GDT: 1/10/2014, the visiting John Tavares Islanders take on your Colorado Avalanche

[RockLobster]

Guenin must not be getting better (before people freak Siemens and Elliott are still injured).

I guess us fans will just have to continue hoping and praying that Patrick and Joe see the OBVIOUS deficiency with this team (the defense) and get the f***ing stones to do something about it.

I know it's easy to call someone up for tomorrow, but man...we've known, and they've admitted they've known, since training camp and not a single damn thing has been done other than Roy praising the worst offenders of them all and acting oblivious to his team's shortcomings.

Love ya Patrick, but even you can't buy the s**t you're selling with this Defense (outside of EJ/Hejda)

 

[Nihiliste]

Honestly we played well considering the lineup we iced tonight. We lost on a bad bounce to tie it and then a couple poor decisions on a fast play in OT but the margins were tiny and this game could have easily gone our way. I wish we had won too but it wasn't a bad effort.

We've got to pull out a win against Minny tomorrow. Hopefully O'reilly is back.

Also, Johnson was beastly tonight. Made some risky plays but he's got so much confidence right now.

 

[henchman21]

I guess us fans will just have to continue hoping and praying that Patrick and Joe see the OBVIOUS deficiency with this team (the defense) and get the f***ing stones to do something about it.

I know it's easy to call someone up for tomorrow, but man...we've known, and they've admitted they've known, since training camp and not a single damn thing has been done other than Roy praising the worst offenders of them all and acting oblivious to his team's shortcomings.

Love ya Patrick, but even you can't buy the s**t you're selling with this Defense (outside of EJ/Hejda)

I think they are just being patient for the right deal. 6 points up on the Wild with 2 games in hand, they can afford it for now. Also #12 in ga/g.

 

[RockLobster]

Wilson is still on the roster

http://www.nhl.com/scores/htmlreports/20132014/RO020672.HTM

He should be, he's been listed on the "Scratches" before the game starts, he's only in LE for a 14 day conditioning stint, so he's still technically on the Avs' roster.

 

[NothingLikeAnEJ]

I guess us fans will just have to continue hoping and praying that Patrick and Joe see the OBVIOUS deficiency with this team (the defense) and get the f***ing stones to do something about it.

I know it's easy to call someone up for tomorrow, but man...we've known, and they've admitted they've known, since training camp and not a single damn thing has been done other than Roy praising the worst offenders of them all and acting oblivious to his team's shortcomings.

Love ya Patrick, but even you can't buy the s**t you're selling with this Defense (outside of EJ/Hejda)

What do you want them to do? There is no one on the market that's worth us trading any of our offensive cornerstones to get. All the rumors point that Sakic is actively seeking help on the defensive market, but there's nothing there right now. Roy is making the best of what we have. We didn't lose tonight because of defense. We only have 2 lines right now that are capable of doing anything in the offensive zone.

 

[AvsfanJack]

I actually like Stollery quite a bit. LE can keep Hunwick. Let's play Stollery even if Guenin is healthy. Scratch Holden and Sarich. Go with EJ-Hejda-Benoit-Stollery-Guenin-Barrie

 

[5280]

I actually like that they are being patient for a deal.

 

[Freudian]

For those that complain how terrible Avs have been during the homestand, they lost in the last second of OT against Jets and were the better team both against Flames and Islanders.

It's like some here never give credit to Avs. It's like you believe they are lucky every time they win and deserve to lose every time they lose. Miserable and misguided view.

 

[Avs44]

I guess us fans will just have to continue hoping and praying that Patrick and Joe see the OBVIOUS deficiency with this team (the defense) and get the f***ing stones to do something about it.

I know it's easy to call someone up for tomorrow, but man...we've known, and they've admitted they've known, since training camp and not a single damn thing has been done other than Roy praising the worst offenders of them all and acting oblivious to his team's shortcomings.

Love ya Patrick, but even you can't buy the s**t you're selling with this Defense (outside of EJ/Hejda)

Neither Roy nor Sakic are stupid. I'm sure they both realize just how awful this defense is. Honestly, what do you want Roy to say? Throw the guys we all know suck under the bus, destroy any confidence they may have, then be forced to continue playing them game after game? There is so little activity going on around the NHL right now in terms of trades, it's quite possible there is just no defensman available for a decent price. I'm not surprised Roy continues to be positive. He may have no other option but to work with the guys he has right now.

 

[tigervixxxen]

He should be, he's been listed on the "Scratches" before the game starts, he's only in LE for a 14 day conditioning stint, so he's still technically on the Avs' roster.

So to call up Stollery someone has to get sent down or go on IR, right?

 

[JoemAvs]

I actually like that they are being patient for a deal.

This. We are comfortably in a playoff spot.
What more do people want?
We do not have the assets to fix the defense via trade.

And there obviously is not a good deal to be had right now anyways.
Just stay patient.
We will have a crapload of capspace in the offseason (after we hopefully lock up Stastny, ROR and Varly to longterm deals).

The Avs need another top 4 defender and a good bottom pairing shutdown LHD and they will be perfectly fine.
That is gettable.

Anyone watched MacDonald today? Is he worth the 4.5M he is asking for?

 

[henchman21]

This. We are comfortably in a playoff spot.
What more do people want?
We do not have the assets to fix the defense via trade.

