After a poor start that included tough losses to the New York Islanders and Boston Bruins, things are beginning to turn for the Colorado Avalanche. They got off the schneid with a big overtime victory over the Anaheim Ducks and looked to carry that momentum into their next game.
The team responded well, easily handling the San Jose Sharks to the tune of 4-1 on Sunday night. There are a few positives worth talking about, so let’s get into the three takeaways from this important victory.
Ross Colton Is on Fire
There have been some bright spots so far but without a doubt, the biggest outside of the big three is Ross Colton. He scored twice against San Jose, his second consecutive game with multiple goals (he had a pair against Anaheim as well).
Colton has six goals in six games this season, scoring in four of his last five games. The team desperately needed secondary scoring with the absences of Gabriel Landeskog, Valeri Nichushkin, and Artturi Lehkonen hanging over them.
Getting this kind of production out of Colton has been huge and a key to the last two games. The Avalanche have a pretty manageable schedule coming with the Seattle Kraken, Utah Hockey Club, Ottawa Senators, and Chicago Blackhawks on the slate. It could also mean a continued run for Colton.
Annunen Gives the Avalanche Choices
After a very turbulent five games, Alex Georgiev was finally shown the bench to give way to Justus Annunen. Given how poorly Georgiev played in the first handful of games, it was shocking to see him continue to get the nod over the younger netminder.
Related: 3 Avalanche Goalie Trade Targets to Replace Georgiev
Annunen responded well in his first start of the season, stopping 25 of 26 shots en route to the victory. Sure, it’s the Sharks and it would be more worrying to lose this game than reassuring to win this game, but it still matters.
The question now is whether Annunen will go on a run of starts or if the team will go back to Georgiev. It would be nice to get a larger sample size of what Annunen can do before they make any potential moves to grab another goaltender.
Makar Off to Big Start
With respect to Nathan MacKinnon, who has 11 points through the first six games, Cale Makar is on an otherworldly pace. When you remember that he’s a defenseman, it’s even more insane that he is currently tied with Artemi Panarin and Sam Reinhart for the league lead in points with 12.
Makar grabbed an empty-netter and a pair of assists in the win over the Sharks, giving him an NHL-best 10 assists on the season. He is on another level entirely this season offensively and hopefully is over the early mistakes to start the campaign.
There’s still a lot of season left to be played but Makar is setting the stage for something we haven’t seen since Bobby Orr. He’s not only threatening to become the seventh defenseman in history with 100 points but could become the first since No. 4 to win the Art Ross Trophy as scoring champion.
Business Is Picking Up
The Avalanche are finding their footing and confidence. Goaltending has been better in the last two games, albeit against inferior competition. The offense continues to produce and getting big contributions from guys like Colton will only serve to make the team better.
It’s a long season and the reinforcements should start arriving for the Avalanche in November. If they can continue to string wins together and put themselves in a better spot, it could make them a formidable team when the calendar turns to 2025.
