SB Nation - John-Michael Liles

Game 37 Recap: Avalanche 5 - Blue Jackets 2

David Driscoll-Carignan — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 04:50:07 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

1 day ago: Just recalled from a minor league club, Colorado Avalanche right winger Brandon Yip, left, picks up the puck as Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Kris Russell defends in the first period of an NHL hockey game in Denver on Saturday, Dec. 19, 2009. Yip was appearing in his first game in the NHL. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Browse more photos »

Final - 12.19.2009	1	2	3	Total
Columbus Blue Jackets	0	2	0	2
Colorado Avalanche	4	0	1	5

Complete Coverage >

It looked like it was going to be a blowout, but that didn't quite materialize. Pretty much everything went right for the Avs in the 1st period as they put up 4 goals on board in the first 8:02 of the hockey game - 2 by Wojtek Wolski and one each by John-Michael Liles and Paul Stastny.

Unfortunately, there's no easy button in hockey, and, to their credit, the Blue Jackets didn't roll over in this one. Columbus battled back to make it 4-2 and the game was never really in hand until Milan Hejduk iced it at the 16:32 mark. A major positive for the Avs is that they didn't turtle with the lead - the two teams were even at 18 shots each over the final two periods. It may not have been the most exciting hockey to watch, but the Avs get the win and, with the Calgary loss, move back into first place in the NW and jump from 7th to 3rd in the Western Conference.

The Avalanche had a strong game from 5 forwards tonight - Wolski, Hejduk, Stastny, Matt Duchene and Stewart (who I think was the best of the bunch and not just for his attempt to get the net back on the moorings at one point in the game). Hejduk, Stewart and Wolski combined for a whopping nineteen shots, which is probably why they had 4 of the Avs' goals. If the Avalanche can get two dangerous lines rolling like this on a consistent basis, then they will likely continue to run in the top part of the standings.

Stick tap also to John-Michael Liles who had two points and 5 blocked shots. This on a night when Pierre Lebrun stated on the Satellite Hotstove that the Avs are actively shopping him around the league (well, to the 12 clubs they can trade him to).

Game 36 Recap - Capitals 6, Avs 1

Mike @ MHH — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 05:34:45 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

5 days ago: Washington Capitals left winger Alex Overchkin, left, of Russia, gets tangled up while pursuing the puck with Colorado Avalanche defenseman John-Michael Liles in the second period of an NHL hockey game in Denver on Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Browse more photos »

One Sentence Recap Style:

The Avalanche laid a turd on the ice last night in the shape of a Hot Pocket.

[Joe here. I'm going to add a few more sentences of my own.]

One of the downsides of having so much youth and inexperience is inconsistency. Some nights the Avalanche just aren't going to show up, and this was one of those nights. It happens. It will happen again. The good news is that Calgary also lost last night, so the Avs retain the top spot in the West.

The only thing that doesn't make sense to me is why David Koci continues to play hockey at all. What is his purpose? Aside from a few fights in the opening minutes of a few games, he plays no more than three total minutes, contributes nothing to the offense, and generally warms the bench. Matt Duchene and Craig Anderson have been getting roughed up all season, so it's not like Koci has provided any kind of protection.

Koci's hit on Mike Green last night was clearly boarding, and the game misconduct was well-deserved. It was a dirty hit and Green is lucky to have come away with just a few stitches and a headache. Green never saw him coming. The only reason Koci was on the ice in the second period instead of his usual first-minute-of-the-game beat-down was that Washington doesn't have a big enforcer like Donald Brashear any more. Koci didn't have anybody to fight. Coach Sacco knew this and played him anyway.

I hope the league suspends Koci for a game or two. If nothing else, it will free up a spot in the lineup for somebody who actually plays hockey.

