Brock Nelson, Jonathan Drouin, Valeri Nichushkin, Makar, and Necas collectively have a goal between them.
Your best players need to be your best players, and they haven’t been for the Avalanche in this series. We’ve seen flashes of dominance from Makar, but to have 30 goals in the regular season and none through five games is stunning.
The Avalanche are in this hole partially because they just aren’t getting contributions from key names. With their backs against the wall, the Avalanche need a hero to emerge, or they will find themselves out far earlier than anyone anticipated.
Do or Die
Being down 3-2 in the series to a Stars team that doesn’t have Heiskanen or Jason Robertson should be a wake-up call. This team has all the tools necessary to be a Stanley Cup champion, but can’t seem to put them to the best use.
Heading back to Colorado for Game 6, the Avalanche need to wake up. MacKinnon has carried this team offensively, but he needs help from the rest of a star-studded cast if they are to survive one more game, let alone go on to get out of the first round.
