By Jordan Long
The Colorado Avalanche season came to a close in game 7 to the San Jose Sharks 3-2 last night in the 2nd-round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. This was a step further then they went last year.
The Avalanche started the year with the expectation of making the postseason. They were coming off 2018 when they finished 43-30-9 for a total of 95 points and made the playoffs as the 2nd Wild Card team, losing to the Nashville Predators in 6 games in the 1st– round.
Colorado was on fire to begin the season going 7-2-2. At that time it looked like they were not only going to make the postseason, but have a chance to win the Central Division.
In January that all changed. From January 21st to February 12th, Colorado went on an 8 game losing streak which made their record at the time 22-23-11. Colorado wasn’t playing well and they were endanger of not making the postseason.
The Avalanche were 8-1-2 in their final 11 games to make it back to the playoffs. They finished at 38-30-14 for a total of 90 points. They were the 2nd Wild Card team, beating out the Arizona Coyotes by 4 points.
In the 1st-round they faced the Calgary Flames. Not many people were giving Colorado a chance because the Flames were the top seed in the West. They were dominant, finishing 50-25-7 for a total of 107 points. Colorado lost game 1, 4-0. It looked like the Avs weren’t going to matchup well with the Flames.
Game 2 Colorado won 3-2 in overtime. They won the next 3 by a combined score of 14 to 5 to eliminate Calgary in 5 games. This was the 1st time since 2008 they had reached the 2nd-round.
The Avalanche played the San Jose Sharks in the 2nd-round. This series went back and fourth as both teams exchanged wins to go a game 7 which was last night. Colorado didn’t start out well, going down 2-0. The Avs thought they had tied the game with 12:11 left in the 2nd period at 2-2. San Jose challenged for offside. Gabriel Landeskog , who wasn’t part of the play, was skating to the bench for a change and appeared to maybe not have his skate on the blueline. It looked to me like, since he wasn’t part of the play, the goal should have stood. There wasn’t enough evidence to show he was offside. In the end the war room in Toronto overturned the call and Colorado went on to lose by the score of 3-2 to end their season.
Colorado knows this was a good season but not a special one. Only one team will have a special one when they hoist the Stanley Cup. The future is bright for Colorado. They don’t have many free agents they have to deal with this summer. They have 2 restricted free agents they must sign, forwards Alexander Kerfoot and Mikko Rantanen. A team can sign them to an offer sheet but Colorado can match. Colorado can also decide to sign a free agent veteran skater to this team to make them even more dangerous next season.
The Avalanche must decide what to do with goaltender Semyon Varlamov. He lost his job to Philipp Grubauer. Grubauer is going to be the #1 goaltender next year. Varlamov is a free agent. Colorado could keep him as the backup since he is a veteran. They know what he can do and he could help Colorado win. If they let him test free agency, Colorado risks another team signing him. If that happens, Colorado must look at free agent goaltenders to find an experienced to back up Grubauer.
Right now, Colorado is built to be back in the playoffs next year. They have too much talent not to. Their goal should be to at least finish 2nd in the Central Division and reach the Western Conference Finals. It was a fun ride for the Avalanche that ended too soon this year.
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