So the Avalanche head into the playoffs with their best lineup since
the Cup year -- and the toughest opponent of any of the low seeds in
the San Jose Sharks. Inasmuch as the last few games of the season
were pretty dull, since the Avs checked out almost completely after
clinching the second spot, here's a sampling of highlights from those
last few weeks:
Peter in the bag
What could have been an immense tragedy was averted as the Avs
signed Peter Forsberg to a three-year, $30-million contract
extension. To put it into perspective, that's almost TWICE what an
LCS Hockey correspondent gets paid.
Since Neil Smith was already counting the money in the New York
Rangers' vaults in preparation for a run at the
to-be-restricted-free-agent, the move was a smart one on GM Pierre
Lacroix's part -- and frees up the Avs to concentrate on resigning
Theo Fleury this offseason.
Bloody Alberta
Remember back to the mid-80s, when the road swing through Alberta
was the most feared in hockey? The Avs sure do. After putting
together a nine-game unbeaten streak and wrapping up the second
seed in the playoffs, the Avs wandered aimlessly through Alberta
and were beaten savagely by the Flames and Oilers, by a combined
score of 10-2.
Fortunately Colorado goes into the playoffs on a good note, after
beaten Dallas 2-1 to close out the season.
40-40
Joe Sakic and Fleury both hit the 40-goal mark in the final games of
the season, winding up with 41 and 40, respectively. It's the first
time an Avalanche player has even broken the 30-goal mark since
1995-96, the Cup year, and the first time since 1992-93 that two Avs
have hit 40, when Sakic and Mats Sundin turned the trick.
Ok, yes, Fleury scored most of those goals with Calgary, but shut
up. A record's a record.
Them ever-lovin' rookies
The Avalanche's best rookie class since Peter Forsberg and Adam
Deadmarsh hit the scene continued to shine. Milan Hejduk led all
rookie scorers in points and assists, proved a good fit on the top
line, and answered questions about his durability and toughness by
playing a lot in the corners and in front of the net, not bad for a
small, speedy player. He was also the only Avalanche player to play
all 82 games.
Chris Drury, the leading candidate for rookie of the year, ended up
third in rookie scoring and second in goals, and was impressive in
all situations. Both players are pretty darn mature for rookies,
rarely caught out of position or taking dumb penalties.
And the rookie well's hardly dry. Christian Matte and Scott Parker
will likely stick next year, and Alex Tanguay, the next big thing
in Colorado, finally signed a couple weeks back.
Injuries
The injury situation is pretty set right now -- Valeri Kamensky and
Cam Russell are gone for the playoffs, and virtually everyone else
is fine. The one scary question mark is Adam Deadmarsh -- his eye
was injured in a fight with Edmonton's Jason Smith, and it seems to
be one of those injuries where they keep saying "he'll be back next
game." Two days ago they were saying he'd definitely be back for
the first game; now he's questionable.
San Jose
The scrappy Sharks irritated everyone to distraction in their
playoff drive, and are the first-round opponent no one wanted -
Edmonton's injury-riddled, the Avs dominated St. Louis and the
Ducks have what, three players? And there's plenty of subtexts in
the Avs-Sharks series, for those of you who love subtexts.
Patrick Roy's old sparring partner, Mike Vernon, now plays goal for
the Sharks. Several ex-teammates -- Owen Nolan (who was supposed to
be the next Cam Neely when he was traded), Mike Ricci and Ron
Sutter suit up for the Sharks; ex-Sharks on the Avs roster include
Sandis Ozolinsh and Shean Donovan. And of course, the Sharks have
Bryan Marchment, who must feel due since he hasn't blown anyone's
knee out in, what, weeks now?
Prediction: Avs in five.
