Game 45 Preview: Avalanche at Hurricanes
by David Driscoll-Carignan on Jan 7, 2010 9:00 PM MST
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| Colorado Avalanche |
5 MT / 7 ET / 12 GMT |
Carolina Hurricanes |
| 24-14-6 | January 7th, 2010 |
11-23-7 |
| 52 pts | RBC Center |
29 pts |
| 7th in West |
Raleigh, NC |
15th in East |
Pop quiz: What do Chris Stewart, TJ Galiardi, Matt Hendricks and Ryan Wilson have in common? If you said they were all Avalanche players having breakout seasons, you'd be right...but I'm looking for something else here.
The answer? All four players were acquired by former Avalanche GM Francois Giguere. As you may recall, Giguere was run out of town as soon as last season, months before the rest of the team's front office was shaken up. The underlying message was that he was the most culpable for the Avs' terrible 2008-2009 season, an opinion I definitely did not (and do not) share.
9 months after Giguere's firing, the team is greatly improved and part of that is due to the dividends of his work paying off. New GM Greg Sherman has certainly improved the talent base by drafting Matt Duchene and Radar O'Reilly and acquiring Craig Anderson and Kyle Quincey, but those changes are far from a complete housecleaning. The 2009-2010 Colorado Avalanche are gosh darn similar to the 2008-2009 Colorado Avalanche in personnel. It's just that this year's version isn't completely inept. That's not because we changed the GM...it's because we changed the coach. Yep, he hired that coach (allegedly), but that might be his biggest blemish and one that could have been corrected without terminating him,
I'm not ready to nominate Giguere for GM of the year or anything, but I do feel his contributions as one of the architects of this club have been overlooked a bit. He shouldered too much of the blame for the Avs' disaster of a season last year. Now that the Avalanche have turned it around (well, in most people's eyes), I think it's only fair that Giguere share some of the credit for that success. Some of his players - along with those acquired by Pierre Lacroix and Greg Sherman - are kicking some serious ass this year.
For kicks, here's a list of which current Avs each of Colorado's three GMs have acquired. This list is of the the 31 Avalanche who have played in a game for the Avs this year (sorry Weiman, Peltier and Fahey). I don't count re-signing as being acquired - it's when they were first acquired (or re-acquired) by the Avalanche that matters for this list. And yeah, I know, Darcy Tucker...
Francois Giguere
| D | Scott Hannan |
| D | Ryan Wilson |
| D | Adam Foote |
| D | Ruslan Salei |
| F | Chris Stewart |
| F | T.J. Galiardi |
| F | Darcy Tucker |
| F | Cody McLeod |
| F | Matt Hendricks |
| F | Chris Durno |
| F | Philippe Dupuis |
| F | Brian Willsie |
Pierre Lacroix
| D | John-Michael Liles |
| D | Brett Clark |
| D | Kyle Cumiskey |
| F | Paul Stastny |
| F | Wojtek Wolski |
| F | Milan Hejduk |
| F | David Jones |
| F | Marek Svatos |
| F | Brandon Yip |
| F | T.J. Hensick |
| F | Justin Mercier |
| F | Ryan Stoa |
| G | Peter Budaj |
Greg Sherman
| D | Kyle Quincey |
| D | Tom Preissing |
| F | Matt Duchene |
| F | Ryan O'Reilly |
| F | David Koci |
| G | Craig Anderson |
One final thing. I think these lists are really interesting, especially in the way it seems to show a definite "style" of player each GM prefers. Giguere's list features a ton of toughness (Ryan Smyth was another of his acquisitions) while Lacroix's and Sherman's are weighted much more heavily towards speed and skill. Not sure that warrants more comment than that, but it definitely grabbed my attention.
Oh, and I guess there's a hockey game tonight. The Avalanche are playing the worst team in the league. The 'Canes are also the lowest scoring team in the NHL and tonight's game is the first game of a set of back-to-back road games. Saturday's game is in Buffalo, 700+ miles away, against one of the best teams in the league. If Peter Budaj doesn't start tonight's game, I am going to have a Tyler Arnason face like you wouldn't believe. And if the Avs don't win? Guh.
