This Avalanche Just Keeps Rolling as Streak Reaches 10

This Avalanche Just Keeps Rolling as Streak Reaches 10

Welcome back. All right, so as is the rule on the channel, as is the tradition, 10ame winning streaks get a video. 10ame losing streaks get a video as well. Uh the first video of this nature for this season is Colorado. And it feels like it’s late in the season for me to see the first 10-ame winning streak, but it’s not a surprise that Colorado gets that 10-game winning streak. They’re currently 171 and five, 39 points. They’re running over the NHL. uh 14 games since their only regulation loss and that was against the Boston Bruins. That was a road game and it was close. Um 33 and a half shots per game. That is second only to the Carolina Hurricanes in terms of shots per game. They’re 26 shots against per game is eighth in the National Hockey League. So they’re not allowing a ton of opportunities and they’re getting a lot of opportunities. That is a recipe for a lot of success. And I wanted to look at the advanced stats with this team as well. And I I do find that with the advanced stats, it cuts through some of the noise when it comes to teams with great records or poor records. Now, one thing to keep an eye on is PDO. This is the combination of shooting percentage and safe percentage. Usually, this number tends to get closer to 100 as the season rolls along. So, for teams that are down in the 95 96 range, they’ll usually get a little bit better. And in the case of Colorado, they are leading the league at a 103.72 PDO. That’s not that’s not like a vastly huge PDO. Um I remember the Conucks a couple years ago, I think they were in the 105 106 range, something like that. And everybody knew that was going to come down. I don’t know that Colorado’s does to be honest. Uh because of the fact they’re not allowing a ton of really great opportunities because they’re getting a lot of really great opportunities. I think their shooting percentage and safe percentage are probably going to stay pretty high. Now they’re 3.63. 6-3 goals per 60 minutes at five on five. This is not including power play goals. That’s easily first in the National Hockey League. Five on five. These guys burn you. They got the speed, they got the skill, just the amount of chemistry these players have with each other is impressive. In ta in terms of high danger chances, and I got these numbers from Moneypuck, uh 69 high danger chances of their own. Giggling aside, 57 against. uh low danger chances. They have 647 versus 644 against. So vast majority of opportunities teams get are considered low low risk, low danger. Uh medium danger, they’re actually trailing there. They’ve allowed 171 medium danger and they’ve taken 157 of their own. Uh their share of takeaways, so this is how many times do you take the puck away versus how many times your opponents take the puck away is at 54.39%. at sixth. So, there’s really good puck control. There’s really good all-around numbers. They are more likely to have a high danger chance than to allow one. And they don’t hit. So, one thing that’s going to get really interesting is this. What do we always hear? Well, this team doesn’t win because they’re not tough enough. Colorado has guys who can drop the gloves if they need to. I’m not saying they’re not a tough team, but they don’t play that style of hockey. uh their 391 hits as 30th in the NHL and hits taken 411 which is 29th. One nice thing about keeping your hits taken down less risk of injury. So, if they can continue to take less hits, even if that means they’re giving out less hits, that should help keep them healthier, which has been a major problem for Colorado in years past where you lose large, you know, like three or four of your top six forwards, four of your top six defenseman, goalenders out. They’re not dealing with that this year. And you can see it’s really helped their record. And I think that’s been part of it. Good health, which there’s some good fortune there, but I think the style of hockey they’re playing is helping them. Um, now Wedgewood 9.0 0 goals saved above expected. Going to go here again. 0.553 goals saved above expected per 60 minutes. These are good numbers. The interesting thing is Blackwoods are actually are actually better. Smaller sample size. He has 5.1 goals saved above expected, but goal saved above expected per 60 minutes after last night’s game, 1.01. Blackwood’s a fantastic goalender. So Wedgewood’s held the fort really well. Now that Blackwood’s back to being healthy, I would expect Blackwood to get not not a lion share. I think Wedgewood and Blackwood will still split the net, but we may see Blackwood play a few more games than Wedgewood as time goes on. Minor 1.0 goals saved above expected. 