Calgary dropped the Red Wings last night 2-1, pulling 6 points ahead of the Avs in the playoff race. I didn’t watch all of the game, but it looked like the Flames stepped up their game last night - nothing like a little pressure to kick your game into high gear.
Colorado has a chance to keep pace tonight, taking on the Oilers in Edmonton. Edmonton has dropped 11 in a row, is ravaged by injuries, and has angered fans by trading away Ryan Smyth. In other words, it has all the makings of a trap game for the Avs. The Avalanche have struggled in games like this - 14-12-2 against teams with less than 80 points. This is not a game they can take lightly.
Next up on the horizon? Hey, it’s Edmonton again on Friday. Meanwhile, the Flames will host the Nahsville Predators. Go mustard yellow guys.
Hot for the Avs: pretty much everyone, as the totals for the last 10 games reveal. Milan Hejduk has 7 goals and 14 points in his last 10 games. Peter Budaj has a 2.09 GAA in his last 8. John-Michael Liles and Jeff Finger are a combined +15 in the last 10 games. Only 1 Avalanche - Brad Richardson - has a negative +/- over the last 10 games (he’s -1).
Not hot: Tyler Arnason has just 3 points (all goals) in his last 10 games. Scott Parker and Marek Svatos are the only forwards to have less points, and they have played in just 6 and 4 games respectively.
10 games, 6 points; we pretty much have to win out.
So, are the Avs a better team with Parker of Svatos in the lineup (assuming the current 4th line duties)? Does Parker make a better fit on the 4th? Or does Svatos make up for it all by being an asset on the second power play unit and a possible shootout participant? I’m torn. I haven’t liked Svatos’ style of play all year. However, since he’s been back he has started to check and get aggressive towards the puck. I still don’t like how he cherry picks in front the net while his teammates are always doing the grunt work along the boards. Despite that I see the positives of having him in the lineup, and I’d be even more disinclinded to prefer him if Parker wasn’t so weak on the puck.
How about Parker vs Rycroft. Rycroft doesn’t really play PK anymore, and Parker is a better fighter, but Rycroft has much more skill and is more than willing to put his face in front of an opponent’s fist.
I’m with Selanne - I think the question is Rycroft or Parker. Parker if you need the fighting ability, Rycroft if you are looking for the energy route
PS I would LOVE to see Parker knock that whiny look off the face of Torres…
I don’t know, it would be interesting to see how that fourth line does without Rycroft. However, he’s a lot stronger with the puck that Parker and he uses his speed to be a “first to the puck” kind of player. I’ll admit I’m pretty darn proud of him for dropping the gloves the other night when the team needed the moxy. I kind of think Svatos is a 3rd wheel except in rare cases like a second power play unit or a shootout.
In my opinion, Svatos is in and it’s between Rycroft and Parker. Choosing between the two depends on what you need for that game- a more physical presence, or more energy, just like DD said. But either way Marek is in. I’m a fan of his so I’m biased, but I think he’s played well recently. Anyone who saw him last year knows what he’s capable of, and he’s shown flashes of that in the past few weeks. Also, I thought I sensed some chemistry between him and Arnason before his groin injury- maybe putting them together can spark production for both of them.