Avalanche vs Hurricanes coverage
EDIT: Derek Peltier has been recalled by the Avalanche. Brett Clark and Marek Svatos have both been placed on the IR (Clark retro to January 3rd, Svatos to December 30th).
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If Peter Budaj doesn’t start tonight’s game, I am going to have a Tyler Arnason face like you wouldn’t believe.
And if the Avs don’t win?
The 2009-10 Avalanche: Have the wheels fallen off?
I'm The Canary - but I'm not cute nor cuddly, and I don't sing.
I think you have the pictures mixed up that second I’m pretty sure is his Avs wone the game in the most thrilling game ever face.
Jesus Saves! Yip gets the rebound and scores! Really? That's where I'm going with this? Really? Come on Duchene and SoS start scoring!!
by An Unmitigated Disaster on Jan 8, 2010 11:31 AM MST up reply actions
You're wrong
That’s his sexy face. Much like “blue steel”, ladies can’t deny the rousing power of the ‘Arnason’.
by Brett Shumway on Jan 8, 2010 11:42 AM MST up reply actions
Beachie? Can we get your opinion on this?
Forever grateful that Joe Sakic isn't a douche bag like Brett Favre.
by Rather Dashing on Jan 8, 2010 11:44 AM MST up reply actions
I’m a one-man girl again, ’member?
"I think you should win if you have a two-goal lead. When you stop playing and stop working hard, that's when the other team is going to be all over you the whole time." - Peter Forsberg
by NurseBeachie on Jan 8, 2010 11:49 AM MST up reply actions
I always wondered why he couldn’t skate to his right, now I know.
Jesus Saves! Yip gets the rebound and scores! Really? That's where I'm going with this? Really? Come on Duchene and SoS start scoring!!
by An Unmitigated Disaster on Jan 8, 2010 11:45 AM MST up reply actions
The Tyler Arnason Center for Kids Who Can’t Skate Good and Wanna Learn to do Other Hockey Stuff Good Too
The problem with the world is that everyone is a few drinks behind - Humphrey Bogart
Like Rhythmic Gymnastics!
"I think you should win if you have a two-goal lead. When you stop playing and stop working hard, that's when the other team is going to be all over you the whole time." - Peter Forsberg
by NurseBeachie on Jan 8, 2010 12:12 PM MST up reply actions
If budaj doesn’t start I am going to have a serious rethink of my faith in Sacco.
Get rid of the loser point
09-10 Avs- YMMV
What if Budaj gets the start and he loses?
I am so clever that sometimes I don't understand a single word of what I am saying.
by Pinchy The Lobster on Jan 7, 2010 10:11 PM MST up reply actions
Then obviously he is TEH SUXXORZ
Bills fan? In Colorado? It's more likely than you think.
by UZ on Jan 7, 2010 10:34 PM MST up reply actions
Y IZ HE EVEN IN TEH LEAGE?!? SND HIM ND DOOSHENE TO TEH MINORZ
'I googled what the white stuff in a Ho-Ho was, i found out it has NINE cups of sugar..that will KILL YOU, it would turn your blood into fruit punch!'
I’ll assume you’re being serious. The answer is I don’t care. I just want Andy to get some rest, or even be a little pissed he missed a game and come out with some fire.
If you’re not serious, well, we all know BOODEYE IZ TEH SUXXORZ ND WE LOOSE NYWYZ SO WOO CARZ????
Get rid of the loser point
09-10 Avs- YMMV
against the hurricanes?
Jesus Saves! Yip gets the rebound and scores! Really? That's where I'm going with this? Really? Come on Duchene and SoS start scoring!!
by An Unmitigated Disaster on Jan 8, 2010 11:32 AM MST up reply actions
They managed against the LOLanders.