Game 34 Recap: Avalanche 2 - Lightning 1 (SO)

David Driscoll-Carignan — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 05:10:35 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

9 days ago: Colorado Avalanche goalie Craig Anderson uses his shoulder to deflect a shot against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the second period of an NHL hockey game in Denver on Friday, Dec. 11, 2009. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Browse more photos »

Final - 12.11.2009	1	2	3	OT	SO	Total
Tampa Bay Lightning	1	0	0	0	0	1
Colorado Avalanche	0	0	1	0	1	2

Complete Coverage >

I'm still kind of scratching my head a bit, wondering if I really saw what I just saw. I've decided that this was some sort of Freaky Friday puzzle, and I'm supposed to find all the things that weren't normal about the game. Let's see how I do...

The Avalanche started slowly and, get this, got better as the game went on! (I could stop there and that would be freaky enough. But wait, there's more).
The Avs won the faceoff battle (handily: 54%-46%)
The Avs outshot the other team
The Avs outshot the other team in the 3rd period
The Avs outshot the other team in the 3rd period by a wide margin (18-4)
The Avs got better defensively as the game went on
Brett Clark and John-Michael Liles both played excellent, in both ends of the ice (okay, this might be a little hyperbolic, but I sure did love seeing Brett Clark rub out Alex Tanguay in the corner).
Speaking of, those two played terrific on the powerplay and both were firing bombs from the point
Scott Hannan and Kyle Quincey did not play well, and were probably the two worst d-men out of the six
Darcy Tucker had a whale of a game
The Avs won a goal review
Antero Nittymaki is, apparently, a bona fide NHL goaltender. He's the only reason this was close.
Craig Anderson stopped the first attempt in the shootout
Wojtek Wolski scored in the shootout (first time time this year)
The Avs actually played one of their more physical games of the season

Did I get them all? So many things in this game that I'm just not used to seeing; forgive me if I've missed a couple. Oh, and, Marek Svatos left the game midway through the 2nd period and did not return - but that doesn't fit into any of the bullet points above.

Big, big game on Sunday as the Avs host the Flames; winner gets 1st place in the Northwest.

Game 29 Preview: Return of the Foote

Mike MacLean — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 20:31:50 -0000

More photos » by Charles Rex Arbogast - AP

Browse more photos »

This is going to be extremely quick, folks. I just found a computer and I don`t even know if the formatting will turn out. This is the return of Adam Foote, I won`t bag on him as much as others do, but it will be interesting to see how the fans treat him.

Andrew Murray and Raffi Torres return to the lineup, and the defensive pairs have been shaken up. Toots and Stralman aren`t together anymore, Stralman is with Russ and Methot returns to the lineup to play with Fedor. Should be interesting how the Russ-Stralman pairing does five-on-five.

I won`t be able to watch this game tonight unfortunately, but I will be checking the boxscore on my Blackberry. Here`s hoping the boys can pull one out and get back in the win column.

Fearless Prediction: A win, damnit.

Game Time: 7:00pm ET

Opponent's Blog: Mile High Hockey

Game Page: Avalanche vs Blue Jackets Coverage

TSN Preview: Avalanche vs Blue Jackets Preview

TV: FSN Ohio

Radio: WBNS-AM (1460); WWCD-FM (101.1)

More after the jump...

From the Columbus Dispatch:

Colorado captain Adam Foote makes his first appearance in Nationwide Arena since he was traded by the Blue Jackets to the Avalanche on Feb. 26, 2008. The Blue Jackets are in a 1-4-3 tailspin since Nov. 19. Columbus won all four games last season and has won six of the past seven games in the series.

Jackets Links:

Columbus Blue Jackets / Columbus Blue Jackets Schedule

Columbus Blue Jackets Roster / Columbus Blue Jackets Stats

Here are the lineups for tonight's tilt:

Columbus Blue Jackets

Kristian Huselius	Antoine Vermette	Rick Nash
R.J. Umberger	Derick Brassard	Jakub Voracek
Jason Chimera	Samuel Pahlsson	Andrew Murray
Raffi Torres	Derek MacKenzie	Jared Boll

