You think the Avs are keeping their head above water this season? The Avs have a total of 18 wins in 63 games since 2011 started. Worse yet, the Avs have won just 5 of 63 games in regulation:

1/14/2011 Colorado Avalanche 4 Minnesota Wild 1

1/24/2011 Colorado Avalanche 4 St. Louis Blues 3

10/10/2011 Colorado Avalanche 1 Boston Bruins 0

10/13/2011 Colorado Avalanche 7 Ottawa Senators 1

10/30/2011 Colorado Avalanche 3 Los Angeles Kings 2

Only three of those came against Western conference opponents. 

The only NW Division win in regulation during this period is the Wild. Once, in January. The only division games we've won in 2011 are Edmonton (twice), Wild (once), and Vancouver (also once). Even when we win, we're gaining little ground on the teams which have the most bearing on our playoff chances.

Finally, a mere three of our wins come from Western conference opponents. Even in those wins, CBJ and CHI still gained a point in the standings - hardly helping our own cause. 

This team is mediocre. The roster holes are huge, and that's on management (Kobasew and Lindstrom). The coaching is terrible and has been since Sacco came in. Getting to the playoffs his first season was the fluke, last season was more representative what this team is currently capable of.

Try to convince me otherwise, but these numbers paint a terrible picture of Sacco and management. They need to go, and the Avs need to bring in someone fresh from outside the organization. Sure, the people are different, but it's pretty obvious that the operating manual for the Avs hasn't been meaningfully revised in years. At this point, I'm really believing that Lefebvre's defense is just Cloutier's system with a little more hitting, for example.

"The Colorado Avalanche Hockey Club announced today that the organization has relieved six members of its hockey operations staff from their respective duties.

The list includes head coach Tony Granato, assistant coaches Jacques Cloutier and Dave Barr, goaltending coach Jeff Hackett, Assistant to the General Manager Michel Goulet and video coordinator PJ DeLuca.

The Avalanche will make an announcement regarding its new management structure later today."

http://avalanche.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=424785

[UPDATE: DDC Here...]

Amazingly, Craig Billington is not the new GM. It's Greg Sherman. Billington becomes Assistant GM. Eric Lacroix becomes Director of Nepotism sorry, looks like that's President of Hockey Operations (Billington formerly was VP of Hockey Operations) and David Oliver (Lake Erie's GM) to be named Director of Player Development.

The fired staff members have already been removed from the Avalanche site by some highly efficient folks. Let's not forget that these are some good people who've lost their jobs, some of whom have been with this franchise for a long, long time.

http://blogs.denverpost.com/avs/2009/05/27/roy-story/

"After two weeks of intensive deliberation, Patrick Roy has decided not to coach the Avalanche.
Late Tuesday night, Roy phoned Avalanche president Pierre Lacroix to tell him that, because of family reasons, Roy will not accept the Avs’ offer to coach the team this coming season. Roy will continue with the Quebec Remparts of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, but said the door is not shut at his returning to the Avs at some point in the future."

So much for that coaching angle. Guess Lacroix will actually have to conduct some interviews... maybe?