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PostPosted: Fri Sep 14, 2018 4:36 pm 
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Some initial notes as training camp time is upon us...

Bednar said Tyson Jost was "too slow" last season (this is from a Dater tweet) and needed to slim down and get quicker. Jost switched trainers to Andy O'Brien this offseason and it appears to have worked.

The guy who'll likely be his winger, Alex Kerfoot, looks like he's also coming into camp in optimal condition. Everyone's got him pegged for regression, I think he'll surprise a few folks. No way he can maintain that ridiculous shooting % but he's already made a point of saying he needs to get the puck on net more.

Nikita Zadorov, still recovering from offseason shoulder surgery wore a non-contact jersey, then proceeded to initiate contact with everyone. :laugh:

Tyson Barrie pulled a muscle, they said it shouldn't be serious. Of course Mark Barberio had some minor pull that ended up costing him around a third of the season, so you could understand Avs fans being a bit uneasy about this.


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PostPosted: Sat Sep 15, 2018 2:25 am 
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From Friedman:

Quote:
14. You’ll remember that Washington traded defenceman Brooks Orpik to Colorado at the draft. The Avalanche bought out Orpik from the one season remaining on his contract, and he went back to the Capitals one month later. Savings for Washington: $4 million in cap space. A couple of weeks ago, the league notified the individual clubs that it reviewed the situation, and explained its concerns. Teams viewed the memo as a warning, that if the NHL could make an example of someone, it would.


All this over a goddamn defenseman who's probably should be 7th on a depth chart. Give it a rest. I'm sure this will be addressed in the next CBA.


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PostPosted: Sun Sep 16, 2018 12:49 pm 
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Reportedly Sammy Girard put on SIXTEEN pounds of muscle this offseason and by all accounts actually looks faster. Guess someone didn't take well to his old team taking runs at him in the defensive zone in the playoffs.


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PostPosted: Sun Sep 16, 2018 3:03 pm 
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Ruh-roh...

Quote:
Weird moment at the end of day. EJ slammed the bench door coming off and then smashed his stick against the wall heading to the locker room..
Dont want to speculate but definetly ominous


https://twitter.com/AvalancheReview/sta ... 5119876096


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PostPosted: Thu Sep 20, 2018 5:14 pm 
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One thing's for sure about Bednar: While he thankfully doesn't overvalue talentless grinders like so many of his fellow bench bosses, he is pretty clear that he wants his people to show up to start the year motivated and in prime physical condition. Nikita Zadorov was in less-than-ideal shape when he showed up last year and promptly landed in the doghouse. Now Bednar is hinting that he needs to see some motivation from Vlad Kamenev, who was acquired as part of the Duchene deal. Kam's got all the talent, but I'm of the understanding he isn't always the hardest worker out there. He's got a few more days and at least one more preseason game to prove he belongs. Unfortunately if he gets reassigned to the minors he'll likely just bolt for the KHL.


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PostPosted: Sun Sep 23, 2018 3:14 pm 
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7-0 loss in Minny but no biggie. Avs iced a whole lot of future cuts and youngsters while the Wylde went with their opening night lineup (minus Dubnyk).

Philipp Grubauer with a not-stellar showing but...whatever. It don't count.

Wish this preseason garbage didn't take so long. I'm ready to see real hockey already.


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PostPosted: Sun Sep 23, 2018 8:11 pm 
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Interesting about Grubauer -- wondering how last season's overwhelming highs and subsequent lows will affect his confidence.


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PostPosted: Sun Sep 23, 2018 9:02 pm 
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Logical Progression wrote:
Interesting about Grubauer -- wondering how last season's overwhelming highs and subsequent lows will affect his confidence.


Avs are tied to him no matter what going forward. They not only committed $$$ to the player himself, they have money locked up in the Orpik buyout that was part of the deal to get him. If he stumbles and Varly plays lights-out, it's gonna make for some tough decisions for Sakic at the deadline and subsequent offseason.

In an ideal situation, they phase out Varlamov and start next year with Grubauer/Francouz. But I can't imagine it'll go quite that smoothly.


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PostPosted: Mon Sep 24, 2018 1:23 pm 
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Bednar says he's not going to make any cuts until after the fourth preseason game. Avs have only played two, third one is tonight against the Golden Army.

These preseason schedules are ridiculous, even more so than the regular season schedule. I've said so before but there are way too fuckin' many of these games. Four TOPS, then get on with it.


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PostPosted: Thu Sep 27, 2018 11:57 am 
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Nic Meloche sent down. How's he looking? Still young.

_________________
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 30, 2018 4:55 pm 
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E.L. wrote:
Nic Meloche sent down. How's he looking? Still young.


I'm not sure, he's never been a very flashy guy, but he worked his way up from an ECHL demotion and played big minutes in San Antonio last season. If he makes it, it'll be a sign that the Avs' system might finally be on track, as they'll have finally developed a real, honest-to-goodness player. I suppose it helps his call-up chances that both Anton Lindholm and Conor Timmins are both out with injuries, but it doesn't help that they'll probably carry 8D into the season opener. He'll most definitely get a look at some point, just not sure when.


