With general manager Francois Giguere continuing to stand pat despite a roster decimated by injuries, Avalanche coach Tony Granato has no choice but to keep trying to find solutions from within.
In the last two weeks, Granato has made some significant changes to his lineup, including moving Wojtek Wolski from left wing to first-line center and Milan Hejduk from right to left wing. He has shown a willingness to try just about every conceivable line combination, and has often mixed and matched his defensive pairings.
Granato has had the same two choices as his goaltender all season, however, and tonight against the streaking Calgary Flames he will alternate a different goalie for the fourth consecutive game by going with Peter Budaj.
Budaj, by playing tonight, will have started two of the last four games, along with Andrew Raycroft. But the word “platoon” is more suited for an Oliver Stone film than his goaltending situation, Granato said Saturday.
“I wouldn’t call it that,” Granato said.
Budaj is 2-7-0 in his last nine starts, but he hasn’t gotten much offensive support in that time. There have been two shutouts against the Avs in those nine games, and they’ve been held to three goals or fewer in six of them.
“If you look at the big picture, Peter’s played pretty good for us this year, as has Rayzor,” Granato said. “I’m looking forward to getting him in there (tonight) and expect him to play a great game.”
Ever the optimist, Granato believes better days are ahead for his team, despite three straight losses and the continuing absence of his top two centers (Joe Sakic and Paul Stastny), a top-four defenseman (Adam Foote) and a heart-and-soul utility forward (Ian Laperriere).
“We have to just keep striving to improve and shore up a couple of little things that can make the difference in a game,” Granato said.
“We lost a tough one (Friday against Edmonton), and we have to put it behind us and try to get back on a winning footing against a team that is playing very well right now.”
Wolski, held without a point in his last two games after six points in his previous three, calls tonight’s game “critical.”
“We don’t want to lose a fourth straight game,” he said. “We need these two points badly. We’re playing the division leader, and they’re going to be tough, but we have to find a way to win this game.”
Adrian Dater: 303-954-1360 or adater@denverpost.com
Notebook
Avalanche: Defenseman Adam Foote (triceps injury) skated for about 45 minutes Saturday, including a partial participation in team practice. But Foote won’t play tonight and probably won’t until after the NHL all-star break, coach Tony Granato said. Neither will forward Ian Laperriere (back). . . . Right wing David Jones (back) won’t play tonight, but might be ready to return for Wednesday’s game against Los Angeles. The same situation applies to center Philippe Dupuis, who is out with an unspecified injury.
Flames: Calgary entered Saturday’s game with Phoenix on a seven-game winning streak. . . . Defenseman Rhett Warrener (shoulder) is out indefinitely. . . . Forward Todd Bertuzzi, out the last two weeks with a lower-body injury, was expected to return to the lineup against the Coyotes.
