hockey
We talk pucks and objects of that kind. We yell, complain, and analyze in the language of hockey fandom. Gretzky can do no wrong.
Avalanche Game 56 Recap: Home at Last
They say that you could never go home again. For the Colorado Avalanche, it sure seemed that way. The Avalanche started the second half with six straight road games, and it was a disaster. Six games in the Eastern Time Zone, a maximum 12 points up for grabs, yet the Avs left with only three. 1-4-1 on that road trip, which resulted in the Avs actually being in third place in the Central Division. Finally, the Avs returned to the confines of Ball Arena for the first time since the near end of January, and in this go-around, it's a Division Rivalry battle with the Arizona Coyotes.
Clyde E. DawkinsPublished 2 months ago in UnbalancedAvalanche Game 55 Recap: Can We Go Home Now?
And so it ends. The Colorado Avalanche's six-game road trip came to an end against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Amalie Arena. Ah, Amalie Arena. The very site where the Avs won the Stanley Cup in 2022. So many memories. The goals from MacKinnon and Lehkonen. Gabriel Landeskog lifting the Cup over his head, in what is his most recent act with the Avs. Absolutely epic.
Clyde E. DawkinsPublished 2 months ago in UnbalancedAvalanche Game 54 Recap: Dominant in DC
As John Wick would say, "I'm thinking we're back!" The Colorado Avalanche entered the fifth and penultimate game of this road trip on a bad skid. 0-3-1 in our last four games, and coming off a shutout loss in Sunrise, Florida. For this go-around, it's a trip to Our Nation's Capital to face off against the Washington Capitals, one of two teams who were on the receiving end of a Nathan MacKinnon four-goal performance this season.
Clyde E. DawkinsPublished 2 months ago in UnbalancedAvalanche Game 53 Recap: Enough is Enough
As the man who is about to main event WrestleMania 40 would say, "We have a lot to talk about." This...this isn't good. So the Colorado Avalanche entered this game having lost three straight, and while the OT loss to the New York Rangers wasn't too bad, the losses to the New Jersey Devils and the Carolina Hurricanes were terrible. For the fourth game of this six game road swing, it's a trip to Sunrise to face the Florida Panthers. The last time we faced Florida, it was embarrassing. An 8-2 drubbing on our ice. The Avs needed to win out to salvage a winning road trip, and I figured that this would be the game where things get back on track.
Clyde E. DawkinsPublished 2 months ago in UnbalancedAvalanche Game 52 Recap: A Horror-Comedy of Errors
The road trip for the Colorado Avalanche continues, and it sees the team in Raleigh, North Carolina against the Carolina Hurricanes. This is the second and last meeting between the two former WHA transplants, as well as former rivals in the old Adams Division. As many hockey historians and fans recall, the Quebec Nordiques and the Hartford Whalers co-existed in the Adams Division for several years, but were hard luck until the teams relocated to Denver and Raleigh, respectively. Since then, the Avalanche won three Stanley Cups, while the Hurricanes finally won one of their own in 2006.
Clyde E. DawkinsPublished 2 months ago in UnbalancedAvalanche Game 51 Recap: Jersey Boys
The second half of the Colorado Avalanche's season started with a six-game Eastern road swing; holy moley! Game One of that road trip saw the Avs in Madison Square Garden, and it was an overtime loss to the New York Rangers. The team had to get right back to work on the following day, but the Avs didn't have to go too far, as this game was in New Jersey against the Devils. The first meeting was a wild one that saw a lot of chaos and penalties, but the Avalanche prevailed.
Clyde E. DawkinsPublished 2 months ago in UnbalancedAvalanche Game 50 Recap: Back to Work
It's been a minute since the Colorado Avalanche last took the ice. A lot has happened since the Colorado Avalanche's last game. Of course, there was this big thing in Toronto known as the NHL All-Star Game, with the Avalanche being represented by Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and Alexandar Georgiev. The trio played on a team captained by MacKinnon, but the group lost to a team captained by Connor McDavid in the opening minigame of the four-team tournament, which was won by the team captained by Toronto's home superstar, Auston Matthews.
Clyde E. DawkinsPublished 2 months ago in UnbalancedA Look at the Canadian Teams' Standings Entering the NHL All-Star Break
Canada's Stanley Cup drought reached 30 years even after last season saw none of their seven franchises made it past the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Since 2011, these have been the seven Canadian teams in the NHL: the Calgary Flames, the Edmonton Oilers, the Montréal Canadiens, the Ottawa Senators, the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Vancouver Canucks, and the Winnipeg Jets. Only the Jets (both versions) have never been to the Final, and out of the six who have been there, only the Canucks and Senators haven't won the Stanley Cup.
Clyde E. DawkinsPublished 3 months ago in UnbalancedThe Monumental Career of Grant Fuhr
If you're familiar with my writing, then you know a lot of my career pieces on NHL players, both current and former. I've written quite a few stories, but I have yet to do one on a goaltender...until now. Two of my stories have centered on two very important and notable players in NHL history: Willie O'Ree and Jarome Iginla. As we all know, Willie O'Ree broke the NHL's color barrier, and set the stage and the bar for players such as Donald Brashear, P.K. Subban, Dustin Byfuglien, and Quinton Byfield, among others. The aforementioned Jarome Iginla raised that bar with his stellar numbers in his spectacular career, but there's another important name that needs to be mentioned: Grant Fuhr.
Clyde E. DawkinsPublished 3 months ago in UnbalancedThe History of the Smythe Division
Each of the four classic divisions had a special attribute. The Adams Division had an even mix of Original Six and WHA flavor, plus there was the fact that none of the teams involved liked the Bruins. The Patrick Division struck a huge blow for pro sports in the Mid-Atlantic region. The Norris Division was quite the classic division, mainly because three of the teams were in the Original Six. All three divisions had their special features and their stories to tell.
Clyde E. DawkinsPublished 3 months ago in UnbalancedThe Avalanche Opens on the Upswing at Brewster Ice Arena
On Sunday December 10, the Avalanche opened their hockey season at the Brewster Ice Arena versus the Rockland Rockies. With girls from John Jay, Mahopac, North Salem and Fox Lane, a downsizing of sorts has taken place since last year, which doesn’t sound like a good sign for the sport in our area. But in fact, the opposite is true.
Rich MonettiPublished 3 months ago in UnbalancedAvalanche Game 49 Recap: Preparing for the Break
The Colorado Avalanche were coming off a very big win against the Washington Capitals, where Nathan MacKinnon, well, did it again. Another four-goal game for the man leading the way in the Hart Trophy race, and five points over all in the Avs' 6-2 win. MacKinnon left that night as the points leader, but entering this night, he was behind Nikita Kucherov by one point. Seriously, this will be one hell of a race.
Clyde E. DawkinsPublished 3 months ago in Unbalanced