Bills fan? In Colorado? It's more likely than you think.
by UZ on Jan 8, 2010 2:31 PM MST up reply actions
i find the ‘we have gm x to thank for this and this’ similar to when the ducks won the cup in 07, that team had bryan murrays fingerprints all over it, cause we all know having a team of total douchebags don’t win championships (im looking at you, pronger) and everyone was quick to totally discredit burkie, which i don’t mind at all :P
'I googled what the white stuff in a Ho-Ho was, i found out it has NINE cups of sugar..that will KILL YOU, it would turn your blood into fruit punch!'
Midseason awards
SBNation’s hockey writers came up with some Midseason award winners
http://www.sbnation.com/2010/1/7/1239962/nhl-midseason-awards-sbnation
Hyphens cause writers more trouble than any other form of punctuation, except perhaps commas.
by David Driscoll-Carignan on Jan 8, 2010 5:39 AM MST reply actions
Is it bad that I am not sad about Clark and Svatos being injured? Actually as hard as I am on Clark, I am actually more sad that HE is injured. I like Marek Svatos, I just don’t see his place on this team
Hopefully I can stay up and watch this…yes I know it’s at 6 Central time…but I have had to go into work early every day this week due to station changes and the snow, so I’ve been passing out on the couch about 6:30 every night. My wife…not too happy with that development
If this is a re-build...we should do it every year.
Svatos has really become a forgotten player at this point.
Hyphens cause writers more trouble than any other form of punctuation, except perhaps commas.
by David Driscoll-Carignan on Jan 8, 2010 7:21 AM MST up reply actions
Clark, on the other hand, took a puck to the face. We all have different opinions of him…but he sacrifices his body for this team like no one else and that deserves some major kudos, IMHO
Hyphens cause writers more trouble than any other form of punctuation, except perhaps commas.
by David Driscoll-Carignan on Jan 8, 2010 7:23 AM MST up reply actions
Clark seems to be a shell of the player that earned that big contract, but he is still a decent bottom pairing guy. Then again, I haven’t seen many games this year.
Never trust the lunch lady.
by Hardshell_Taco_del_Lowayne on Jan 8, 2010 7:28 AM MST up reply actions
Oh, I’ll never doubt his heart, or his toughness. I just doubt his positioning…
That said, I have given him the most praise this year for the one thing he does better than 99% of this team…he can clear a puck both by banking it out of the zone or…gasp…skating it out instead of pointless icings
If this is a re-build...we should do it every year.
Having recently taken a couple of pucks to the thighs during games in my lowly rec league and endured the ugliest bruises as a result, I can only imagine the horrid image that is Clark’s body day in and day out with the beating he takes blocking all those gazillion miles per hour shots. I shudder at the thought.
"I think you should win if you have a two-goal lead. When you stop playing and stop working hard, that's when the other team is going to be all over you the whole time." - Peter Forsberg
Svatos doesn’t fit with the image of the team this year. Since he doesn’t fit in the top 6 forward position on the team, there is no place for him. It’s like Patrick Kane not producing offensively so you stick him on a 3rd or 4th line with the big, powerful grinders. That doesn’t make sense. Hopefully he can find a team where things click with him and he can get his game back.
Clark is a great guy, with a lot of heart and soul. If only he could play a complete game and not make the costly mistakes he does. When Clark is gone, the Avs are going to need players out their willing to sacrifice their bodies (no NurseBeachie, not like that) to blocks shots, so hopefully along with the powerful point shot they also keep shot blocking skills on their wish list. Oh, and aren’t those kevlar (sp?) boot protectors cool!
Colorado Avalanche: Please excuse the mess while we are under construction.
I like the pregame thread
But, Smyth was left off the FG list.
Avalanche 2009-2010: Ostensibly, the worst team in the league. Realistically, top of the NW division.
This list is of the the 31 Avalanche who have played in a game for the Avs this year
Hyphens cause writers more trouble than any other form of punctuation, except perhaps commas.
by David Driscoll-Carignan on Jan 8, 2010 7:46 AM MST up reply actions
(which means we also get to leave Arnason off)
Hyphens cause writers more trouble than any other form of punctuation, except perhaps commas.
by David Driscoll-Carignan on Jan 8, 2010 7:47 AM MST up reply actions
Yeah. I'm a moron. How dare I screw up a post.