Fedor Tyutin	Marc Methot
Mike Commodore	Jan Hejda
Kris Russell	Anton Stralman

Steve Mason

Mathieu Garon

EXTRA: Alexandre Picard

INJURED: Fredrik Modin, Andrew Murray, Derek Dorsett, Rostislav Klesla, Marc Methot

Colorado Avalanche

Matt Duchene	Paul Stastny	Chris Stewart
Wojtek Wolski	T.J. Galiardi	Milan Hejduk
Cody McLeod	Ryan O'Reilly	Darcy Tucker
David Koci	Chris Durno	Marek Svatos

Scott Hannan	Kyle Quincey
John-Michael Liles	Brett Clark
Adam Foote	Ryan Wilson

Peter Budaj

Tyler Weiman

Avalanche Olympic Preview

David Driscoll-Carignan — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:00:15 -0000

Around SBN, each of the hockey blogs is running a little preview of the Olympics with a look at who has a chance to make the Olympic rosters. We're still about a month and a half away from when the rosters are announced (Canada announces on December 31st, USA on January 1st), but here's a look at how the Avalanche are shaping up as of today. Remember, in 2006 the Avalanche sent 11 players to 8 different Olympic squads, tops in the league. The list won't be as big this year.

Team USA

Craig Anderson was not invited to Team USA's orientation camp in August (Tim Thomas, Ryan Miller and Jonathon Quick got the nods), but his strong play to date has to put him in contention to make the roster. Fairly Safe Bet

Paul Stastny did attend the orientation camp and figures to have a solid chance at making the roster. Fairly Safe Bet

John-Michael Liles was not one of the 12 defensemen named by Team USA GM Brian Burke, so it would seem doubtful that Liles will get a chance to repeat his 2006 Olympic participation. Work To Do

Team Canada

No Avalanche players were invited to Team Canada's camp in August. Actually, two were invited...but Ryan Smyth got traded and Joe Sakic retired. The Avalanche have some good Canadian-born players, of course, but no one strong enough to crack a very deep Team Canada squad.

Team Czech Republic

Milan Hejduk already has a gold medal (1998) and a bronze medal (2006) to show for his 3 Olympic appearances. Figure him to be on the team once again. Pack Your Bags

Team Slovakia

Peter Budaj played in the 2006 Olympic games (he was 2-1 with a 2.01 GAA) and is a good bet to make the team this year as well. He's likely to be battling Jaroslav Halak for the starting position. Nearly A Lock

Marek Svatos also played for the 2006 team. I'm not sure that he's a lock; perhaps they need an enforcer? Fairly Safe Bet

Team Belarus

Ruslan Salei is a lock...assuming he's healthy. Pack Your Bags

Colorado Avalanche: What the Hell Happened?

David Driscoll-Carignan — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:00:15 -0000

Halloween, 2009. Although the Avalanche had lost the night before to San Jose, we woke up that Saturday feeling pretty good about our team. The Avalanche had finished October at phenomenal 10-2-2 and, as we dressed our kiddos in their Halloween costumes and ran out to the stores to stock our trick-or-treat bowls, we had a little spring in our step. Our sad-sack Avalanche of last year had turned things around and were currently perched on top of the Western Conference (indeed, they were tied with Pittsburgh at 1st in the league).

And, yet, we knew.

Oh, sure, we got indignant when James Mirtle (and others) predicted we'd start to fall back into the pack or whenever someone failed to give the Avalanche props in power rankings and the like. We're proud of our team and, after 6 months of nothing but negativity (on the ice and off), it was great to have something to feel good about again. Deep down, though, we knew. The team was better (not that we could have gotten much worse than the steaming pile of dung that was the 2008 season); the Avalanche were working harder, working smarter and, for the first time in years, had a bona fide #1 between the pipes. But - and this may be the largest "but" I've ever written - this was not a first-place team. Deep down, we knew it.

Since then, it hasn't been very pretty. The Avalanche have gone 3-5-1 in November. That won't get it done. If the Avalanche were to continue at that pace, they'd finish the season at 33-40-9. 75 points. Last year, 75 points would have been good enough for...you guessed it: 3rd-worst record in the NHL. Are you guys ready for the next "tank it 4 ___" watch?

