If one had a dollar for every time Joel Quenneville changed up his lines last season, he or she could go to a swanky establishment for a nice steak dinner with all the trimmings.
So the fact that the Avalanche coach already has changed the makeup of three of his four lines from Wednesday’s opening night should not alarm people. However, the fact is the Avs have scored just two goals in each of the first two games and have yet to get a victory.
In today’s parity-driven NHL, particularly the brutally tough Western Conference, Quenneville knows he can’t wait too long for results – even if tonight’s game against Vancouver at the Pepsi Center is just the third contest of the season.
At Saturday’s practice, Quenneville had four new line combinations. On the first line, Ian Laperriere was skating with Joe Sakic and Andrew Brunette. Milan Hejduk was dropped to the second line, with Paul Stastny and Wojtek Wolski.
Marek Svatos, who tied for the team lead with 32 goals last season, was moved to a line with Tyler Arnason and Brad Richardson.
“We’re not unhappy with the lines. We’re just making some alterations,” Quenneville said. “We’ve got a lot of nice choices. I think we’ve got balance on three lines, and I think all four can score.”
Quenneville did say he has not been happy with his team’s offensive play at even strength. Of the four goals the Avs have scored, two have come at even strength, one was on the power play and one was short-handed. Two of the four goals have been scored by Richardson.
Hejduk, counted on to have a big season, was moved to a line with youngsters Wolski and Stastny to lend experience, Quenneville said.
“Playing with the two kids, he gets some responsibility,” Quenneville said. “This is a good time to see some of the different chemistry you get from line (combinations).”
Quenneville has not changed up any of his defensive pairings, and Jose Theodore will get the start in goal against Vancouver.
“We’ve played two games and don’t have a win, but we do have two points to show for it,” Laperriere said. “I think we’ve played two games where one bad period has cost us a little bit, but we’re going to keep working to improve and hopefully get our first win (tonight).”
Adrian Dater can be reached at 303-954-1360 or adater@denverpost.com.
