Droughts. We hear of them in Africa, we hear of them
in the Midwest, and we hear of them in the Prairie provinces of Canada. Lately
we have been hearing them in and around Denver, Colorado, and the pundits are
not talking about precipitation. They are talking about the “top 6” players of
the Colorado Avalanche, including our top talents: Ryan O’Reilly, Matt Duchene,
Gabe Landeskog, and so on. Here is just a short summary of their scoring
slumps:
Nathan
MacKinnon: 7 goals in 40 games. Just awful.
The drought: 2 goals in 22 games. That is unbelievable.
Gabe
Landeskog: 8 goals in
40 games. Bad.
The drought: 1 goal in 16 games. How have we been
winning?
Matt
Duchene: 10 goals in 40 games. Still bad, and on pace for
about 20 goals, which would be a disappointing season for him.
The drought: 1 goal in 14 games. Colder than a
shoulder of a rich socialite being hit on by a skateboarder.
Ryan
O’Reilly: 7 goals in 40 games. Totally worth the contract
hold out and subsequent 6 million dollars a year. He has more minus than goals.
Atta boy.
The drought: 2 goals in 11 games. Not too bad
actually, but the initial stat is pathetic.
Tyson
Barrie: Yes he is a defenseman, but he is an offensive
force. At least he was last year. 3 goals in 40 games.
The drought: Although he has put up a ton of assists
(21) in that time, he has but just 2 goals in 33 games. Come on Barrie, we
need you in OT like Gary Busey needs
gingivitis. Which is actually a lot.
Bottom line: Jarome Iginla and Alex Tanguay have
been the best players on this team, and with all of the talent on this roster,
that should not be the case. Erik Johnson has more goals than anyone who doesn’t
wear #40 or #12. Gee, and how in the world are we possibly out of the playoffs,
looking in?