What the hell happened? Lots. Adrian Dater covered it very well on Friday night after the latest debacle. I agree with every single point in that excellent post. I'd also like to flesh out a few thoughts I've had bouncing around in that little plinko machine in my head.

Unquestionably, any discussion about the Avs and their now-wheelless bus has to start with the powerplay. After 6 games, the Avalanche had 10 PP goals and were humming along at 38.5% efficiency. For a team that scored just 50 PP goals last year, that was an amazing start. Sadly, it wouldn't last. In the 17 games since that game 6 in Toronto, the Avalanche have just 7 PP goals in 62 chances. That's a pitiful 11.3% efficiency, even worse than 15.7% the Avalanche mustered last year and the 14.6% laugher under Joel Quenneville that created our power play kitten meme. Why has it been so bad? Losing John-Michael Liles has had an impact. It's probably not a coincidence that the PP collapse coincided with Liles' leaving the lineup; he was injured in the Toronto game. In a perfectly symmetrical stat, the Avalanche have had 44 PP opportunities this year with Liles in the lineup and 44 PP opportunities with him out of the lineup. With him in, they've scored 13 times (29.5%). Without? 4 (9.1%).That's ugly.

Compelling stats, but there's more to it. In the first 6 games, the Avalanche were getting something on the powerplay they have lacked for years: scoring from the point. Kyle Quincey was absolutely revitalizing in the early going and he, Liles and Brett Clark combined for 3 goals and 11 assists on the PP in the first 6 games. Since then, bone dry and I mean Mojave Desert dry. No goals for any of them. Liles has 2 assists (both in Friday's game). Quincey and Clark have just one PP assist each. What happened to them? In the last 4 games, Quincey hasn't even registered a shot on net (PP or otherwise). They have been so ineffective that Joe Sacco has resorted to using a forward on the point. It's working about as well as it did under both Joel Quenneville and Tony Granato. In other words, it isn't.

And how about that Kyle Quincey? When the Avalanche traded for him this summer, I was less than pleased. It wasn't so much a knock on Quincey (or Tom Preissing...don't ask me to go there right now) as I felt it was a mistake to trade Ryan Smyth. My argument was that the Avalanche had a fair number of manageable defensemen, while they were thin offensively and at left wing. And that was before the sudden maturation of Kyle Cumiskey or the surprising play of Ryan Wilson. For a while, it looked like Quincey would sway me. In an interview for Second City Hockey's fan program back in October, I said the following:

Quincey has been a GREAT fit for us defensively. He is already paying dividends. The Avs have been looking for a PP quarterback for eons and his crisp passes have already started a boatload of breakaways at even strength.

What happened to those dividends? Did the board of directors vote to suspend them? Where did that PP quarterbacking go? Where did those breakout passes go? What about the big hits he was throwing around in the first couple of weeks? What's with all the stupid penalties all of a sudden (6 minor penalties in the last 4 games)? Is he still an upgrade for our defense? Yes. Has he been playing so far above the guys in the pressbox to warrant the trade of Smyth? No. I mean, Ruslan Salei can take bad penalties and do nothing on the PP just as well as Quincey has done lately. Speaking of Salei, he's set to return from his back injury soon. With all that defensive depth I talked about, is he even going to play? Or are we just going to pay Salei and Preissing $5.775 million to watch from the press box?

While I'm aware that moving Smyth was a salary move, you'd like to see a big trade like that make your team better. Smyth, in case you missed it, has 23 points in 22 games this year. Our #1 left wing, Wojtek Wolski, has a solid 20 points. No complaints there. After Wolski, though, our left wingers are providing butkus. Cody McLeod has 8 points. Darcy Tucker has 7. David Koci has 1. The Avalanche are so hard up at left wing that Marek Svatos (8 points) played there on Friday; he has 3 even strength points this year. I like Kyle Quincey, but wouldn't this team look much better right now with Ryan Smyth skating with Matt Duchene and Milan Hejduk rather than Svatos or Tucker?

