The Graveyard That Is The Colorado Avalanche Defense

Over the past 6 years or so, the Avalanche have been fortunate enough to have decent scoring on the back end. We’re talking defense people, c’mon. Up until a few years ago, the Avs could have been considered an offensively defensive team, always scoring a respectable amount of point with their rearguards. We are running out of alternate names for defensemen so let’s cut to the chase shall we? As of right now, as you are reading this, the Avalanche defense is full of defensive minded (and sometimes absent minded) defenders who are not known for putting up points. As a result, the powerplay usually features a forward or two on the point, and there is no large, player scattering bomb from the point that many successful powerplay teams possess. The following statistics take a look at what happened to the Avalanche defense over the years and outlines the graveyard of great offensive defenseman in which the Colorado management. Thanks a lot guys. We’ll start off lightly:

Jordan Leopold: points as an Av: 13-25-38. Departue: Traded to Calgary for Nycholat, Wilson, and the draft pick the Avs used to select Stefan Elliott.

Ruslan Salei: Points as an Av: 8-26-34. In only 101 games. Departure: Became a UFA, signed with the Red Wings *spit*.

Brett Clark: Points as an Av 30-100-130. Departure: Became UFA, signed with the Lightning.

Johnny Boychuck: Points as an Av: 0 in 4 games, while playing RW for 3. Departure: Traded to Boston for Matt Hendricks.

These 4 players were not extremely offensive, but they were always counted upon to put up a fair number of points. All 3 defenseman were more than capable on the powerplay as well. Apart from offense, when they weren’t producing they were mostly solid defensively. Leopold had some slip ups but he was generally solid.

Now, this might hurt:

John-Michael Liles: Points as an Av: 68-207-275. Departure: Traded to Toronto for the pick used to select Mike Winther. MIKE WINTHER! Who???????

Kyle Quincey: Points as an Av: 11-42-53. Departure: Traded to Tampa for Steve Downie. Yes we know what you are thinking. “Quincey sucked at defense, made costly mistakes, and we got Downie. AWESOME trade Greg Sherman.” But you have to admit, when he was healthy, he was great on the backend, and a better defenseman than at least 4 of the guys the Avs have now. But feel free to disagree.

And last but probably not least…(drumrolllll)

Kevin Shattenkirk: Points as an Av: 7-19-26. In 46 games. Departure: if for some reason you don’t know, he was traded with Stewart for McClement, Johnson, and the pick used to select Duncan Seimens. Worst trade since the Drury/Morris trade.

Any of these players would be a godsend on the Avalanche blueline right now. So how have they done in the NHL since leaving Colorado?

Johnny Boychuck: 13-33-46. He is also Zdeno Chara’s defensive partner, an extraordinary/physical shutdown D, and cornerstone to a 2011 Bruins Stanley Cup Championship team.

Jordan Leopold: 36-56-91

Ruslan Salei: 2-8-10, before signing in Russia

Brett Clark: 11-35-46

Kyle Quincey: 2-1-3 (he has only played 27 games, but has played well for DET)

John-Michael Liles: 7-20-27 (Liles has only played 76 games for Toronto)

Kevin Shattenkirk:  12-57-96.

That makes for an impressive 83 goals, 210 assists, and 293 points in 690 games away from the Mile High City. An average of 1 goal per 8 games, an assist every 3 games, and points every 2 games. Boy, the Avs could really use that kind of production.

The 8 defensemen Colorado has now, since joining the Avs, have put up 19-147-166. Actually, those numbers do not seem half bad. But oh wait: Combined, the 8 defenseman have played 719 games for this team. That leaves a total of 1 goal per every 38 games from the Colorado defense. An assist every 5 games and a point every 4 games. The morale of the story: the defense cannot and do not score. They are not offensive at all. And looking at the players they have let go in the past, the Avs are much worse off. Dumb trades, and an evident disability in keeping players around, or wanting players to stay, have cause the Avalanche to stockpile a barrage of defensive shutdown dmen who on occasion don’t shut down or defend. This defensive corp is at fault for many goals, unproductive, bad in their own zone, bad with the puck, and confused on penalty kills. Now, if you were Greg Sherman and the Avs brass, wouldn’t you like to see any of the former guys listed above wearing the burgundy and blue again?

