GDT: Game 45: Avalanche @ Panthers | 5:30PM MT | January 15th, 2015

[S E P H]

Loved the compete level in the third, especially Landeskog who looked great (and Duchene in the 3rd), but...

- Holden, even though he scored a fluke goal, that doesn't save him from how bad he played. Especially on the powerplay, him quarterbacking a PP is like a blind registering for driving a school bus. So many miss shots, horrible.

- Guenin, I thought he has played well for 2015, but he was putrid today. Beyond Hejda level of dumb pinches, puck is like a hot potato that was just ejected from the centre of the sun, slow to everything, slow to get into position from his dumb pinches, worse decision making than the UN, and whatever else I don't feel like writing about.

I am about to go into desperation mode for a UFA Yandle to show some freakin' puck skillz.

 

[Freudian]

Even after a Razzie caliber performance (atrocious giveaway for a glorious scoring chance, bad blue line pinch on a goal against, too many missed passes to count) Guenin is safe and Redmond has to sit and watch.

 

[Serenity19]

It's nice to win a game in regulation where they had to hold onto the lead at the end.

It was also nice to see them put some offensive pressure on while holding on to the lead.

 

[Avsboy]

@Sherm

Iginla the Boss

#AvsHeader

That's the best I can think of...it's lame so it has a chance.

 

[Freudian]

Duchene and MacKinnon didn't get points but I think they are starting to look better. Stronger on the puck and reading the play better in the offensive zone, so they're much better on the cycle and first on more pucks.

 

[tigervixxxen]

I often joke about hating midgets but I don't see the obsession with big players. I'll take a feisty midget over a soft giant.

It's not that midgets are bad it's that we have a gaggle of them already.

 

[tigervixxxen]

Regulation wins are nice, they finally started winning some battles and nice karma Holden got the GWG.

 

[The Mars Volchenkov]

Too bad Rendulic got hurt. Mitchell and Everberg played real well, Roy praised them in his presser. I hope it's not a big injury for Rendulic, still want to see what they can do.

Maybe we should argue about McLeod every GDT, because that was the best game he's played all year. When he plays like that, I have no issues with him, but it doesn't happen enough.

Guenin was a mess, but at least Roy cut his ice time. Barely played 13 minutes.

Avs picked it up the second half of the game. At one point, the shots were 18-9 for the Panthers, but ended 32-29. It's really too bad this team cannot play 60 minutes.

 

[bohlmeister]

Watched the Detroit St Louis game after the Avs game was over.

The transition of the Avs is so comical compared to those teams. It is actually amazing they can win games.

 

[dahrougem2]

Too bad Rendulic got hurt. Mitchell and Everberg played real well, Roy praised them in his presser. I hope it's not a big injury for Rendulic, still want to see what they can do.

Maybe we should argue about McLeod every GDT, because that was the best game he's played all year. When he plays like that, I have no issues with him, but it doesn't happen enough.

Guenin was a mess, but at least Roy cut his ice time. Barely played 13 minutes.

Avs picked it up the second half of the game. At one point, the shots were 18-9 for the Panthers, but ended 32-29. It's really too bad this team cannot play 60 minutes.

Not sure when it started for Guenin, but hopefully his ice time being cut was immediately after their 2nd goal. There was just so much on that play it was unbearable. He needs to be sat.

 

[Foppa2118]

Great to pick up two points but this was another ugly game until the 3rd, and Florida didn't put up much of a fight. I can't understand why they keep doing this.

Holden had an absolutely terrible game apart from the goal, and so did Guenin and Barrie apart from his goal. Mitchell looked like he stopped caring once he saw his linemates were rookies. Lucky for him Barrie scored that first goal with a great shot, because he for some idiotic reason decided to be a puck hog and not pass to a wide open Everberg driving the net just seconds prior.

This team is just such a mixed bag of bad and good right now. Only thing steady is Varly fortunately. Just get it figured out boys! Imagine if you start playing well and clawing out wins like this when you don't?

 

[5280]

Watched the Detroit St Louis game after the Avs game was over.

The transition of the Avs is so comical compared to those teams. It is actually amazing they can win games.

The compete level (yeah I said it) of both teams seems much higher, too.

 

[Avsboy]

Avs need to learn that the puck moves faster than a player, and that the best way to get the puck up the ice is not by just skating it up but by making a few quick passes along the boards and up the ice.

 

[Foppa2118]

Watched the Detroit St Louis game after the Avs game was over.

The transition of the Avs is so comical compared to those teams. It is actually amazing they can win games.

It's amazing to watch how other teams make their puck decisions so much quicker than the Avs too. It's like watching the game in slow motion when you see the difference. The Avs have gone from a fast team last year to a slow team this year because of it, and for a team that relies so much on scoring off the rush, it's also why they can't put the puck in the net.

 

[dahrougem2]

If it's amazing how this team can still win games and be in a battle for the playoffs compared to other teams who know how to move the puck, imagine what we'd be like without Holden and Guenin, and with better puck-movers than Hejda and Stuart. Imagine our defence was Florida's lol, we'd be unstoppable

 

[AvsRobin]

Who the hell picked Holden as 1st star of the game?

