NHL Power Rankings: Week 17 Injuries, Prospects, In-Depth Analysis

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NHL Power Rankings: Colorado Avalanche defenseman Tyson Barrie (4) helps goalie Spencer Martin (30) defend the goal against the Los Angeles Kings during the second period at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /

Previous Ranking: 30 (-)

Team Record: (13-33-2)

Goals For: 94

Goals Against: 165

Special Teams

PP: 21-for-154 (13.6 percent) (29th)
PK: 39-for-177 (78.0 percent) (25th)

Injury List

Erik Johnson (leg) – out until mid-February
Semyon Varlamov (groin) – day-to-day
Fedor Tyutin (groin) – day-to-day

Statistical Leaders in 2016-17

Top Forward: Nathan MacKinnon (48gp 11g 22a 33pts)
Top Defenseman: Tyson Barrie (44gp 3g 20a 23pts)
Top Rookie: Mikko Rantanen (43gp 8g 12a 20pts)
Top Goaltender: Calvin Pickard (7-14-1 3.10GAA .903 save percentage)

Player of the Week: F Mikhail Grigorenko (2gp 0g 1a 1pt)

So what should be done with the Avalanche? Matt Duchene, Gabriel Landeskog, and Jarome Iginla have all been in the trade conversation, but what might be best for this team is to blow it all up completely and rebuild. And their week 16 didn’t serve any justice to the team since they went 0-2-0 only scoring a single goal in those two games.

Since the Avalanche only managed one goal in two games, it meant only two players got on the scoresheet. One was Mikhail Grigorenko who had an assist and finished as a minus-two while rookie Mikko Rantanen had the lone goal but finished as a minus-three.

Both Spencer Martin and Calvin Pickard played a game each and in doing so both earned a loss and some less than great stats. Pickard had a .839 save percentage while Martin’s was a .875. Both Martin and Pickard tied in the goals-against-average column with 5.00 each.

The March 1st deadline and the days before are going to be very interesting to watch when it comes to Colorado cause they could very well blow the whole team up and be huge sellers. But in the meantime this week the Avs can try and muster up some points since they have games against Winnipeg and Montreal but that may be a little hard to achieve since goaltending and defense have been an issue and those two teams can score.

Weekly Prospect Profile: Travis Barron, Ottawa (OHL)

2016-17 stats: 42gp 9g 17a 26pts

Could the Avs ever use Travis Barron right now, huh? He’s been compared to oddly enough Gabriel Landeskog who can fill a top nine role. Travis has great offensive abilities along with decent size for pro hockey, he’s also very aggressive on the forecheck and has a wicked shot with great puckhandling skills. Due to his leadership capabilities and poise with the puck he can play in all situations which thus making him a very valuable asset for the Avalanche.

– Matt Duscharme

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