Post Game Rip Job: Avs Have To Be Better

The Colorado Avalanche are riddled with injuries. Landeskog is out. Downie is hurt. And tot o top it all off, Ryan O’Reilly is still unsigned and not playing. But guess what? That is no excuse for the pathetic on-ice effort the Avalanche have put forth over the last few games. You can make all the excuses you want, but when it all comes down to the cold hard facts, the Avalanche are just not a good hockey team right now.

Paul Stastny has been invisible almost all season. Matt Duchene plays great at times, but he has not stepped up as much as he should in the absence of the team’s other big stars. When your best players thus far are John Mitchell and Cody McLeod – when you have a roster of Duchene, Parenteau, McGinn, Hejduk, Jones, Stastny – you have got serious problems.

The 2^nd line is the worst line on this team. Sure, they have big moments, but those are few and far between. They are too easy to get the puck from, their breakouts from the zone are sloppy, and there are countless giveaway, and if a pig flies and they actually forecheck, they are weak in the corners and lose the puck.

Overall as a team, there is no net presence. A guy can have the puck in the corner and what are his options with it? Pass it to the floater skating up by the Dmen, or pass it behind the net. They are not putting themselves in positions to score. Just a poor effort offensively all around.

The Defense is another sad story. Never have I seen a team in this league with so many 3^rd line, defensive defensemen. Right now the Avs have 6 (Hejda, O’Byrne, Wilson, O’Brien, Zanon, Hunwick). Now, I am not an NHL coach, nor do I pretend to be, but when inconsistent Erik Johnson is the only rear guard with offense, do NOT scratch a guy like Tyson Barrie in favour of O’Brien, or any of the other 5 guys listed above. When you constantly have to put McGinn, Parenteau, or Duchene on the point on the powerplay, maybe it is time to get the kid out of the press box.

Now, having said that, I am not an NHL GM, nor do I pretend to be. But when there is a log jam of offensively challenged Dmen on your team that could make a beaver climax, maybe it’s time to move a guy or two. Having 2 healthy scratched Dmen per game, none of which can score, is not an effective winning strategy.

Anyways, that is it for tonight….oh right, discipline and penalty killing. Well let’s just sum them both up in one word: pathetic. Not enough? You’re right. But we don’t want to take up all of your time, so we will leave it at that.

So in summary, the Avs look absolutely terrible. They can’t score and they can’t defend, their top guys are playing like garbage, they take too many penalties, and the defensemen are useless in every way possible. This is NOT a playoff team. This is a joke.

Let’s hope for a better team next game Avs fans. Until then, thanks for reading, and lets all enjoy how terrible the Red Wings are playing.

The Christmas Wishlist for A Colorado Avalanche Fan

So it’s Christmas. Christmas during and NHL lockout can be a very unhappy time for an NHL fan. That hat you’ve always wanted, that book you have been dying to read, and that favorite player’s jersey you are dying to wear could very well never find its way under your tree come the morning of the 25^th. Why? Because you, and the people who care about you, have decided to boycott the NHL, including merchandise and tickets. Well if that sounds like you, then you are not the reason we have written this blog today.

This blog is for those of you fans who still want to make the Colorado Avalanche fans in your life happy with some NHL merchandise. So without further ado, we here at Avaholics Unanimous present to you the top 10 gift ideas for the Colorado Avalanche fan(s) in your life! (note: price ranges may not be the same in your area, do not include shipping cost or autographed memoribilia, and are subject to change erratically, unnecessarily, and arbitrarily.)   

10. Avalanche Puck: Either an official game puck, or just a puck with a great design on it. This is a very inexpensive way to tell the Avs fan in your life that you remembered his or her favorite team. Price Range: $2-10.

