Dallas – Cute works on the pages of People magazine. Cute does not work in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
When Joel Quenneville used the word to describe the Avalanche’s play for much of Friday night’s Game 4 against the Dallas Stars, it was an indication things couldn’t have gone well for the Avs.
They didn’t. The Avs won the first three games of the series by scoring ugly goals, crashing the net and generally being a pain in the neck to Stars goalie Marty Turco.
In Game 4, they tried to fix what wasn’t broken, opting for the extra pass or the prettier move. The Stars won by playing meat-and-potatoes hockey. The loss left the Avs 1-6 in their past seven attempts to close out a playoff series.
Today in Game 5 at the American Airlines Center, the Avs hope to play simpler hockey to wrap up the series. If not, they will start hearing a lot more about the 1975 New York Islanders and 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs – the only teams in NHL history to win a postseason series after trailing 0-3.
“It’s going to be a big challenge to go into their building and get another one,” Avalanche right wing Ian Laperriere said. “But we have a good bunch of guys in this room, with a lot of character. We didn’t play the way we wanted in Game 4, but you have to give them some credit, too. They played hard, played desperate, and we have to have the same attitude.”
The Avs complicated things for themselves, Quenneville said, particularly in the second period.
“I think down around their net we were looking for maybe a better play,” Quenneville said. “We had a lot of opportunity around the net, but maybe we were a little too cute sometimes.”
Another problem area in Game 4 was Jose Theodore allowed two soft goals, including a long wrist shot to the far post by Jere Lehtinen that got Dallas on the scoreboard.
“I’d like to have all three goals back, obviously,” said Theodore, who hasn’t allowed a third-period goal in the series. “But you have to give them credit. They played a real solid game. We just have to realize this was just one game, just like in games we won. We’re up 3-1 and we have to win one game.”
Avalanche defenseman Rob Blake – probably Colorado’s best player in the series – was not happy his team gave the Stars some hope.
“They are right back in the series,” Blake said. “They have new life, and they are going to be hungry. We have to refocus. We’re up 3-1, but we can play better than this.”
The Avs’ top line needs to be better than it was in Game 4, as Joe Sakic and Milan Hejduk failed to get a shot on goal.
“I should have shot more when I had (the chance),” Hejduk said. “We were a little too fancy at times. We didn’t want to give them life, but it’s hard to (sweep) a team.”
While the Avs never have lost a series after leading 3-0, they have lost two series in which they led 3-1 – in 1998 to Edmonton and in 2003 to Minnesota.
“We have to stay confident and focused,” Laperriere said.
Adrian Dater can be reached at 303-820-5454 or adater@denverpost.com.
