Colorado Avalanche are looking like Stanley Cup contenders
By Jasmine Yen
The Colorado Avalanche have exploded out of the gates and are first in the Western Conference. Is all the winning sustainable or a flash in the pan?
The Colorado Avalanche have yet to lose in regulation as they are 7-0-1 in their first eight games of the season. Mikko Rantanen has picked up where he left off and Nathan MacKinnon has recorded a point in every game this season.
Starting goaltender Philipp Grubauer has been playing very well and backed up by Pavel Francouz, who is determined to prove that he belongs in the NHL. Their two goalies have a combined .928 save percentage and 2.57 goals-against average.
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However, what makes the Avalanche so dangerous is their ridiculous offense that is currently red-hot. The team averages 4.4 goals a game (1st in the NHL) and they have nine players with five or more points. The trade that brought Nazem Kadri over has given the team some much-needed offensive depth and it’s paying dividends for the Avalanche right now.
Kadri already has three goals and five points in his first eight games as an Avalanche and the second line for the Avalanche has combined for seven goals so far. Tyson Jost has also been playing very well, as he recorded his first NHL hat trick against the confusing Tampa Bay Lightning.
The game against the Lightning was a great display of what makes Colorado such a tough team to play against. They can score in bunches as shown with two goals from Jost and one from Gabriel Landeskog in less than three minutes. The game went from 1-1 to 4-1 in literally a blink of an eye.
However, the Avalanche would never have been in a close first period if it weren’t for Francouz’s unbelievable play. He ended up stopping all but two of the Lightning’s 44 shots on net to earn his second-ever NHL win. The Avalanche has a lethal offence supported by very strong goaltending and that is a recipe for success.
Colorado plays in arguably the toughest division in the league and every point they can muster out will come in handy as the season goes along. This hot-start separates them quickly from the rest of the division as they are six points ahead of the second-place team, the Nashville Predators.
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As long as the Avalanche can continue to ride this streak and keep their swagger, they will finish better than a wild card appearance this time around.