9. Mini sticks: For the child on your shopping list, or adult who refuses to grow up. C’mon guys, we’ve all played mini-sticks past 25, don’t lie to yourself. Mini sticks come blank, or with NHL team logos on them. Most sticks are still plastic but there are new composite sticks on the market. Look for these at a local hobby shop, online, or even in drug stores. Price range: $5-30

8. Hockey Cards: Not specific to the Avalanche but hey, if you get them enough hockey cards, we’re sure a Colorado player will come up. Hockey cards are a fun hobby and a great way to represent your love for the game. Price range: $1.50-50, dependent upon if you get single packs or hobby boxes.

7. A Colorado Avalanche Christmas Tree Ornament: Looking for something more sentimental? Something more festive and special? Well Colorado Avalanche Christmas tree ornaments are fun, reusable, festive, and unique. These can be found in local sports stores during the holiday season, online, and in your neighbour’s house if they already have one. Just kidding. Stealing would put you on Santa’s naughty list, and you might get a Red Wings puck in your stalking. Price range: $5-25.

6. Blood Feud: A book by Denver Post sports writer Adrian Dater. This book talks about the fierce Red Wings/Avs rivalry of the mid to late 90’s and is a must read for the veteran fan wanting to relive the brawls, or the new fan yearning for a piece of history. The book can be ordered at many bookstores, it can be found online, and it is also available in Kindle form. Technology eh? Gotta love it. Price range: $10-25.

5. An Avalanche hat: This year’s draft hat or one of the many featured online at the NHL store, or in hockey stores around the country, wherever you may be. An avalanche hat is a nice simple way of being able to constantly support the team, while looking mighty snazzy as you do so. Price range: $16-40

4. The picture plaque: Have you ever been walking through the mall and hot the kiosk where they have absolutely amazing pictures and paintings of NHL players in a beautiful frame? Pictures like this would light up any guy’s man cave, or any girl’s recreation room. Popular players featured in these works of art include Joe Sakic, Patrick Roy, Peter Forsberg, Ray Bourque, Alex Tanguay, and the list goes on. Price range: $50-800.

3. Hoody/Shirt/Shirsey: Less expensive than a jersey, and still a great way to sport the colors of your favorite team.  These can also be worn more in public. Price range: $10-150. (The really nice hoodies are expensive but worth it)

2. Game tickets: Ok, we realize there are no scheduled games yet, but you can always make this fun. Instead of physical tickets, write the fan an IOU for tickets when the NHL comes back to action. Hockey tickets are a staple gift around the holidays, and if you have a ton of money, an amazing stalking stuffer.  Price range: We’ll let you know when the games come back.

1. The jersey: Blank or customized, home or away, blueberry or vintage, a Colorado Avalanche jersey will put a huge smile of the face of any fan of the team. Jerseys can be found online at the NHL store, or in Colorado Avalanche team stores, as well as (if you do not live in Colorado) a wide array of sporting memorabilia stores throughout the United States and Canada. Price Range: $124-400.

Well there you have it folks. Our top ten gift ideas for the Colorado Avalanche fan in your life. Or of you are lonely around the holidays, you can buy this stuff for yourself. We hope to have given you some ideas or some reassurance as to what to get your hockey fans. And remember; try not to let a little fuss over the NHL lockout ruin the Christmas of the hockey fan on your shopping list. If you think we left anything out feel free to leave more ideas for the readers in the comment section below. And Happy Holidays. 

What's Your Story?

With the lockout looming, and the threat of losing games upon us, we here at Avaholics Unanimous have thought long and hard about what to do to keep you, the fans, interested in the game during its inevitable absence. We figured most of you who are reading this are fans of the Avalanche in some way, so we thought it would be fun to get your perspective on how you came to be an Avaholic. (We’re really trying to sell the phrase, can you tell?) So here is what we’re looking for:

Send us, in an email, to "AvaholicsU@gmail.com", your story. How did you become a fan of this wonderful franchise? Make it long, make it short; we’re not picky. Whether it was because your parents liked the team, or your favorite player was Sakic or Forsberg, or because you started to follow them because they moved to Denver, we want to hear it. If you want, include your favorite player(s), favorite season(s), and favorite memory(s), feel free. The purpose of this exercise is not just to let us, the writers, learn your story, but for fellow fans as well. Depending on the volume of responses we receive, we will publish your stories either once a week, or bi-weekly, with the option of adding your name, Twitter handle, blog, Facebook page, MySpace (if you still live in 2003), or what have you. Plug away; we will be your vessel.