53 goals saved above expected per 60 minutes. So, Miner did pretty well. Uh, now goal difference above expected. And this is another one of those advanced stats, 13.93, which is third in the NHL. They’re tied with Seattle there. Um, and this again is goals scored above expected plus goals against below expected. It ends up being 13.93. So, if all things were equal, their their goals would be a little bit lower. The goals against would be a little bit higher, but that just tells you they’re playing really well. There’s some good fortune involved, yes, but they’re also playing really well. So, let’s take a look at the 10-ame winning streak, shall we? Uh, we’ll start where it starts. They were at home against Tampa. Now, what you see here with asterisks, these are the teams that are currently in playoff spots, and it’s three of the 10. I don’t think this really detracts from the 10-ame winning streak as much as some might point and say that it kind of does because a lot of the teams that are outside of the playoffs are teams that may have been expected to be in the playoffs. Anyways, uh Tampa, they won at home 3 to2. It was tied 1-1 after one. They led 3 to1 after two. Wedgewood saved 22 out of 24. The ABS outshot the Tampa Bay Lightning 33 to 24 in that game. Then they went on the road for two. It starts with a road win in Edmonton. 9 to1 win over the Oilers. They led two nothing after the first. 6 to1 after two. That was one of those games where I call my wife in. She humors me and she pretends she really is into it, which you can’t be every night in the NHL, but I’ll call her in. I’ll be like, “Can you see? Do you see the score? It’s ridiculous.” And so I did that. Uh Wedgewood saved 23 out of 24 in that game in the ABS. The shots almost the same. 34 taken, 24 allowed. Then they go to Vancouver and they won that one five to four in overtime. Here’s another notable. This is the only overtime game they’ve needed. When I’ve done other 10-game winning streaks, there’s always been overtime shootouts. There’s been maybe a little bit of good fortune in there. No, not really. So, they led two to one after one in Vancouver and it was tied 2-2 after two. Uh, they ended up winning at 4 to3 and Gavin Brindley got the overtime winner at 108. This is where Blackwood comes back from injury. Saves 29 out of 33. The shots in this game were actually 33 to 32 for the Canucks. So, one of those rare times where they get outshot. Then they came home. They didn’t outshoot Anaheim. Uh they beat Anaheim though, 4 to1. That game was tied one apiece after one. They led two to one after two. Wedgewood saved 35 out of 36. Uh both teams had 36 shots in that game. The next game at home, they get their defense a little bit more in line here. They won the game six to3 against Buffalo. They led that one 3-2 after one. I was waiting for 10 goals in that one at least. We got nine. Uh they led four to three after two. Blackwood saved 18 out of 21 and the shots 34 to 21 for the Avalanche. So a nice shot advantage. And one of the things that that shot advantage does is and you’re getting that goal advantage as well. Goalenders do tend to play a little better when they got the lead, right? You’re not as tight. you know that if you know scores three nothing if you allow one it’s not a huge deal you’re okay and so I I think goalenders they’ll play a little bit better with the lead now uh that 34 to 21 I think that’s one of the better shot advantages uh that they’ve had we’ll get to the Rangers game I think that’s the biggest shot advantage until last night so the New York Islanders again it’s a home game they won that one four to one they trailed one- nothing after one and they led two to1 after two notice They trailed after the first period, something they didn’t do in the rest of this 10-game winning streak. They’ve been good at scoring first. They’ve been good at getting leads and they’ve been good at giving teams nothing to work with. So, uh, in that game, Wedgewood saved 28 out of 29 and the Islanders outshot the Avalanche 29-28 in that game. And then they took it out on the Rangers. They won the game against the Rangers 6 to3. That one was tied 1-1 after one. And it was tied two after two. Tied at two after two. The Rangers did score first to get the one- nothing lead and they had the two to1 lead. They just could not hold those leads. Uh Wedgewood saved 16 out of 19 that night. The shots on net 35-19 for Colorado. So that’s what I’m talking about. Wedgewood wasn’t busy. Didn’t have his best game. He didn’t need to. It’s almost like a night off for a goalender when you get less than 20 shots against in a game. That’s an average of less than seven period. So not bad. Uh then they went to Nashville and this is where it gets kind of bewildering because they win three nothing. I didn’t think they played well. I didn’t think they did. Uh they led one- nothing after one and one- nothing after the second even though Nashville played quite well. Uh Blackwood saved 35 shots for the shut out and the shots were 35 to 26 for Nashville. So that might be the worst game that Colorado’s played during the 10ame winning streak. Although the Chicago one wasn’t necessarily one they dominated either. They won this one on the road as well, one- nothing. So these shutouts are showing up. Uh it was tied scoreless after the first and then it was one- nothing Colorado after the second and they just brought it home one- nothing. Wedgewood saves all 22 shots for the shut out. The shots were 26 to 22 for the Avalanche. So not a ton of shots compared to other ABS games on the board, but they found the way to get the win. And that’s one of the key things here. They’re finding different ways to win games. Uh I’ve talked about it with Florida for years. Colorado is uh looking a little Floridaish right now. Uh then last night at home, they won 6 nothing. That game they led two nothing after one. They led 5 nothing after two. Blackwood saved all 26 shots that he faced. But Colorado outshot San Jose 42 to 26. Pucks at the other