 

[tigervixxxen]

Who the hell picked Holden as 1st star of the game?

Someone from Florida's media. May as well, got the GWG, enjoy it for one night.

 

[PeterTheGreat]

This team still suffers from a mental block.

 

[Joe Sakic]

I'm starting to believe again...

it's too bad we have to rely so heavily on our goaltending every night. Kind of puts a damper on the win. Like we know this can't happen too much longer.

 

[Foppa2118]

It's pretty amazing to me that we're here in mid January, and the Avs still are playing bad hockey, and have never really seemed to get on track, yet they've somehow clawed their way to within three points of the playoffs.

If they make it, it's gonna turn into one of those crazy buck the trend kind of seasons. Historically almost nobody makes the playoffs when they're out of it by Thanksgiving, but I think there were a couple last year, and hopefully they'll do it this year too. If they do I think we'll hear a lot of talk about the new playoff format having something to do with it.

 

[Colorado Avalanche]

It's pretty amazing to me that we're here in mid January, and the Avs still are playing bad hockey, and have never really seemed to get on track, yet they've somehow clawed their way to within three points of the playoffs.

If they make it, it's gonna turn into one of those crazy buck the trend kind of seasons. Historically almost nobody makes the playoffs when they're out of it by Thanksgiving, but I think there were a couple last year, and hopefully they'll do it this year too. If they do I think we'll hear a lot of talk about the new playoff format having something to do with it.

Yes, imagine if this team actually clicked at any level. We should be better for sure. Goaltending has been great though, but I'm starting to think this team has way more problems than getting another top-2 defenseman. We need better depth players as well and we need top-6 players to actually produce.

 

[Foppa2118]

Yes, imagine if this team actually clicked at any level. We should be better for sure. Goaltending has been great though, but I'm starting to think this team has way more problems than getting another top-2 defenseman. We need better depth players as well and we need top-6 players to actually produce.

I don't really think they're that far off personnel wise. I just think they got overconfident and came out of the gate extremely poorly, and the young core isn't quite mentally strong enough yet to overcome the adversity of it. They haven't been able to regroup and get back to playing like they're capable of.

It's like an amateur juggler that started to screw up a bit, and as new objects kept getting thrown in for him to juggle, it kept getting harder and harder to keep everything in motion. A veteran juggler might know how to settle down and regroup, but the amateur just panics a bit too much and can't focus on what he needs to do to make it work. At some point he just needs to drop everything and start over, and that might be what the Avs need to do with a mental reset in the offseason. Hopefully for the last time and they learn enough from the process that they become vets capable of righting the ship when things start to go wrong, rather than struggling to hold on for an entire season like they've done so far.

Of course they also need a couple key pieces to stabilize the team defensively as well.

And all of that said they still somehow have a chance at making the playoffs. It kinda boggles my mind. Maybe they figure out a way to claw into the playoffs and have that mental reset between the regular and post seasons like we see every once in a while with teams, where they become something totally different than they were all year.

 

[Soedy]

I ask myself every time: Why is Redmond sitting and Guenin playing?

 

[raistlin76]

I ask myself every time: Why is Redmond sitting and Guenin playing?

Guenin and Holden, both are terrible. As SEPH noticed number of Holden's missed shots during PP were so great that is difficult to count. One of the reason this PP sucks is because they can't hit the net with long shots. That could create deflections or rebounds. It's difficult to do when your defender shoots puck 5 feet wide. Holden on PP is huge mistake. Guy is nowhere near form he has had last year. He was good last year, much better than expected, now he just crashed to the Earth and is plain and simple bad. IDK how Patty can sit Redmond and let those two play, the only explanation for me is he wants to keep LHD on left side.

 

[Pokecheque]

Guenin and Holden, both are terrible. As SEPH noticed number of Holden's missed shots during PP were so great that is difficult to count. One of the reason this PP sucks is because they can't hit the net with long shots. That could create deflections or rebounds. It's difficult to do when your defender shoots puck 5 feet wide. Holden on PP is huge mistake. Guy is nowhere near form he has had last year. He was good last year, much better than expected, now he just crashed to the Earth and is plain and simple bad. IDK how Patty can sit Redmond and let those two play, the only explanation for me is he wants to keep LHD on left side.

If that were true he'd swap both Guenin and Stuart. Both are playing their off-side. Except even Roy's not stupid enough to try a Guenin/Holden pairing at even strength.

That's what has been driving me nuts about all this. Roy KNOWS Guenin isn't good enough. He KNEW his fourth line wasn't playing remotely acceptable hockey. That's why he shelters the hell out of both and will bench them the minute the team gets in trouble.

Honestly, after last night's game I fail to see how he can justify continuing Guenin in the lineup. That moronic pinch of his led directly to Florida's second goal. Don't understand why a guy like Guenin thinks he should jump into the play. Ever.