Smyth's linemate this year is Anze Kopitar, who is tearing up the league (33 points). Smyth's linemate last year was Paul Stastny. While Stastny hasn't been terrible, he's been quieter than he should be. You may recall that when Kopitar signed his big extension with the Kings last year, I opined that that deal would be the ballpark for Stastny's upcoming extension. Sure enough, when Stastny signed his extension about a month later, it was just $200,000 less per season than Kopitar's. How's that worked out for the respective teams? For the Kings, really well. Here are Kopitar's numbers before signing his extension and his numbers since:

Before: 155 GP 52G 86A 138P -29 .89 PPG (points per game)
Since: 105GP 41G 58A 99P -10 .94 PPG

Since becoming rich, Kopitar hasn't rested on his laurels. In fact, he's increased his scoring production. You know what's coming next.

Before: 164GP 55G 109A 164P +16 1.00 PPG
After: 52GP 12G 29A 41P -3 .79 PPG

Stastny's production has slipped since signing his extension. Now, .79 PPG is not terrible, but it is a decline. That's a 65-point season, something 50 players managed last year. In fact, only 5 teams didn't have a player get to 65 points (want to guess one of them?). It's good, but it's not great. It's not quite $6.6 million worth, not quite highest-paid-on-the-team great, not quite 21st-highest-paid forward-like. It's hard to pick on a guy who leads the team in scoring, but Paul Stastny needs to be doing more and he needs to do it on a more consistent basis. Stastny is held off the scoresheet on too many nights and, in fact, is in the longest goal-scoring drought of his career (12 games). When he was a 2nd line center and the Avalanche had other weapons, this would have been okay. They don't have other weapons.

I'm already running long, so I'll have to speed through the rest of this. Craig Anderson has a 3.39 GAA and .885 Save Percentage in November and lately he's been making us think fondly of Jose Theodore's awful stickhandling. Perhaps we should hold off on giving him the keys to the city for a while longer. Our PK was terrific in October (12.9%) but it's been dreadful since (26.3%). The Avalanche were supposed to be harder to play against under Joe Sacco, but the Avs are giving up more shots per game than they did under Tony Granato and they are hitting substantially less (from about 10 per game to 6). How is that better?

At the end of October, Joe Sacco looked like a coach of the year candidate for the way he had turned this team around. In just 3 weeks, that's gone away. Although they are still high in the standings, they are looking more and more like last year's team - no scoring, defensive lapses, inconsistent goaltending. With another bad week, the Avs could be out of the top 8 altogether (they are just 5 points ahead of the 11th place Canucks).

Personally, I think the next few weeks are going to be very interesting. As we approached the start of the season, it seems like most of us fans felt that this season wouldn't be so much about winning as losing as it would be about effort and player development. That's going to be put to the test shortly, I'm afraid. Will we be frustrated with repeated losses? Or will we really be content to watch guys like Wojtek Wolski, David Jones and Kyle Cumiskey who are having career years (Cumiskey has already set a career high, and Jones needs just 2 more points to do the same) as well as seeing kids like Matt Duchene, Ryan O'Reilly and Ryan Wilson blossom? It will be an adjustment for sure, but not all that new for us. After all, we were 3 games over .500 and in 8th place as late as January 10th last year. I think we all know how that ended for us.

Canucks-Avalanche Game Preview

Sean Zandberg — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:00:15 -0000

GAME TIME: 7:00 PST

TV: Sportsnet Pacific

The Enemy: Mile High Hockey

UPDATE: (2:19 PM): The Avalanche will get both John-Michael Liles and TJ Galiardi back into their lineup tonight. Both have missed a fair bit of time. Adam Foote is out with a jaw injury.

UPDATE (12:24 PM): With Daniel Sedin returning to action on Sunday, the Canucks have waived Matt Pettinger. Even so, Pettingzoo will play for the Canucks tonight. Thanks for the fine, hard-nosed work out there, Matt. Appreciated! Good luck to you.