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PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2018 12:36 am 
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Avs round out the preseason with a win over Dallas and finish off 3-3.

Bring on the final cuts and games that actually count.


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PostPosted: Mon Oct 01, 2018 2:05 pm 
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Avs demote/waive a few more bodies, no one of real note except Mark Alt I guess, who is a decent-enough puckmover the Avs got off waivers from Philly last season. He signed a 2-year deal so I imagine he will clear.

Three guys (Timmins, Lindholm, and Andrighetto) will likely start the year on IR, which means Colorado only has to send down one of the remaining three forwards on the bubble. Of the three, I remain very high on Dominic Toninato, the team's best hope for a purely defensive forward.


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PostPosted: Tue Oct 02, 2018 1:23 pm 
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Opening Night Roster is SET

https://www.denverpost.com/2018/10/02/c ... witter.com

The likely lineup:

Landeskog - MacKinnon - Rantanen
Kerfoot - Jost - Wilson
Toninato - Compher - Calvert
Nieto - Soderberg - Bourque

Zadorov - Barrie
Girard - Johnson
Cole - Barberio

Varlamov
Grubauer

Extras: Dries, Nemeth, Alt
IR: Kamenev, Lindholm, Andrighetto
Non-Roster IR: Timmins

I'm totally spitballing on that "third" line, those others we've seen in preseason. Pairings are pretty much set as well, though somewhat surprising to read that Barbs and Cole have been practicing today as the third pairing when it was assumed Nemeth had that #6 spot locked up.

Is it a great lineup? Well, not really, at least not on paper. Sucks that Ghetto is already hurt and could miss up to a month, and that Kamenev is already starting out the season the way he spent most of last year.

But...lo and behold, that actually looks like a totally legit top-four on defense. How long has it been since I could say that!?


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PostPosted: Tue Oct 02, 2018 5:05 pm 
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Woop, spoke too soon, Alt sent down, and apparently Lindholm is okay. Zadorov was a bit of a question mark but is okay. To the horror of all Avs fans, MacKinnon apparently took a nasty slash on the arm during Colorado's preseason finale but is reportedly okay. Now I'm reading J.T. Compher might be a little banged up, which is unfortunately par for the course for him.


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PostPosted: Fri Oct 05, 2018 1:06 pm 
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All but two Central teams won in game one. Conversely, 4 of 6 Pacific teams dropped their openers.

Obviously WAY early, but I do think the Central is gonna be a bloodbath.


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PostPosted: Fri Oct 05, 2018 3:27 pm 
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Far and away the most annoying conversation in Avs HF Boards is between the TRADE BARRIE NOW camp and the UH CAN WE WAIT A YEAR AT LEAST camp. He's a UFA come 2020 and will likely command a gigantic contract. Some fans are already saying "Deal him! Sam Girard is gonna be a superstar and we got Cale Makar and Conor Timmins!" even though the latter two have yet to play a professional game and Timmins has already dealt with two very serious injuries the past two years.

I think Barrie will eventually be deal, but FFS, why do people want him gone now!?


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PostPosted: Sun Oct 07, 2018 2:37 am 
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Avs played the Philadelphia Grittys and won 5-2. Fifth goal was an empty netter from MacKinnon.

Colin Wilson with far and away his best game as an Av. Two goals on the night and lo and behold, the Avalanche got that secondary scoring they were so desperate for last season after the Duchene deal.

Sammy Girard with an unreal setup on JT Compher's goal through traffic. He also sprung a couple guys for breakaways. Special player. Erik Johnson also had a monster night.

Both goalies were good, and all four of them that were suited up in this contest (Elliott, Pickard, Varlamov, Grubauer) have been on Colorado's roster at some point.

Some bad miscues here and there but every team has those. 1st unit power play is a bit of a mess, 2nd unit is actually looking more effective.

Pretty solid start thus far.


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PostPosted: Wed Oct 10, 2018 12:58 am 
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I came close to a "Sam Girard Bois/Wood" thread but decided against it. Don't want to jinx the kid. But maaaaaaaan is he impressive as all hell. He bulked up this offseason and looks even faster than last season. Also, he's one of the most capable, if not the most capable defender at both ends of the ice. Tyson Barrie has a stronger shot, but Girard is a better outlet passer and better defensively. It's way early but it'd be something if the #1 defenseman the Avs have been trying so hard to develop got dropped in their laps as a result of the Duchene trade.

First loss of the season, 5-2 stinker against the Blue Jackets. Avs were not a good team on the road last season, so this is not the start they wanted, but...it's Game Three. Sabreland on Thursday.


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PostPosted: Fri Oct 12, 2018 12:56 pm 
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Dominant win over the still-kinda-hapless Sabres. Two power play goals, two goals from MacKinnon.


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