We figure it will give you something to read during an impending lockout, and it will be a great way to celebrate the Avalanche and what they have done and accomplished since their move to Denver. So if you have any Avalanche friends, send on the link. If you came here via Twitter, retweet to the rest of the Avs faithful. Bottom line; please send on this to other Avs fans.

Also, if you came to adore the Avs via the Nordiques, send us that story as well. We personally know many French-Canadians who consider themselves part of the Avs faithful based solely on the fact that this franchise once called Quebec City home.

We look forward to your responses.

 So, having said that….go!

The Pros And Cons Of An NHL Lockout

Pro: We can still brag about having the youngest captain in NHL history.

Con: We won’t get to see Gabriel Landeskog with the C.

Pro: The Canucks will go ANOTHER year without winning a Cup.

Con: Canucks fans will still try and tell everyone one that “This is our year”.

Pro: Fans get to take part in fun and interesting protests like YouTube videos, jersey wearings, and online petitions.

Con: The fans will soon find out that they are powerless in negotiations.

Con: We won’t see the Avs in the playoffs this year.

Pro: We’re used to it.

Con: No one will be able to watch all of the Avs young D prospects develop.

Pro: Greg Sherman will have no way to trade all of the Avs young D prospects.

Pro: We now have time to shift our attention to the brilliantly entertaining sport of Soccer.

Con: We now have time to shift our attention to the brilliantly entertaining sport of Soccer.

Pro: Raffi Torres won’t be able to rip the heads off NHL stars with vicious hits to the head.

Con: No one will be able to watch the indestructible Gabriel Landeskog deflect Torres away like a ragdoll.

Pro: Owners are bound to lose a large amount of profit and revenue due to the work stoppage.

Con: Gary Bettman will still make 8 million dollars.

Pro: We can still write many of our blogs about the Avs, and Avs related topics.

Con: You still have to read many of our blogs about the Avs, and Avs related topics.

Whats The Difference? Avs/Kings Offense

Consider this the second installment of our “What’s the Difference?” feature running throughout the offseason. This is where the totally qualified hockey experts here at Avaholics Unanimous analyze the difference between the various aspects of the Colorado Avalanche in comparison to the most recent Stanley Cup Champion Los Angeles Kings. Our first installment, found here, analyzed goalies. We’re going to skip ahead a bit and look at the difference on offense.

Let’s start with the first 2 lines. On any given night, Coach Sacco ran a top 6 consisting of Matt Duchene, Gabriel Landeskog, Paul Stastny, Steve Downie, Milan Hejduk, and Peter Mueller. Sometimes, however, David Jones or Ryan O’Reilly would take Milan Hejduk’s place on the 2^nd line. This of course was not the definite, no brainer top 6 for the Avs, as Sacco seemed to enjoy not building any chemistry by constantly changing lines.

The Kings top 6 goes as follows: Mike Richards, Jeff Carter, Simon Gagne, Dustin Penner, Dustin Brown, and Anze Kopitar. The difference you ask? Age is a big factor. The Kings top 6 forwards average 27.6 years old, whereas the Avs top 6 is only 25.1 years old. Subtract Hejduk, who went a majority of the last half of the season on the 4^th line, and add Ryan O’Reilly, the number plummets to 22.6 years old. Experience does matter in the NHL, and the Kings used their middle aged, in-their-prime players to lead them to the Cup. The Avs are still simply too young for elite status.