**************************

First the good news: According to the Sun it is official: Daniel Sedin skated for a full practice with his mates on Friday and felt pain-free. That being said, Dank will not play on Friday against Colorado, but is good-to-go for Sunday's game against the pesky Blackhawks. He just needs to get back into game shape. I can't wait. I strongly believe his return will have a positive impact on the whole team as Mike and I alluded to a while ago.

The long layoff has allowed the Flames to play some games and catch up to us as far as games played goes. Now they are only 1 game behind us instead of 3 or 4. They are 1-2 in the 3 bouts played this week while we sat by idly picking the crap from between our teeth.

That's about it for the good news. So let's dig in with the rest!

Alexandre Burrows has been playing with nagging groin and hip flexor issues thanks to a crushing hit from Kings' Drew Doughty on October 29th. Don't remember that hit? Check it out here.

After the Canucks destroyed the Avalanche 8-2 last weekend, Colorado and Craig Anderson responded with a 3-2 win over the Flames 3 days later. Anderson faced 36 shots (typical of the Avalanche) in that one and rebounded masterfully. The next night, Colorado faced the Oilers and put Peter Budaj in net to give Anderson a rest. Budaj faced 33 shots (see a trend there?) and allowed 5 goals against (and the Oilers scored an empty netter) to win that game 6-4. Many pundits are now wondering if it's all downhill for the Avalanche from here. I'm not one of them. I think Anderson is for real.

So now the Canucks get to face a squad that will be thirsty for revenge after the 8-2 slaughter. This after almost a 6 day layoff between games. If Vancouver comes out of the gates slow - which is quite possible - Roberto Luongo is going to have to save them until they get their legs back under them. They will have to get in Anderson's face again like last game. That was so effective.

The pressure continues to mount on Kyle Wellwood who, with Daniel still out, will most likely get another chance as a 2nd line center to break out of his terrible scoring slump.

"Sooner or later he is going to have to produce," Alain Vigneault said Wednesday. "It's a performance-based business and our injuries are coming back . . .Kyle is a bright guy, I know he is very aware of the situation. He knows that not only does he have to play well, there has to be production on his part.

"I'm sure he is aware that he is getting a second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth chance because of our personnel situation. He has to get it done."

There is also heat on the Canucks' defencemen (minus Christian Ehrhoff especially) to start putting up points. It's not necessarily scoring goals, as most team blocks shots like a bunch of kamikaze's nowadays, but to put up assists. Sami Salo risked a potential mouth injury by saying:

"Look at Ryan Johnson. Try to get the puck through him. He throws his head at the puck and those guys [shot-blockers] are the best penalty killers. They sacrifice their bodies -- and I'm not saying they didn't 10 years ago, but it's way more now. If you don't have a shooting lane, you have to shoot the puck short side and that's what we've been doing."

Still though, Sami, you have 20 shots and 2 assists in 14 games played. We need more!

Did you know:

-The Canucks have scored 60 goals this season. The D have contributed 8 to that cause. That's 13.3%

- The Canucks have tallied 104 assists so far. The D have a combined 38 assists. That's 36.5%.

-The defence has contributed 27.9% of the Canucks total points scored.

Last season the defence accounted for:

-15.2% of the team's goals scored.

-32.4% of the overall assists.

-26% of Vancouver's overall points.

Wait a minute...unless my math is off, those numbers are not so far off comparatively. Damn it forwards! Get your shit together!

***Just to throw this out there...some of us like to predict the score of the games here. So I was thinking that we should continue that trend. I'll make a little section on the left sidebar with a leaderboard to see who has the best Nostradamus skills as the year goes along. Bragging rights. Are you in? Keep in mind that nobody gets to pick the same score.