end a lot. And so Colorado is playing just this. It’s as close to perfect hockey as you get during the regular season. you have 10 different opponents on the board. They found 10 different ways to win games. Uh just one time they needed to go past 60 minutes, which is also good because it means they’re not going to be as tired as some of those teams that are going past 60 minutes almost every game. You know who they are. Um and so this is this has been remarkable. What else is remarkable is this is a team that right now could take home almost every trophy. The only one I was kind of stuck on, so ABS fans, you guys can help me out with this. Who would be the selky guy for them? Would that be Brock Nelson? Two-way two-way forward. Who would be their best defensive forward? U or does McKinnon get some consideration as well since this plus minus is fantastic? And yes, the media still seems to view plus minus as a very useful stat when it comes to measuring defensive performance. So, the hard candidate, well, McKinnon, right? Um 23 games, 18 goals, 21 assists, 39 points. With those numbers, he’s in the running for the Art Ross. He’s in the running for the the the Rocket Rashard uh and and the Ted Lindsay, right? So, he could win four trophies. We could see McKinnon and June with just trophies galore and a big smile on his face if they win the cup and he’s got all those trophies. If they don’t win the cup, then all of this is for not. This this really is cup or bust. The Colorado Avalanche are not messing around. It is cup or bust this year. If I had one concern, it would be this record. Usually teams will have that struggle somewhere and that’s how you react, but I’ve said it before. Uh the Norris candidate is Macar, right? 23 games, nine goals, 21 assists, 30 points. And when I hear people say, well, he plays more like a forward than a defenseman. I would disagree. Macar does come back, he does back check, he does play well defensively. I don’t put him in the same, you know, stratosphere as some of the better defensive, some of the best defensive defenseman in the game, but he is still far and away your Norris favorite considering just how well he plays all around. The Master Trophy kind of has to go to Landiskog, right? 23 games, two goals, six assists, eight points. The fact that he’s come back after so long away from the game. Gabriel Landiskog has to be the the winner of the Masterin. I I don’t know who else you give it to at this point. I just don’t. I think it’s absolutely remarkable that he’s been able to go out. And not only that, but he’s still willing to drop the gloves. Like, he is still the same Gabriel Landiskog he was before. Maybe not as offensively minded, but look at their numbers. They don’t need Landiskov to score points. While he was out for that long period of time, they managed to find enough off offense elsewhere that their captain doesn’t need to be one of the offensive leaders any longer. Uh Jennings favorites, of course, Blackwood and Wedgewood. That’s for your goalenders who have the best goals against average at the end of the year. Goals against average to me is a team metric though. Like I love that the Vzna trophy now is decided by a vote rather than uh decided by goals against. back in the day, back in 1981 and before that, it was decided by goals against and then Montreal wrecked it, so they got rid of it. There’s videos on the channel where I talk about it. Um, the Michelle Lorac, like Bunny Lorac, I think I did a video on Bunny Lorac um, years back, and I know I talked about the Jennings Trophy replacing the Vzna and how Montreal ruined it, but it’s it’s a more of an entertaining, funny story than like a terrible, oh, they ruined it, how dare they. It’s more of a it’s kind of petty, but funny. Um, so the VZNA contender would be considered to be Wedgewood at this point, but there’s there’s a drawback. So Wedgewood 13-1 and two, 918 save percentage, 2.09 goals against average. These are all traditional stats, and I’m not saying that they’re they’re they’re useless, but I’ve gone away from using those in season. I’ll use them for career videos, but in season, I I like to look at the advanced side and and try to see what these stats tell us about what’s going on. Uh Wedgewood also has an assist this year. So good on him for that. But his numbers are good. But Blackwoods have been better. 40-1 928 safe percentage back-to-back shutouts. He’ll do that and a 1.98 goals against average. So remember the Vzna is voted on by general managers. So a general manager right now would look at this and say Wedgewood’s numbers are good. Blackwood seem to be a little bit better. And I I don’t think Wedgewood ends up being a finalist for the VZNA necessarily, but stranger things have happened. I I just of the two goalenders and I never thought I’d see the day that this was controversial, but I still I like Blackwood a little bit more than Wedgewood. They’re both good goalenders, but like going into last year’s playoffs, there was that whole, oh, is it going to be Wedgewood that’s the starter or Blackwood? I never wavered. I said, it’s Blackwood. It’s Blackwood’s net. And I I still think it’s going to be Blackwood’s net when we get to April and the games are really important because it’s playoff time. Um there are nine players on this team with five or more goals. There are nine players on this team with a plus minus