Avalanche 2009-2010: Ostensibly, the worst team in the league. Realistically, top of the NW division.
by c6hor8 on Jan 8, 2010 8:58 AM MST via mobile up reply actions
All i know is i can’t wait for tonights game because I will be there wearing my new Duchene Jersey a few rows back from the glass next to the benches so keep an eye out for me. GO AVs!!!!
nice. baby blue or unipron?
Hyphens cause writers more trouble than any other form of punctuation, except perhaps commas.
by David Driscoll-Carignan on Jan 8, 2010 7:57 AM MST up reply actions
Frak
First ever Jibble :(
Yeah, well, you know, that's just, like, your opinion, man.
by Aph on Jan 8, 2010 8:16 AM MST up reply actions
My hope is that the sickening taste of the lose to the Islanders is still fresh in the mouths of the players. That is a game they should have won, or at least picked up a point, had they not blown it in the last few minutes of the game. That lose has now propelled them downward in the standings. Hopefully, that has pissed enough of the players off (you know, the ones without the big contracts who actually give a damn) that they will respond by playing a solid game. That is usually how the team responds to loses, so hopefully they will at least be consistent on that note.
Colorado Avalanche: Please excuse the mess while we are under construction.
I suspect, given the way Hendricks looked and spoke in that interview, that even he – mister nice guy who always has a smile on his face – will be at least giving the stink eye in that locker room tonight. Yah, there will be some seething going on that will translate to the ice. Now…will that continue throughout the game or will it waste away, like Hendricks says it has thus far in the season? That remains to be seen.
"I think you should win if you have a two-goal lead. When you stop playing and stop working hard, that's when the other team is going to be all over you the whole time." - Peter Forsberg
The Quote for Tonight:
“You don’t get points in this league for playing good games. We’ve got to find a way to put the pucks in the net.”
— Panthers’ center Stephen Weiss
"I think you should win if you have a two-goal lead. When you stop playing and stop working hard, that's when the other team is going to be all over you the whole time." - Peter Forsberg
Svatos on the IR? Can you get injured by sucking?
Jesus Saves! Yip gets the rebound and scores! Really? That's where I'm going with this? Really? Come on Duchene and SoS start scoring!!
by An Unmitigated Disaster on Jan 8, 2010 11:35 AM MST reply actions
Yes.
Avalanche 2009-2010: Ostensibly, the worst team in the league. Realistically, top of the NW division.
Some professions offer workman’s comp for it actually.
"I think you should win if you have a two-goal lead. When you stop playing and stop working hard, that's when the other team is going to be all over you the whole time." - Peter Forsberg
by NurseBeachie on Jan 8, 2010 11:43 AM MST up reply actions
See Edwards, Trent.
Bills fan? In Colorado? It's more likely than you think.
by UZ on Jan 8, 2010 2:36 PM MST up reply actions
Boods to start tonight according to Post
"I think you should win if you have a two-goal lead. When you stop playing and stop working hard, that's when the other team is going to be all over you the whole time." - Peter Forsberg
Sacco:
“I think that Craig (Anderson) needs a rest,” Sacco said after the Avalanche’s morning skate. “He’s been playing a lot. I think Peter’s done well when he’s been called upon and I felt the timing was right tonight, especially with three games in four nights on the road.”
'I googled what the white stuff in a Ho-Ho was, i found out it has NINE cups of sugar..that will KILL YOU, it would turn your blood into fruit punch!'
Finally, Sacco shows he does have a voice of reason when it comes to the goal tending situation. I was seriously beginning to wonder.
"I think you should win if you have a two-goal lead. When you stop playing and stop working hard, that's when the other team is going to be all over you the whole time." - Peter Forsberg
by NurseBeachie on Jan 8, 2010 11:50 AM MST up reply actions
Also, defenseman John-Michael Liles won’t be in the lineup tonight because of illness. “He had flu-like symptoms yesterday morning, so we decided not to have him travel with us yesterday,” Sacco said. “He’s scheduled to come in (to Raleigh) sometime later this afternoon, but he won’t be playing tonight.”
