Denver Post sports writer Adrian Dater posts his Avs Mailbag each Wednesday during the 2006-07 NHL season on DenverPost.com, which earned distinction for its online-exclusive series of Mailbags at this year’s Colorado AP Reporters and Editors Awards.
To drop a question into the Avs Mailbag or visit DenverPost.com’s .
What are the chances of the Avs picking up a physical defenseman?
— John Storr, Kelvington, Saskatchewan
John – I’d say that’s probably something high on the Avs’ priority list when it comes to filling the cap space vacated by the retirement of Steve Konowalchuk.
It’s clear the Avs could use a little more muscle and toughness in front of their goalies, and in the corners. They need a guy who can make opposing skaters look around and worry a big hit might be coming. Right now, they just don’t have it.
Rob Blake used to keep opponents honest coming over the blue line, as they didn’t want to get freight-trained by one of his frightening hits. I don’t think anybody on the Avs defense has had one of those kinds of hits all year. So, I think the answer is yes, they’ll go after another D-man at some point this year.
Is it just me or does it seem like Marek Svatos is a little timid to go into the corners this season and take contact. I recall in an earlier game this year he ducked a hit behind the net and got called for an unsportsmanlike penalty. Can you really blame him though, with all of his prior shoulder injuries?
— Martin Letain, Brandon, Manitoba
Martin – I don’t think timid is the word I’d use, as I think Svatos has still gone hard to the net and skating hard. He hasn’t had the kind of goal-scoring start that he or the Avs wanted, but he’s getting some assists and I think his overall game hasn’t been bad. Listen, with all the shoulder injuries this guy has had, maybe the word is “smarter” if he’s not crashing into boards as much. He doesn’t do the team any good if he’s on the injured list, so perhaps he’s playing less of a rougher game as a result. But if it prevents another shoulder surgery, I think that’s in his and the Avs’ best interest.
Dear Adrian: As a longtime season-ticket holder of the Avs, I’ve always been bothered by why replays of opponents’ goals are not shown on the Pepsi Center’s JumboTron after they’re scored? Is this a team-management decision?
— Mike, Denver
Mike – Yes, it is a team-management decision, and, yes, I think it’s a bit bush league as well.
The Avs have a lot of very good people working for them, and they’ve done a lot for this community. But there are times when they get a little too wrapped up in a kind of “hear no evil, see no evil” approach to things. I mean, who cares if you show a replay of an opposing team’s goal in the arena? Are they trying to pretend it didn’t happen? So why do they put the goal on the scoreboard then? It counted, so let’s see it again. Most arenas show the opposing goals, but not all.
It’s one thing as a business to want to try and prevent bad things from getting out to the public. But it’s a hockey game, and we know the Avs aren’t going to shut the other team out every night. Just show the goal and get on with life, and quit trying to act as if only one team is on the ice.
Hey, Adrian. I’ve been a huge Nordiques/Avalanche fan for the past 15 years. I’ve seen the lows in Quebec and the highs in Denver. Now that we are in a somewhat “rebuilding phase” (due to the new NHL and the cap system), do you think the fans in Denver will still strongly support the team or are they spoiled from having such a great team since their inception? Thanks.
— Chad Antle, St. John’s, Newfoundland
Chad – Well, , so I think that’s an indication that things have cooled a bit here. But it’s still a strong hockey market and a pretty good team.
Yes, Avs fans were spoiled right off the hop. I mean, they had a Stanley Cup team the first year the team was in town. That’s like a little kid getting ice cream for his first meal or something. Do you expect them to want brussels sprouts right after that?
The true fans will show up no matter what, and the bandwagon jumpers will come and go. That happens with every single team in every sport.
Dear Mr. Dater: Since last year, I’ve noticed the Avs seem to get more “too many men on the ice” calls than the opposing team. First, have you noticed this? Second, why would this be happening?
— Kyle Skatberg, Colorado Springs
Kyle – Yes, there have been a couple of games where this penalty has come back to bite them. Basically, too-many-men calls happen when a player comes off for a line change sooner than another teammate could get off.
Actually, I’m always amazed more penalties don’t happen. How these guys can always make sure five guys – and only five – are on the ice at the same time is pretty remarkable. Everything is so fast paced, and it’s got to be hard as a player or coach to always count the number of guys on the ice and keep track of the puck, etc., at the same time.
Coaches take those penalties very personally, and I’m sure Joel Quenneville will work hard to make sure they don’t happen much more.
It seems that Avs coach Joel Quenneville has an itchy finger when it comes to goalies. If I remember right, he was never satisfied with his goaltenders in St. Louis. At some point, does his going back and forth become a problem?
— Brian, Denver
Brian – Yes, Coach Q does have a quick hook for goalies. The evidence definitely supports that. Remember the 2001 Western Conference finals? Quenneville went with Brent Johnson in Game 5 in Denver, after Roman Turek played the first four games of the series. True, Turek wasn’t very good in that series, but switching goalies in the playoffs doesn’t happen very often.
Is it a problem? That’s debatable. On the one hand, I’m sure it keeps his goalies on their toes. They know they need to play well to stay in the lineup. On the other, I’m sure that can play on their nerves and make for a very pressurized life.
I thought perhaps Quenneville was a little too quick to make changes last season, using three goalies in a rotation at one point. I think players prefer playing in front of a goalie they know is going to be there most nights.
What are your thoughts on the Alex Tanguay trade? Personally, I think it was an awful move.
— Rob Duwa, Iowa City, Iowa
Rob – No, as time is going by, I think the trade is looking good. I know Jordan Leopold hasn’t played a game yet, but the kid is a good player and he’s going to make a difference when he does return.
But the thing people forget is the Avs also got two second-round draft picks for Tanguay. Let’s not forget how many good players the Avs have found in the draft over the years – including one recent second-round pick, Paul Stastny.
I think Tanguay is one talented player and did a lot of tremendous things for the Avs over the years (they probably owe their Game 7 Stanley Cup victory to him, in 2001), but I also think he was a player prone to slumps and injuries. I think Calgary has already noticed that as well.
Hey, Adrian! HELP!!! I have been a hockey fan for 30 of my 32 years of life and am an avid reader of The Hockey News (by the way … on the cover of a Kiss CD? Really?!), and I also pay $150/year for NHL Center Ice. The problem is that there seems to be no passion in any of these games … especially when I watch the Avs play at home. It seems that the fans just sit and watch like it’s a chess match. Do you see this as well, and what can we do about it?
— Gino Ughetti, Aurora
Gino – Actually, I’m not on the cover of a Kiss CD. But my name, face and words are on a Kiss DVD entitled “The Second Coming.”
I wrote a story for The Post a few years ago called “Confessions of a Kiss Fanatic.” The band put the image of the article on their DVD, in a montage of press clippings. The thing with mine was, it was the only one they actually showed twice. So there’s my claim to fame. That, and I’m probably the only sports writer with a Kiss pinball machine in his or her basement.
Now on to your question: I disagree that games are lacking passion and excitement now. I think that was definitely true for a few recent years, but the new rules have opened up the game a lot, and everybody loves the shootout.
Yes, you can come across a stinker now and then, but that’s going to happen in the regular season sometimes. Of course, there’s nothing like playoff hockey. So, keep the faith as a pucks fan and keep tuning in. Goodness knows the NHL needs as many as they can get right now.
Adrian Dater has covered the Colorado Avalanche since the team moved to Denver in 1995. To drop a question into his Avs Mailbag or visit DenverPost.com’s .