Apart from age, on paper as it stands right now, the LA Kings top 6 are just better. Gagne, Richards, Carter, Penner. Apart from the Cup they just won, they have all been through long playoff runs. Penner has already won a cup with the Ducks, and the 3 former Flyers made it all the way to the Finals in 2010, only to lose against the Blackhawks. In comparison to the Avs top 6, who, without Hejduk in the mix, have played under 60 playoff games combined, don’t know what it takes to become serious playoff contenders, and have no experience fighting hard-nosed playoff battles. Furthermore, apart from all the arbitrary stats, the Kings top 6 is just more skilled, bottom line. Now, ask us that same question in 3 or 4 years and we have a different answer, but as it stands right now, the Kings top 6 are better all around.

Successful teams are not just built around their scoring ability on the offensive lines. If that were the case, the Edmonton Oilers wouldn’t be at the basement of the league year after year. The checking/defensive lines are just as important as the scoring lines. The Avs were proud last year to boast a bottom 6 of Jamie McGinn and anyone from Hejduk, Jones, O’Reilly, and Mueller, along with McLeod, McClement, Kobasew. Again, a good looking squad on paper, but apart from O’Reilly and McClement, there were no real defensive standouts. Apart from Cody McLeod there were no big hitters, or hard to play against forwards. To sum it all up, these guys were too easy to play against. They did not shut down the league’s top lines, they did not grind in the corners, they did not use their size to their advantage, and they did not create scoring chances for themselves. Kobasew was an offensive disappointment, McLeod and McClement didn’t put up big numbers, and they were never dangerous in the attacking zone. We don’t mean to blast them, but it is kind of hard to show them much praise.

Now let’s look at the Kings bottom 6. The surprising line of King/Nolan/Lewis, along with the dynamite line of Stoll/Richardson/Williams is not very good on paper. But teams like the Kings like to prove time and time again that paper means nothing when it comes time for the puck to drop. The Williams line could score, and they did score. They could hit, so they hit. They could play defense, and they defended. Williams could be a top 6 forward on quite a few teams around the league, and Avs fans should know how well Richardson kills penalties. The Lewis line, much like the Avs’ McClement line, does not score consistently. But the major difference is the fact that the Kings bottom 3 was hard to play against. Just ask the Sedin’s, Kolvalchuk and company, and the entire St. Louis Bleus organization. They threw the body, they were hard in the corners and on the Penalty kill, Nolan and Lewis were superb. To put it into context, the Kings 4^th line reminded us of the Podein, Hinote, Yelle lines in the Avs glory days.

A somewhat forgotten aspect of a team’s offensive is its ability to fill gaps in the lineup with competent well rounded role players. Due to injuries, suspensions, or any other unforeseen incidents, every team in the league is faced with the question of who to insert into the lineup when a regular can’t play. The Avs, last season, were lucky enough to be able to rely on Kevin Porter, and anyone from Mark Olver, Brad Malone, Van Der Gulik, and anyone else they could get from the minors. The Kings, fortunately enough for themselves, were in a better position when it came to fill-ins. They had choices ranging from Colin Fraser and Andre Loktionov, to defensive minded Kevin Westgarth and Kyle Clifford. Now, much like the Avs reserves up front, these players weren’t superstars, but reliable enough to trust.

It is easy to compare an 11^th place team against a Stanley Cup Champion and find obvious flaws. We only chose to do this because up until the last 2 weeks of the season, the Kings were much like the Avalanche. Fighting for a playoff spot, struggling to score goals, and wondering where they would be come mid-April.  It’s not like we’re not comparing the Avs to the New York Rangers. The purpose of these analyses is to show you, the fans, that with a few tweaks, the Avs have a very good chance of becoming the next LA Kings. The Avs need to get a little tougher, become harder to play against in both zones, and with proper development of young superstars like Gabriel Landeskog, Ryan O’Reilly, and Matt Duchene, they are only a few short years away from becoming serious contenders.

So what have you learned in the time it took you to read this? That’s right. You should have been a Kings fan, what were you thinking? Now go out and buy your Kopitar jersey.

