Eurolanche

Andersen gets shutout for Maple Leafs

It doesn't matter what kind of athlete you are, having a short memory is key to moving on from tough times.

That is once again the case for the Colorado Avalanche as it heads to Chicago on Friday night for the team's last game before the NHL's mandatory three-day holiday break. The Avs fell 6-0 to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday at Pepsi Center in a game where they fired 38 shots on goalie Frederik Andersen.

In the end, it's the zero that Colorado produced that matters the most.

"Tonight we're in the game, chances are equal, next thing you know we're down 3-0 and then it's 5-0," said head coach Jared Bednar afterward. "To me, I don't think it was a 6-0 game, but the zero, you have to find a way not to be at zero. You have to find some goals, and if you find some at the right time, then it gives your team life and you're not falling behind the whole time."

The Avs had a decent start. They went toe-to-toe with the Leafs in the opening minutes, but then Auston Matthews scored at 7:13 on a nice shot from the circle.

Colorado responded with another solid effort in puck possession, getting some good looks, but Toronto was the squad that struck next on Connor Brown's goal in the slot. Nazem Kadri then got his first of the night 1:40 before the intermission to give the visitors a three-goal advantage.

"I look at today's game, and I say you come out skating and competing in the first period," Bednar said. "Every chance they got went into the net, and our power play didn't step up on the 5-on-3--the first one especially didn't get us a goal."

The Avalanche's power play again failed the team. Colorado went 0-for-6 in the game and had 2:19 of total time with a 5-on-3 advantage.

"You know we talk about having a shot mentality on the power play and to a certain extent, I think we did," said Gabriel Landeskog. "We put up 38 shots, but [the] power play comes up empty and doesn't score any goals, so that's not good enough."

The Avs finished with nine shots on 19 attempts with the extra man, meaning the team didn't hit the goalie or the back of the cage on the majority of its chances.

"We shot it a lot more from the point tonight, even on the second 5-on-3. We blocked out middle of the ice twice, we missed the net both times. And then [Nikita] Zadorov takes one and it hits the post," Bednar said. "Work in progress for me, but we have to find a way to get it done. Other teams' power plays are getting it done. You look at their second goal, it's just a bad angle shot to the net and they pound the rebound."

Defenseman Francois Beauchemin said the team needs to dig deep to try and get a goal. Any type of goal will do for the squad.

"We got to get something going," Beauchemin said. "We need that spark. We need some energy. We need some physicality. I thought we had a couple of big hits tonight but we need more of that. We just have to get a better presence in front of their net. Again, just finding a way to put those pucks in with a couple of guys in front and just dig it in."

The Avalanche will get one more chance to go into the league's first major break of the year on a high note. The team will need to quickly turn the page and get ready for a tough Chicago Blackhawks squad that leads the Central Division with 48 points and a 22-9-4 record.

A victory would make the holidays a little more full of cheer.

"I guess that's a good thing about it, that we get a chance to redeem ourselves tomorrow against a really good hockey club," Landeskog said. "You know you would much rather finish with a win going into Christmas rather than a 6-0 loss."

To be able to move on from the tough losses isn't easy at any level of the sport. Bednar said it's about mental preparation and focusing on the next task at hand.

The players need to do it, and so do the coaches.

"As an athlete, as a professional athlete, as a coaching staff, that's what you have to do because you're playing tomorrow night," Bednar said. "You can't worry about tonight. We'll break it down. We'll show them some things and then you have to move on. You have no choice."

--by Ron Knabenbauer for ColoradoAvalanche.com--