Nicolas Aube-Kubel – C He was generally fine, but that line just has no finish or ability to get pucks onto the net. It’s a lot of stuff from the outside. His passing was a letdown tonight. Had a nice look to Landeskog in the second but the pass was too far and went for icing. Bowen Byram – B+…...

The only positive way I can even think to spin this one for the Colorado Avalanche is that everyone knew this series would be a tough battle, everyone knew the Avalanche were going to have to fight through some adversity to get to where they want to go, and now they have a chance to go out and prove that…...

There aren’t a lot of moments in hockey I can earnestly say I’ll never forget. Kadri’s hat trick in this game has absolutely earned that status. The Avs continue to finish business taking a 3 – 1 series lead back home for Game 5. https://youtu.be/I1E8EbAc4_o

I want to start this off by being honest that I may not be the right voice or the right perspective for this piece. I’m a straight white guy who has lived in predominantly white areas all my life and the extent of the discrimination I’ve faced is that Colorado natives occasionally frown upon my admission that I grew up…

Nicolas Aube-Kubel – A Was it a bit of a surprise he stuck in the lineup over Burakovsky? Maybe, but he played terrific from the get-go, with some nice chances and actually created quite a few looks for himself and his linemates. Bowen Byram – A It’s actually kind of surprising that his time on ice was as low as…...

You know, there was so much drama and so many story lines ahead Game 4 between the Colorado Avalanche and St. Louis Blues, that you almost forgot that the two teams would eventually have to play the game instead of everyone just talking about it.  I probably don’t need to fill you in on the noise surrounding this game, it’s…...

A solid all-around game marred by injuries on both sides sees the Avs come out on top to take a 2 – 1 series lead. With production coming from every forward line the Avs seem to outmatch St. Louis. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgCPyXJygmM

Nicolas Aube-Kubel – B I think there’s a lack of skill beyond Burakovsky on that third line, but not a lack of effort. NAK is working hard all over the ice, and even though some of his puck decisions aren’t the best, he’s back checking hard and doing what he’s asked to do. Andre Burakovsky – C Threw a nice…...

We knew that the Round 2 matchup between the Colorado Avalanche and the St. Louis Blues was going to be an interesting one. We knew we would see back and forth games, physical play, and constantly shifting momentum.  As the series shift to St. Louis for Game 3, we got all of those things and then some. While there were…...

The Avs drop their first game of the playoffs to level their second-round series at 1 – 1 against the St. Louis Blues. With poor execution and a lack of urgency, this needs to be the Avs floor if they want to contend for the cup. https://youtu.be/hoTIHdoK6H8

Nicolas Aube-Kubel – C- Everyone will be pointing to getting him out of the lineup in place of Newhook, but I don’t know if that happens. NAK was on the ice with the net empty because he at least had some jump going. Andre Burakovsky – D It’s really getting hard to defend the constant pull-up, peel back and look…...

Hockey, like most facets of life I suppose, is built on some time-worn cliches that get us through things like game recaps. They become cliches, however, because at the core is almost always some level of truth found in there. One of hockey’s great truths is that you’re never in trouble in a playoff series until you lose a home…...

“You are who you want to be most.” – Brent Slade You don’t need to go searching for Mr. Slade as a famous individual. He was simply an old friend of mine who was kind and patient enough to listen to me lamenting how much I wished a life situation had turned out differently. As I bemoaned all the circumstances…...

Given his team is 5-0 in the postseason for the second straight season, there’s a sneaky amount of pressure on Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar right now. It’s not the kind of pressure that results in a coach losing his job (if that was ever even a possibility, it ended with the tidy sweep of the Predators), but with…...

The Avs get an elite performance out of Sam Girard and Josh Manson on their second pairing to escape OT with a W in Game 1 against the Blues. With dominant 5-on-5 play across the board, the Avs should feel confident going deeper into the series. https://youtu.be/cq_ym2Nbf3E

Nicolas Aube-Kubel – B In the first period, I was ready to declare it time to see Alex Newhook. But as the game went on, NAK started to turn up the heat. Threw a big hit on Kyrou in overtime along the wall, and played a big role in the Girard goal. He’s doing what’s asked of him. Andre Burakovsky…...

This morning, Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar addressed the media for what felt like the 20th time since his team last saw game action. Bednar wasn’t his usual chatty self, there were actually several times he gave one-word or one-line answers. I asked him what he was looking for out of Sam Girard, given the way his postseason performance…...

Here we go, Round 2 is finally all set and we are ready to go. We did ok in the first round in terms of our series predictions, but our props missed a little more than we would like. Let’s rectify that this time around, yeah? Tampa Bay +145 vs. Florida If you think Tampa is winning, this is great…...

What a Round 1. That was one of the more chaotic opening rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs that I can remember. The individual games weren’t always super close, but the overall series were fantastic. Plenty of interesting storylines, and some great matchups set up in Round 2, here’s where I see every team that’s still standing. 1. Tampa Bay…...