Colorado in the playoffs: Day 4
A daily news recap from the Avalanche camp during their run in the playoffs.
The seemingly endless four-year draught is nearing its end. Avalanche fans are looking forward to the team’s first playoff game after 1,443 days. The mood among head coach Jared Bednar’s players is great, the Avs are fired up and ready to everything for a win against the heavily-favored Nashville Predators. “During the entire season, our guys wanted to show the hockey world that they can play and that they deserve to be in the playoffs. And they were successful. Once again, we’re in the role of the underdog, but we’re already used to that. I think that we have what it takes to surprise people,” said Bednar following the team’s first practice at Bridgestone Arena.
Optimism, joy and determination. One has to feel the positivity in Colorado’s locker room, the same one only felt disdain and stinking socks the season before. During the summer, GM Joe Sakic wanted to bring some fresh air into the at times toxic locker, and even brought in an air freshener in the talented Sam Girard, who managed to fit right into the lineup and made Avs fans rise from their seats as early as during his debut in Sweden. As the season went on, he even became the quarterback of the second power-play unit. He resumed his spot on the second man-advantage pair during both team practices in Nashville.
“I’ve learned a lot this year and many lessons are still ahead of me. I always say it, but Erik [Johnson] and Tyson [Barrie] always help me out. I can learn how to play on both sides of the puck from the two of them. Then there are Mack, Landy, Carl [Soderberg] and Blake [Comeau], players with tons of experience, who help me a lot – they help me to be as useful a player as I can be,” said Girard, who can’t way to get his first taste of the NHL playoffs. “We have to focus on our game. We know that we’re up against arguably the best team in the NHL, but we have to try to ignore all that. We’re also a quality team and if we can use our speed and keep it simple, we can surprise many.”
In other news…
Starter Semyon Varlamov is out for the season. Coach Bednar said that his loss will surely be felt, but he trusts Jonathan Bernier, who’s done a great job in replacing Varlamov during his previous injury.
Blake Comeau was finally back on the ice. The 32-year-old forward missed the first two team practices, but he was out on the ice during today’s practice. Comeau, who’s played 11 career playoff games, is slated to play on the Avs’ second line.
Thursday’s morning skate was more-or-less about perfecting little details, as the coaches wanted to rest their players as much as possible.
Former Avs great Alex Tanguay will be in the stands for Colorado’s opening playoff game. He said that he was pleasantly surprised by Nathan MacKinnon’s play this season, but he also praised Sakic for the long-awaited Matt Duchene trade. Tanguay also underlined the importance of other players stepping up, mentioning Comeau and Colin Wilson as an example.
A fact worth noting – Colorado’s special teams were better than Nashville’s during the regular season. The Avs power-play ranked 8th (21.9%) and their penalty kill (83.3%) was the fourth best in the entire league. Nashville’s man-advantage was ranked 12th (21.2%), while their penalty kill (81.9%) finished as the sixth-ranked PK in the NHL.
Fans in the Bridgestone Arena are among the loudest in the entire NHL, but Carl Soderberg says that that will be no problem for the visiting team. The Swedish forward was confident that the Avs will be feeding off the atmosphere as well and he’s really excited for the playoffs to finally get underway.
The Avs will wear a sticker honoring the Humboldt Broncos on their helmets during their entire playoff run, paying tribute to the 16 victims of the recent tragic team bus crash, their families, teammates and the entire community of Humboldt. 25-year-old Dayna Brons, the team’s athletic therapist, sadly succumbed to injuries sustained in the crash, becoming the tragedy’s latest victim.
Original story by Juraj Janotak
Michal Hezely, Slovakia, hezely@eurolanche.com
12/04/2018 - 21:00