Game 22 Preview: Avalanche at Oilers

David Driscoll-Carignan — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:41:51 -0000


Colorado Avalanche	7 MT / 9 ET / 2 GMT	Edmonton Oilers
13-5-3	November 18th, 2009	8-10-3
29 pts	Rexall Place	19 pts
2nd in West	Edmonton, AB	12th in West

The Colorado Avalanche won a big, big game last night but we don't have a lot of time to celebrate. Tonight, the Avalanche complete their 4th set of back-to-back games this year when they take on the Oilers in Edmonton. So far, the Avs are 7-0-0 in back-to-backs. I hope I didn't jinx anything there...

Last night's effort was terrific and much-needed. As an added bonus, it pissed off the Flames so much that someone allegedly called out Dion Phaneuf. Man, I just hate to see stuff like that happen. The Avalanche showed that, while they aren't the most offensively gifted teams in the league, they can win with hustle, hard work, defensive commitment...Craig Motherfucking Anderson.

Speaking of Anderson, Joe Sacco hasn't named his starter tonight (as of yet). But since Anderson has already started - and won - all of the previous back-to-back starts, I can't imagine Sacco will make a change. I'll update this once ~~Anderson is confirmed~~ a starter has been named. [UPDATE: Budaj is in net tonight. -Joe] Likewise, no word yet on the status of Adam Foote, T.J. Galiardi, John-Michael Liles, Ruslan Salei, Matt Hendricks, Jimmy Hoffa or that annoying guy in those old Dell commercials. We'll probably have news on at least a few of those guys as the day progresses. (And, since I'm off today, I'll actually be able to make timely updates).

After a solid start to the year, the Oilers are struggling big time. They have just one win in their last 8 games. Unfortunately, I think you all know who that one win came against: the Colorado Avalanche (thanks to, approximately, 87 power play goals). Their possibly-accurate HockeyCentric line combos are here.

I don't know why, but I have a feeling this is going to be a wild one.

Avalanche vs Oilers coverage

The Copper & Blue

Where is Tyler Arnason Today? For some reason, I think it might be fun to keep track of Tyler Arnason as he sleepwalks through Russia. Today, Arnason and his teammates (including Riga captain Sandis Ozolinsh) are in Moscow to take on Spartak.

View Larger Map

Game 20 Preview: Canucks at Avalanche

David Driscoll-Carignan — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 15:24:41 -0000


Vancouver Canucks	8 MT / 10 ET / 3 GMT	Colorado Avalanche
10-10-0	November 14th, 2009	12-4-3
20 pts	Pepsi Center	27 pts
t-9th in West	Denver, CO	2nd in West

The Avalanche host the Vancouver Canucks tonight, a game Joe Sacco has called "must win" (geez, he throws that phrase around like our own Joe does*). But this game is really about one thing: the jerseys. The Avs wear their new ~~revenue source~~ third jerseys tonight for the first time. We've all seen them by now, but this will be our first chance to see them on the ice. For those of us who can stay up that late, that is. (For the record, no recap from me tonight)

Craig Anderson will start for the Avs. Tom Preissing could make his season debut (I think he will) and Milan Hejduk could return as well (bank on that). Ruslan Salei took part in a full practice Friday, so he's close to returning too - but I don't think we'll see him yet. John-Michael Liles and TJ Galiardi are getting closer, but they won't play. Philippe Dupuis has been returned to Lake Erie.

For the Canucks, Roberto Luongo is back and he's the presumed starter tonight (thank goodness, as I don't think I could stomach getting shut out by Andrew Raycroft again). One of the Sedins is out (no, not that one, the other one. Or is it? I can't tell). The Canucks still have a very potent powerplay but are so-so at even strength. They have 18 goals at 5 on 4 and 28 at 5 on 5. The Avs have 11 PP goals and 36 5 on 5.

