Tonight was a must-win game for the Colorado Avalanche against the Dallas Stars if they wanted a chance to win the division. Colorado had Saturday to rest and Dallas had to play the Chicago Blackhawks last night. What made it worse for the Stars was that they could not fly to Denver until the morning because of the weather. Everyone expected it to be a battle tonight, but Dallas came out on top. The Avalanche did not look as though they were all there tonight, just a step behind. Here are my takeaways for the 7–4 loss to the Dallas Stars.
Takeaways
— The special teams unit needs to hold the game when the game is tight. Sean Walker had a double minor for high-sticking and the Stars took advantage of both of the minor penalties. Overall, The Stars went three for three on the power play, scoring all of them in the second period. The Avalanche went only one for two with a sweet pass from Nathan MacKinnon to Artturi Lehkonen. The Finish winger has quietly gotten up to a five-game point streak with the goal.
Seguin makes the Avs pay again for the high stick #Avs #GoAvsGo @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/nJT1Ibi2iL
— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) April 8, 2024
Lehkonen nails a one-timer through the five hole to even up the game with the assists coming from Makar and MacKinnon #Avs #GoAvsGo @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/vsG9wGEoOH
— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) April 8, 2024
— The offense tonight suffered from the absence of Mikko Rantanen. Rantanen, who is now in concussion protocol after the Edmonton loss, has played in every game to this point. He drives the offense on the right wing and sets up the power play. Rantanen typically handled much of the faceoffs on the left side, so another person had to compensate for his absence.
— Defensive positioning killed the entire team tonight. In almost every goal, the Avalanche defense was out of position. Samuel Girard went too high into the zone on Wyatt Johnston’s goal, drawing him out of position. Then he failed to get his stick on the ice quickly enough to clear the puck. Cale Makar’s lack of readiness caught him flat-footed several times, forcing him to slide in order to block the pass. Something that is not ideal for a defenseman.
This is why you dont do the wave at hockey games #Avs #GoAvsGo @TheRinkColorado pic.twitter.com/5Wn1N0RcFw
— Brennan Vogt (@brennan_vogt) April 8, 2024
— Alexandar Georgiev has been on a downward slide lately. In the last five games, he has managed only one (against New York) when it was above a .900 save percentage. Now this is not all Georgiev’s fault, but he is the last line of defense.
Conclusion
The Avalanche are having no issue scoring goals; it is getting scored on that is their problem. With only four games remaining until the playoffs start, this is a big problem to have. Colorado needs to tighten up the defense and make sure pucks are not getting to Georgiev. The last four games will not be easy ones either, as three out of four of the teams are in the playoffs. The Avalanche will rest up a little when they play the Minnesota Wild again on Tuesday night in Denver.