of plus 11 or better. Meaning this is a team that no matter who’s on the ice, you’re going to have a hard time with and they can shake up the lines anytime they want, these guys just have great chemistry. Whoever you put with whoever probably going to work. Now, uh Burns stands out to me as a player that when they picked up Brent Burns, I think we all looked and went, I mean, that’s okay. He’ll probably play bottom two role. Probably won’t be that prominent. Wrong. Uh he is averaging exactly 20 minutes per game. Brent Burns looks rejuvenated as a member of the Colorado Avalanche Blue Line. And at age 40, he’s looking a lot like he did 10 years ago. So he’s getting points. He’s playing well. He understands his role with the team. And in the event that his ice time gets cut back at some point later on in the season for whatever reason, I think he’ll be fine with it. He’s uh he’s he’s been he’s been impressive for Colorado so far this year. So, tomorrow the winning streak’s on the line in Minnesota and in a very busy day. I’m kind of sad that I’m not going to get to spend a lot of time watching that game because of the fact there’s so many games that are on at the same time, right? But it is going to be fascinating to see how that turns out cuz Minnesota’s playing really well this month, too. So, this is a big game for Minnesota. This is like if you can look at it as a Stanley Cup playoff potential preview, um whether it would be round one, round two, whatever. the way Minnesota’s been playing, they should be there. We know Colorado’s going to be there, so that’s a huge game. If they win that, take the record to 11, uh, then they come home and play Montreal the next day. So, that rounds out their November, and those are, I think, for them, winnable games. Uh, but it will be interesting to see how it works out with Minnesota. Minnesota, of course, a playoff team. Montreal is not a playoff team at this point, keeping in mind that the the standings are pretty close. So, I’m not going to put as much stock into how many playoff teams that they’re they they’ve had to face in this 10-ame winning streak as I might if I was doing this video say in March, right? And if there’s seven of 10 that are below the playoff line that they’ve beaten in that 10-ame winning streak, I might give it a little more of a critique than I will now. At home, they’re 90 and2. And on the road they’re 8-1 and three. Absolutely ridiculous records all around. Uh at home and away in December they have seven at home, seven away. Very even schedule. Uh it starts on the second at home against Vancouver and then they have a four-ame road trip where they play the Islanders, Rangers, Flyers, and then the Predators as well. And Nashville will be looking at hopefully getting a goal in that next game, especially if they outshoot Colorado 35 to 26 again. But I would think Blackwood probably plays that game and might shut them down again. Nashville’s been shut out pretty sure it’s a few times this year. I’m thinking four or five. I It’s It’s been a lot, but uh this this this is a winning streak that could go on for a while. It absolutely could. Um I think their schedule’s been been good for them. I don’t think it’s been maybe as difficult as some of the other schedules in the NHL, but that’s not an excuse either. We have definitely seen teams let down and said, “Well, yeah, but that’s a game that might have been tougher for them to get up for. Look where that team is in the standings. They had a couple of days off and so maybe they were a little bit slower out of the gate.” There’s always some reason, right, when a really good team has struggles against a lower team and uh that really has not been a problem. Like I said, the Nashville and Chicago games were one that I looked at and said, you know, those are games that in previous seasons maybe they would have lost. Uh, but that’s as close as I can find to a blemish. Maybe the the Vancouver game going to overtime. There’s really nothing to pick here other than um the fact that they weren’t a Stanley Cup pick for me to start the year. I I don’t know if they win the Stanley Cup this season, but they’re they’re doing their best to make sure they’re going to be the number one seed going into the playoffs. And while that’s considered to be a cursed position to be in since Chicago last won as the number one seed in the National Hockey League back in 2013, I don’t think there’s any reason to be upset that a team wins. Like I don’t think there’s any reason for a fan base to go, well, we won the President’s Trophy, so we’re hosed. Um, even though that does seem to be the case over the last dozen years, but somebody’s got to break that, right? So maybe it’s Colorado. Who knows? Uh, I know this is a team that has scared the hell out of me for years. Uh the last two years that Dallas has played them in the playoffs, I’ve been 100% convinced Colorado should beat Dallas. They haven’t. This might be the year that they do if they meet Dallas in the playoffs once again. But let me know your thoughts in the comments section below. As always, hit like and subscribe in the event you may not have done so already. Uh thank you guys so much for all your support. It’s greatly appreciated. I will talk to you again soon.

Hey all and it’s my first ten game winning streak video for this season.

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