The Colorado Avalanche entered Friday night’s contest with the Washington Capitals riding high. Fresh off a 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings, their third in a row, the Avalanche had every right to feel good. With major reinforcements arriving to bolster the roster, the Avalanche felt more than ready to add to that streak.
Unfortunately, it just wasn’t meant to be. The hometown Avalanche were no match for Alex Ovechkin, Connor McMichael, and the surprising Capitals, falling 5-2. There are a few important items worth delving into, so let’s get into the takeaways from this one.
The Capitals Are Legit
Above all else, the Capitals are as legit as it gets. Coming into the season, the expectation was that the season would largely be about Ovechkin’s pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goal-scoring record. Instead, the Capitals have come out of the gates hot and haven’t slowed down.
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Now 11-4-1, the Capitals are just three points back of the New Jersey Devils (whom they have four games in hand on) for the most points in the Eastern Conference. For a team that wasn’t expected to make the playoffs coming into the season, it is safe to say that they are playing far above and beyond predictions.
Surprising as it has been to see Ovechkin have a resurgence after what many felt was a down season, it is even more so to see McMichael thriving. He now has 12 goals through 16 games, tied for second in the NHL. His ascendence into a legitimate top-line center has been a major bright spot for the Capitals. Whether they can do this for 82 games remains to be seen, but early results are more than promising.
Avalanche’s Goaltending Situation Got a Lot Trickier
The night began as a positive one thanks to the returns of Valeri Nichushkin and Jonathan Drouin. Unfortunately, not all the news coming into the game was positive. It was learned that goaltender Alex Georgiev is out with an upper-body injury, considered day-to-day for the moment.
Granted, Georgiev’s play hasn’t exactly been confidence-inspiring, but it creates an issue. The team recently saw backup goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen re-acquired by the Winnipeg Jets. He was placed on waivers by the Jets on Oct. 11, claimed by the Avalanche, and then re-acquired by the Jets on Nov. 12.
It creates question marks in net. Justus Annunen is clearly the starter going forward, but if Georgiev is out, who will be the backup? Trent Miner was recalled to fill in on Friday night, but the Avalanche will have to consider a contingency plan if Georgiev is going to miss any significant amount of time.
Makar Coming Back to Earth?
It’s hard to criticize any player, let alone a defenseman who has 25 points in 18 games. If anything, this isn’t so much a criticism of Cale Makar’s play so much as it is pointing out that he seems to be coming back to earth. He has just two assists in his last five games after beginning the season on a 13-game point streak, the second-longest for a defenseman in NHL history.
Makar was questionable to suit up against Winnipeg on Nov. 7, the night his streak came to an end. It seems obvious that he is dealing with some kind of issue, not to mention the fact that he plays upwards of 25 minutes per night.
If he is working through something, the Avalanche need to find a way to take some of the pressure off. Makar is too integral to the Avalanche to exacerbate any potential issues. If he needs a game or two in order to get right, that should be the plan sooner rather than later.
Need to Rebound Against Flyers
Since the St. Louis Blues lost on Thursday and the Utah Hockey Club lost last night, the Avalanche didn’t really lose any ground in the standings. That said, they are now two points back of the Dallas Stars, who also have three games in hand on the Avalanche.
We aren’t quite in the territory where every game is at a premium, but we’re too far in to be wasting games. Losses happen, so the Avalanche need to rebound and find their way back into the win column against the Philadelphia Flyers. A reinforced lineup should be able to open up against what has so far been one of the worst teams in the NHL.