And there obviously is not a good deal to be had right now anyways.
Just stay patient.
We will have a crapload of capspace in the offseason (after we hopefully lock up Stastny, ROR and Varly to longterm deals).

The Avs need another top 4 defender and a good bottom pairing shutdown LHD and they will be perfectly fine.
That is gettable.

Anyone watched MacDonald today? Is he worth the 4.5M he is asking for?

If you are expecting a top 2D, no... But as a #3 absolutely. He would improve out defense quite a bit.

 

[Avs44]

For those that complain how terrible Avs have been during the homestand, they lost in the last second of OT against Jets and were the better team both against Flames and Islanders.

It's like some here never give credit to Avs. It's like you believe they are lucky every time they win and deserve to lose every time they lose. Miserable and misguided view.

Very much this. The stench of the Sacco era still appears to be strong among Avs fans. The team played fairly well during this homestand. 4-1-2 is nothing to sneeze at, especially when you consider where this team was at last year. Some people also have absolutely insane expectations. Basically every time we win we have to dominate the opponent for 60 minutes, and every time we lose the team can only lose because of luck and poor refs, otherwise a few people will always complain.

 

[redbull]

MacK needs to get off Duchy's line, they don't work together. Mitchell needs to get off Staz's line, he sucks

John Mitchell has no place in the top nine. But injuries are injuries. He's much better than I remember him as a Leaf though.

MacKinnon and Duchene both play too fast and too individually to play well together, both are incredibly explosive and dangerous though. I liked the Abs much better when O'Reilly and Parenteau were in the lineup, both play a lot more cerebral with smart passing, slow the game down.

What a solid defensive pair Erik Johnson and Hejda are, wow. Stastny and those two were all over Tavares and that's the quietest than line has played in a month. Tavares has 3-4 great scoring chances but he's been getting 9-10 great scoring chances for the past couple of weeks.

Not sure why many of you feel Duchene played poorly. Thought he was good, not great, but had some nice shifts and a couple of nice scoring chances.

 

[henchman21]

Could Wilson not be called up because of the 14 day conditioning assignment (would seems like a stupid CBA rule if he can't), or should we assume Roy doesn't like Wilson at all, or just assume he wants a warm body available? Stollery is far worse than Wilson.

 

[The Mars Volchenkov]

Roy wasn't sure if Barrie's shoulder may be an issue tomorrow, like O'Reilly.

 

[tigervixxxen]

For those that complain how terrible Avs have been during the homestand, they lost in the last second of OT against Jets and were the better team both against Flames and Islanders.

It's like some here never give credit to Avs. It's like you believe they are lucky every time they win and deserve to lose every time they lose. Miserable and misguided view.

This is where I am. Before the homstand I said I wanted 10 and we got 10 points, that's a win rate of .715 The loser point still counts. Many teams in the NHL are going to make the playoffs on loser points. It's not something to delude ourselves into thinking the team isn't crap. The way NHL rules are two loser points equal a win. Good teams get points in a loss. Look how many loser points Chicago has. This team has lost in regulation only 3 times in the last month, that's actually a good sign.

 

[Freudian]

Could Wilson not be called up because of the 14 day conditioning assignment (would seems like a stupid CBA rule if he can't), or should we assume Roy doesn't like Wilson at all, or just assume he wants a warm body available? Stollery is far worse than Wilson.

I think Roy wants Wilson to play three games this weekend. He needs to get in game shape.

 

[AvsfanJack]

How many games is it now since Varly has lost in regulation? Can I go back and vote for Varly?

 

[JoemAvs]

If you are expecting a top 2D, no... But as a #3 absolutely. He would improve out defense quite a bit.

Yeah. I was thinking of a solid #3 that could be paired with Barrie in the foreseeable future.

We are not getting a #2 out of free agency. And we should not. It would cost too much. Maybe we can strike gold with a Nikitin or MacDonald but I doubt it.

I am fine with us acquiring a #3 (LHD) and a #5 (vet, defensive D, not too slow).

The #5 is optional and I am fine with bringing back Benoit in that role if necessary. Guenin should be #7 D.

This would give us a well rounded D and allows us to wait on Siemens, Elliott and Bigras for a year or two. If none of those guys develop into a #2 , we will have to go the trade route anyways.

But I am against a quick fix right now! No win - now trades for the Avs please, Patrick!

 

[NothingLikeAnEJ]

How many games is it now since Varly has lost in regulation? Can I go back and vote for Varly?

12 I believe. 1 more to tie Budaj's franchise record.

 

[AslanRH]

Could Wilson not be called up because of the 14 day conditioning assignment (would seems like a stupid CBA rule if he can't), or should we assume Roy doesn't like Wilson at all, or just assume he wants a warm body available? Stollery is far worse than Wilson.

I thought I read he had to stay the 14 days (preventing teams from using conditioning assignments to circumvent waivers by sending guys down just for playing time)

 

[tigervixxxen]

How many games is it now since Varly has lost in regulation? Can I go back and vote for Varly?

12. I'll say it again, this team has only lost in regulation 3x in the last month.

 

[Avs For Life]

Why not call up Elliott?

 

[henchman21]

Why not call up Elliott?

Hurt