By Jordan Long
The Colorado Avalanche season came to a close after a 5-0 defeat to the Nashville Predators in the first-round of the NHL Playoffs. This was one of the best Avalanche seasons in recent memory.
The Avalanche entered the season without high expectations. They were coming off one of the worst years in NHL history when they went 22-56-4 for a total of 48 points. They were last in the whole NHL. A decent year for Colorado heading into the 2018 season would have been to at least have 80 points.
Colorado ended October at 6-5-0. It was starting to look like a different team. In November they were 3 games over .500. The Avalanche’s season turned on December 29th. They defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3 in overtime. That started one of the top streaks in Colorado Avalanche history, winning 10 games in a row. It told the rest of the NHL this team was serious to make a run to the playoffs.
The Avalanche were 27-18-4 heading into February. February they were still playing excellent hockey staying 10 games above .500. In March is when NHL playoff teams separate themselves from the non-playoff teams. Colorado had 8 wins in March, not enough for them to secure a playoff spot.
Colorado had their chance to make the playoffs in April but 3 losses didn’t help. The Blues were on their tail. In game 82, everything was on the line for the second wild-card spot. If the Avalanche tied the Blues and went into overtime, the Blues would be in the playoffs. Colorado had to win in regulation and they did 5-2.
The Avalanche in the playoffs lasted 6 games against Nashville. What is amazing about this run is they were missing their top defenseman in Erik Johnson and goaltender Semyon Varlamov who were both out for the playoffs. The Avalanche even had to start third string goaltender Andrew Hammond in games 5 and 6 after back-up Jonathan Bernier was hurt in game 4. Even with all that they still proved they belonged in the playoffs.
Looking at next year, the Avalanche are young. which could spell trouble for the rest of the NHL. They now have experience in the playoffs. Semyon Varlamov and Erik Johnson are expected to be back. If both of them can stay healthy, Colorado might be the 3rd seed in the Central Division. In order to make the playoffs next year Colorado needs to have a fast start. If they can, it won’t come down to game 82. The future is bright but anything less than the postseason next season, is a failure.
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