That sound you just heard was a couple hundred people all simultaneously jumping off the bandwagon. Now that I have the serious fans’ attention, what you’ve really learned is that the Avs aren’t all that bad. And with some luck, we can get back into the playoff hunt. You’ve also learned that you could have spent the last 5-10 minutes doing something more productive, but don’t let that stop you from coming back and reading our Defenseman comparisons. And you should thank us for not making any Dustin Penner\pancake jokes, especially when our desks are stacked with them. Until next time, see you on the flip side.

Prospect Profile; Mitchell Heard

The Following is our profile on newest Avs signee, from the Plymouth Whalers of the OHL, centerman Mitchell Heard.

We first wrote about Heard in a past blog featuring terrible jokes (we’re not sorry) and the rest of the Avs draft class, found here. Consider this the second of hopefully many write-ups on Heard, one of which should mention a Stanley Cup ring.

Not much was known about Heard in Avs nation when he was drafted in the 2^nd round this summer. Most of us had never even Heard of him! (Ok, we’ll stop).And even still, the most diehard of diehards still probably don’t know enough about this prospect as they would want. That’s what we’re here for.

Born in 1992 in Bowmanville, Ontario, Heard started his Junior Hockey career in the 2009-2010 season with his hometown Junior “A” Bowmanville Eagles of the Ontario Junior Hockey League (OJHL). He had an impressive year with the Eagles scoring 30 points (17-13) in just 22 games. It was at this time he started gaining attention from the Major Junior team, the Plymouth Whalers of Ontario Hockey League (OHL), who held his rights throughout the season. Heard managed to squeeze in 16 games with the top tier Whalers in his rookie season, scoring 2 goals and adding 1 assist for 3 points. Heard would then make the Whalers out of training camp the next season, which is somewhat rare considering he was never drafted into the OHL out of minor hockey. In his first full season with the Whalers, Heard put up 20 goals and added 30 assists for 50 points in 60 games. Impressive for a junior player in his first full season.

One would think these numbers would be reason enough for an NHL team to take notice of the 6’2 forward, but in his first year of draft eligibility, he was not drafted and as a result, became an unrestricted free agent.  August 2011 gave Heard another chance however, as the Toronto Maple Leafs invited him to their Rookie Camp round robin tournament against several other rookie teams from around the league. He failed to raise any eyebrows unfortunately and remained unsigned. It was back to Plymouth for another season. This past 2011-12 season was an improvement for Heard. Limited to just 57 games, he put up a point per game average, scoring 29 goals and adding 28 assists. This was enough, apparently, to get heard noticed, as he was subsequently drafted by the Avs, as you probably know by now.

 So what are the Avs getting when it comes to Mitchell Heard? The Avs are getting a smart 2-way center with some size (6’0, 190lbs) behind his impressive offensive numbers. He could be compared to Ryan O’Reilly in a sense that he is great in both ends, and his determination is high. After being left out of his first Junior draft and NHL draft, Heard has a lot of General Managers and scouts to prove wrong.

His future with the Avalanche falls under the category of the unknown as the current team has a plethora (thanks Thesaurus.com) of centers. We’re not saying he’ll never play, but don’t rush to the store for your own authentic Mitchell Heard Avs jersey just yet. With Matt Duchene, O’Reilly, Paul Stastny, and a hopeful Joey Hishon in the works, there does not seem to be a lot of room at that position. Sure, Duchene plays left wing a majority of the time, but no one should expect that to be a long term idea. Heard has played the wing in the OHL, but as with Duchene, it is not his natural and most skilled position. Taking a defensive minded forward out of his natural role can cause problems in his own end, as they are thrown out of their natural defensive comfort zone.

But don’t get discouraged. Greg Sherman and Co. have never been known to be shy to pull the trigger on roster changing deals (see Anderson/Elliot, Shattenkirk/Johnson, Varlamov/Fillip Forsb…1^st rd. pick). And if worse comes to worst, and Heard becomes a highly skilled coveted player, the Avs could trade him for some valuable assets. But for now, it’s a three year entry-level contract, and a definite trip to Lake Erie, so here is wishing the best of luck to the newest member of the Colorado Avalanche. 

If you have Twitter, be sure to follow Heard at @Heardy15