Colorado Avalanche | In Denver, after the party, there were injuries

(Denver, Colorado) It’s a little strange, but right now there are only four small points to separate the Colorado Avalanche from the Canadiens in the overall National Hockey League standings.

Of course, the Montreal club took part in two more games, and of course also, we understand that things can change quickly, but here we are, these four points remind us that the aftermath of a champion club is not always so easy.

So, in this corner of Colorado, after the confetti and the music and the Stanley Cup lent to everyone, we had to come back to earth and, to a lesser extent, to the arena.

This part was not so easy.

“Guys, we keep ourselves in shape in the summer, but it’s sure that the off-season was a little shorter than usual,” admitted Samuel Girard on Tuesday, in the locker room of the club in the suburbs of Denver.

“Above all, we were unlucky with the injuries. We found a way to win the same, but there are a lot of good players missing at the moment. Others took the opportunity to get noticed. »

It is true that the Avalanche locker room looked like an audition set for a reality TV series. This season, no less than 35 players have passed through here to play at least one match; by way of comparison, 26 players have donned the Canadiens jersey at least once in 2022-2023.

This gave rise to a few unexpected auditions, including a certain Alex Galchenyuk, who only passed through, which he often did elsewhere too, on the other hand.

“At one point, you could see that the other clubs were coming against us thinking that they were going to impose their forecheck on us because they saw several guys from the American League in our lineup,” recalled Girard.

Among the absentees that we notice around here, first because they are not there, there is Nathan MacKinnon. The star player skated solo on Tuesday but is still not ready for a comeback. Andrew Cogliano and Darren Helm will also not play against the Canadiens in Denver on Wednesday night.

” The road is long “

Despite everything, head coach Jared Bednar tries to maintain his usual good humor.

“What all these injuries just proved is how solid the depth of this team is. We look at all the guys who have played with us this season… I think there are five or six for whom it was their first game in the NHL! That says a lot about the strength of character of our leaders.

“In Samuel’s case, well, he’s been good, but he’s been hurt, and sometimes it’s a long road back. He didn’t look as dynamic as in the past, but he had a good game [lundi soir]. He’s still trying to find his rhythm a bit. »

But the Avalanche is holding up, and around here, the hope lies in the return of the absentees, who will perhaps allow this team to regain the same confidence as last season.

Lehkonen is on fire

Not literally, of course, but on the stat sheet, anyway. Former Canadian Artturi Lehkonen, who once struggled to outsmart a wooden board in front of a goal in Brossard, has already scored 8 goals and 13 assists for 21 points this season. A man of few words, he wouldn’t talk to us on Tuesday, so Jared Bednar had to do it for him. “I didn’t expect anything from him when he arrived here, just as I never expect anything from any player,” noted the coach. But when we see him play, with his desire to win and his consistency, we come to expect that from him every night, and that’s what he brings us. »

Hudon back in the American League

After playing seven games with the Avalanche, Charles Hudon was fired from the American League on Sunday. The Quebec player did not collect a point during his time here, but he still left a favorable impression on Jared Bednar. “He was very good and he played well, answered the coach of the Avalanche. We must not forget, it has been almost three years since he last played in this league… But we can see that he is a player with good skills. He played good games for us. »

Richard Labbe, The Press