I am very excited today as we're taking the kids to Boston to see Star Wars in Concert. I've heard nothing but raves about this, and my kids are stoked (even my daughter who is under the weather). Why am I mentioning this? I actually do have a reason. My wife and I debated going to this for quite some time, as tickets were something like $60 each. To me, that was a lot of money for a concert. While we ultimately relented (and I'm glad we did), it occured to me later that that's considerably less than I would pay for one hockey game. To see the Bruins, only a handful of shitty seats are under $60. Where we're sitting for Star Wars (Loge 9), B's tickets cost $130 (plus fees) to see the crap teams and $150 to see the good teams. To me, that is an insane amount of money to spend on one hockey game. Playoff game? Sure. Beyond that, I can't justify spending $300 for tickets alone for my wife and I to go to a game (nevermind the price for parking, food and street hookers). We've been to 2 hockey games in the last 5 years, and both were special occasions (once for my birthday and once as a Christmas present for my wife). I really don't mind spending all the wads of cash I rake in from this site (ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha), but $300 for a single hockey game? Not worth it. I know lots of you have weighed in on the reasons for the Avs' attendance woes. As of this 10am this morning, I could buy tickets for great seats next to the glass (sect 130, row 1) for tonight's game...at $216 a pop. To me, that's just simply too much. Call me when tickets are $20.

*[Geez, you make a mistake two years ago and they never let you hear the end of it. Tough crowd. -Joe]

Canucks vs Avalanche coverage

Nucks Misconduct

Preview

Beware Of The Canuck Killer: Canucks-Avalanche Preview

Sean Zandberg — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 08:00:30 -0000

GAME TIME: 7:00 PST

TV: CBC

THE ENEMY: Mile High Hockey, Jibblescribbits, Jerseys and Hockey Love

The Province put out an article called "Canuck Killer On The Loose" on April 1, 2008. At that time, Milan Hejduk, who began his career in 1998, had scored 32 goals in 54 games in his career against Vancouver. 9 of those goals were game winners. That was and still is more than Joe Sakic or even Jarome Iginla have scored against us. I decided to dig into his stats a little further, but could only start at the 2001-02 season, as that was how far back Hejduk's game-to-game stats would go on ESPN's site.

Since that season, Hejduk has played 46 games against the Canucks. He has scored 23 goals, 19 assists and 42 points. The Avalanche have a 25-19-2 record against us since then. Colorado won 13 of the games where Hejduk scored a goal. They have won 18 of the games where he registered at least a point. Since that Province article came out, Hejduk has 2 goals and 5 assists in 8 games against Vancouver. Canuck killer indeed.

So why all this Hedgeduck talk? Well, barring him getting hit by a bus or an errant Canuck fan's bullet, he should make his return to the Avalanche lineup tonight after missing 2 games with a sore back. Colorado lost both games in his absence.

The Avs could see the debut of Tom (Not-So Discount) Preissing as well. TJ Galiardi, Ruslan Salei and John-Michael Liles remain out of the lineup.

Coach Joe Sacco is putting the heat on his team, saying Friday:

"We talked briefly after practice and it’s a must-win for us," said Sacco. "It’s a team that’s played well against us. The last time we played them in Vancouver they took it to us. We need to respond with a good effort tomorrow night."

This is the last game of Vancouver's 5-game road trip. They are currently 1-3. After this game, they travel home for a 5-day layoff and will meet the Avalanche again on the 20th. There should be some bad blood brewing after these 2 games. After the game on the 20th, Vancouver will not play the Avs again until March 9. Thank...god? We'll see.

Craig Anderson will start in goal for the Avs. Despite 2 setbacks against the Oilers and Canucks recently, his stats are still super, as is his play. Concerning for Canucks fans, as Van can't score! You never know what will happen though.

-Avs are 6-1-0 at home this season.

-AV looks to use the same lines and line-up tonight:

Kesler-Hank-~~Wellwood~~ Raymond

Samuelsson-Wellwood-Burrows

Bernier-Rypien-Pettinger

Glass-Johnson-Hansen

Mitchell-Bieksa

Edler-Salo

Schneider-Ehrhoff

-Vigneault told The Province that he liked what he saw from Wellwood last game and that, of course, he needs to start scoring.

-Colorado unveiled their new 3rd jersey on Friday and will don them for the first time against the Canucks. Nice-looking uni's I must say, except for the damned clowns wearing them.