In the wake of a 3-0 loss to the Winnipeg Jets, the Colorado Avalanche couldn’t focus on the past. With a brutal schedule awaiting them, they had to come out against the New York Rangers on Tuesday night and get the ship righted.
Things looked dicey but the Avalanche got overtime heroics from an unlikely place, stealing the 3-2 victory out from beneath the Rangers. In the wake of the win, there are a few important takeaways worth talking about so let’s get right into it.
Avalanche Are Never Out of a Game
The Avalanche have shown that they are never out of a game. Down 2-1 heading into the third period, they got a late goal from Artturi Lehkonen to even things up before Devon Toews buried the game-winner in overtime. It is just one of many comebacks for the Avalanche this season.
On the one hand, it is definitely a positive. No team will lead every game that they are in, so finding the reserves and the guts to climb back into a game is something that the best teams have. In order to compete in arguably the toughest division in hockey, the Avalanche are going to need to battle back at times.
Even better, they are getting contributions from all across the lineup at critical junctures. They aren’t relying solely on Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen, easy as that may be at times. When the Avalanche are healthy (if that ever happens), those kinds of contributions will mean the difference between an early elimination and winning another Stanley Cup.
Playing With Fire
The Avalanche have an uncertain future for a number of reasons, mostly centered on certain contracts (looking at you, Rantanen). That said, they are currently playing with fire in a way that isn’t getting discussed because they are winning games, often in dramatic fashion.
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While the comebacks are certainly nice, a lot of things had to go wrong to find them in those situations. They came back from multi-goal deficits to the Buffalo Sabres, only to end their season twice. This Rangers game is just another instance in which the Avalanche couldn’t get things under control until late in the contest.
It isn’t as troubling as the faceoff situation or the flailing power play, but it bears talking about. How many more comebacks do the Avalanche have left in them this season? They are going to play with fire too often and find out that they can’t come back from every deficit.
Devon Toews Quietly Having a Great Stretch
Stop me if you’ve heard this before: the Avalanche have been dealing with injuries. Miles Wood is still on injured reserve, Samuel Girard’s status is uncertain, and Valeri Nichushkin seems to be dealing with a foot injury that won’t quite resolve itself.
Toews was struggling offensively to begin the season, putting up just a goal and six assists through Nov. 30. Since then, he has started to find his game. He’s now up to six goals and 21 points in 41 games, playing the role of hero in overtime on Tuesday night.
Toews isn’t the offensive player that Cale Makar is, but it’s nice to see him get back onto the scoresheet more regularly. Since the start of the new year, Toews has seven points in seven games and looks more confident with the puck than he has in quite a long time.
The Gauntlet Continues
Though the Rangers are struggling, a win is a win. The schedule is getting ugly over the next half-dozen games, featuring visits from the Edmonton Oilers, Dallas Stars, Minnesota Wild, and the Jets. Games at the Rangers and Boston Bruins also come with a little bit of a break to take on the New York Islanders, St. Louis Blues, and Philadelphia Flyers.
This team is equipped to make a run even with the schedule challenges ahead. If the Avalanche can remain within shouting distance of the top spot heading into the break for the 4 Nations Face-Off, they are definitely capable of making a run and taking down the Jets for the top spot in the division.
