Comments on: Avalanche Notebook: Olausson’s Chance, Makar Doubtful, & Johansen’s Ice-Time

By: Alexander A.

Alexander A. — Tue, 05 Dec 2023 23:19:33 +0000

Against the Ducks, Drouin was the only forward to play more than 13 minutes with the exception of the 1st line forwards. Drouin played on the power play and that’s why he got 14:29 of ice time. Against the Ducks, Tatar and Olofsson played less than 10 minutes and Cogliano played 10:38. This playing time is not even enough to keep his match form. Similarly, in the game against the Kings, aside from the 1st line, all the forwards were fresh as a rose. Against the Kings, Toews finished with a minus-3 differential and Byram with a minus-1 differential. Toews and Byram were the most-used defensemen in games against the Ducks and Kings. Despite their differential, they were not responsible for any of the goals scored by the Kings.

1st goal: 3-on-2 outnumber.
2nd goal: two forwards run into the same player and leave one player alone in the slot.
3rd goal: Caleb Jones gets rounded like a cone.
4th goal: empty net goal.

Caleb Jones played just 8:05 against the Ducks. He couldn’t be tired for the game against the Kings. Then Georgiev was also fresh as a rose. The trip from Anaheim to Los Angeles takes about 40 minutes by bus. It certainly wasn’t the trip that wore out the players. Then, it had been 4 days since the Kings played their last game before facing the Avalanche. It took the Kings 2 periods to get their legs back. In summary, the goalie, 75% of the forwards, and the majority of the defenders did not have a high level of fatigue. The only problem is that the Avalanche can only rely on one line to produce offensively and that we totally exhausted it the day before by overtaxing them. As such, Mackinnon and Rantanen broke NHL records for the current season by posting the highest single-game playing time among forwards in the game against the Ducks. Nichushkin was only 2 seconds behind 4th place. The only culprit for the loss to the Kings wasn’t the NHL schedule, but Bednar for his poor management of ice time against the Ducks. For those who might still think it’s the NHL schedule that’s the problem, in which case take a look around the NHL and then you can line your pockets with easy bets.

By: Ken

Ken — Tue, 05 Dec 2023 20:44:58 +0000

In reply to Rick. I have been a huge fan of Malinski since his debut for Eagles last April. I thought he would be an easy answer to letting both Johnson's go over the summer. If he can get past the "I don't want to make a mistake" new player style, and get to his game. Which is very much a Makar/Girard ability to skate/pass. We will be very happy having him here. The biggest issue is going to be his size. Paired with Johnson or Jones should work.

By: hockeyhead

hockeyhead — Tue, 05 Dec 2023 20:04:21 +0000

In reply to Rick. Yep, I agree, really hoping Malinski and Olaussson become solid two way players that can finish scoring opportunities!

By: Rick

Rick — Tue, 05 Dec 2023 19:36:35 +0000

I never thought I’d say this in a million years but I almost hope Malinski plays again tonight. Yeah, I want Makar to score as many points as possible so he wins the Norris and Hart and every other trophy but it would be so beneficial for this team if Malinski played so well they had a hard time sending him back down. This team needs another competent right shot D pretty badly and it would solve so much to have Sam on the third pair with either Johnson or Jones. The same is pretty much true for Olausson. If both those guys were effective NHL players the Avs would be a clear cut above where they’ve been so far..