Translation: Hot Pocket and I had a hell of an all-nighter. I totally wrecked him. He’ll have Jello legs for days.
"I think you should win if you have a two-goal lead. When you stop playing and stop working hard, that's when the other team is going to be all over you the whole time." - Peter Forsberg
……
Jesus Saves! Yip gets the rebound and scores! Really? That's where I'm going with this? Really? Come on Duchene and SoS start scoring!!
by An Unmitigated Disaster on Jan 8, 2010 12:33 PM MST reply actions
whoops, I jibbled my joke.
Jesus Saves! Yip gets the rebound and scores! Really? That's where I'm going with this? Really? Come on Duchene and SoS start scoring!!
by An Unmitigated Disaster on Jan 8, 2010 12:33 PM MST up reply actions
Finally read that Kizla article
By his standards, I watched the BCS Championship game last night therefore I am qualified to write a column about the Texas Longhorns as if I was an expert.
I wonder what Dater thinks when he sees some of his coworkers write articles like that. I know it would be bad form to call them out in public but he has to facepalm himself.
Hopefully #9 is not ten less than #19
I don’t know much about Kizla, but based on that article alone I think he may have watched 1/2 of the Islanders game, and maybe part of another game this season. I can’t imagine that he’d be able to identify a hockey puck. It seemed to me he wrote it knowing football season was over, and he wanted to generate as many hits as possible on his blog. So he bad mouthed the Avs knowing he’d attract a muppet or two.
I agree with you though, he gives guys like Dater a bad reputation with crap like that. After reading his article, I facepalmed myself for giving his blog an additional hit.
The problem with the world is that everyone is a few drinks behind - Humphrey Bogart
I just wonder how he can remain employed when he gets so many comments calling him out for being an uniformed idiot. I guess just getting the volume of comments is enough for the execs to slap him on the back and say, “Good man. Keep it up!” just because of the hit factor. But wouldn’t you think at some point he’d look at all that and think, “Shit, I suck at this.” ??? I guess I give him too much credit.
"I think you should win if you have a two-goal lead. When you stop playing and stop working hard, that's when the other team is going to be all over you the whole time." - Peter Forsberg
People...
It doesn’t matter in today’s world America today whether or not you are an idiot, all that matters is if you get the hit count so the ad dollars keep flowing. See any Reality TV show for proof of this, much less American idol, Dancing with the Stars, Talking Head sports guys, etc. If everybody thinks you are an idiot, but still clicks on your piece just to disagree, you have done your job. Sad, but true.
In a similar vein, I’m really sick of trade rumors that have all of our overpriced crap going to some other team for their underpriced stud. We are stuck with our crap (Tucker, Clark, etc) and can get nothing but crap for them. No draft picks, just crap. And by crap I mean someone else overpriced crap that we would bitch about juct as much. You can not trade like that anymore. If you have a shit contract you just have to ride it out and do better next time. So please stop with the Clark Tucker Svatos et al for a bag of pucks talk. IT ISN"T GOING TO HAPPEN. Phew. Rant over.
Get rid of the loser point
09-10 Avs- YMMV
I still think Montreal would take Liles.
Avalanche 2009-2010: Ostensibly, the worst team in the league. Realistically, top of the NW division.
So, on the Canes’ Game Preview, they’re:
(1) happy Boods is in net cuz they are convinced HEZ TEH SUXXXORZ
(2) anxious to see Tucker try to get in Ruutu’s head (umm, yah. Do they know anything about Tucker)
(3) are glad Liles is out cuz his incredible defensive prowess is having to be replaced by a call up who’s barely seen much NHL action. (umm, yah. Have they seen Liles play D lately)
It’s a fun read, actually.
"I think you should win if you have a two-goal lead. When you stop playing and stop working hard, that's when the other team is going to be all over you the whole time." - Peter Forsberg
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