What a month it’s been for the Avalanche. After defeating the Pacific Division-leading Vegas Golden Knights 4-2 on Friday, the Avs (7-1-4) became the last remaining team to have only one regulation loss.
In each of the last two games, Colorado handed the New Jersey Devils and the Knights their second regulation loss.
Martin Necas led the way with a three-point game, Brent Burns got his first goal with the Avs, and Scott Wedgewood put in yet another solid performance.
10 Observations
1. Just over 24 hours after signing an eight-year contract extension, Necas scored 41 seconds into the game and later added two assists. That’s not a sentence I thought I’d be writing in October.
2. The Golden Knights ended up scoring a power play goal in the third period, but it doesn’t take away from what was an otherwise excellent penalty kill performance by the Avs.
Colorado was 5-for-6 on the PK in a game where they only had two power plays. But the PK was solid, as was the goaltending from Scott Wedgewood to step up when Vegas got through the defenders.
3. Head coach Jared Bednar referenced the team’s PK depth after the game, and how he’s got six forwards he cycles through. That depth is so incredibly important, especially when you consider that Logan O’Connor and Joel Kiviranta are both injured and are big pieces of the PK.
4. Five of the six penalties the Avs had were taken by regulars on the PK. That still didn’t stop the others from stepping up. Colorado has a top-5 PK in the league, which is nice given how much longer It’s taken for the PP to get going.
“I would say all year, it’s given us a chance to win every night,” Bednar told reporters about the PK.
5. Gavin Brindley did not return after taking an open ice hit from Ivan Barbashev. Bednar said postgame that he doesn’t yet have an update and will know more on Saturday before the team takes on the San Jose Sharks. That would be a big bummer if he’s out for any considerable amount of time.
6. Brock Nelson got his second goal in three games. It’s taken longer for him to get his offense going, but this is a nice start.
7. Kudos to the Avs for getting in front of pucks. Colorado had a 26-23 advantage in shots on goal, but Vegas had 25 more attempts that the Avs blocked.
8. Leading the way in the blocked shots department? Sam Malinksi (4).
9. Zakhar Bardakov did not take a shift in the third period, finishing with a game low 3:54 of ice time. His line spent a lot of time defending in the early going and it was probably enough for Bednar to shorten the bench.
This is another example of why having depth matters. If Bardakov needs time to develop, and that time includes some stretches of being a healthy scratch, you want to have extra NHL-capable forwards that can fill in and give you an honest 9–12 minutes.
I know he’s injured now, but this was likely the thought process when Kiviranta was finally re-signed late in the offseason. I would not be surprised if Bardakov is the one to come out when O’Connor is healthy. That is, of course, assuming Brindley is healthy, too.
10. Wedgewood leads the league with seven wins. That matches his career high for wins in a month.
