Many considered Kyle Quincey the Avalanche’s second-best player, after Craig Anderson, in the first couple of months of the season. Thursday night, Quincey was a healthy scratch for the second time in five games.
With seven healthy defensemen at his disposal, Avs coach Joe Sacco said Quincey was benched because of what he felt is a dropoff in play.
“He’s still an important player for us,” Sacco said. “Kyle, I think, just has to get back to playing the way he was at the beginning of the season, with assertiveness in his game, a take-charge kind of attitude and not get caught in between. It’s an opportunity for him, I guess, to assess his situation and when he gets back in the lineup, come back strong for us.”
Porter debuts.
Kevin Porter became the fourth Hobey Baker Trophy winner to play a game with the Avalanche, and two others (Marty Sertich and Jason Krog) participated in previous Avs training camps.
Porter, who turns 24 today, skated on the Avs’ third line against the Panthers, one day after being called up from Lake Erie of the AHL.
“He gives us an extra guy to help kill penalties and has got good speed,” Sacco said. “It’s a great chance for him to come in and show us what he can do. With that line with (Ryan) O’Reilly, I think what we’re trying to do is get a little more offense out of that line.
“That’s not the main job of that line — its role is to play with some energy and be responsible defensively. But we’d like to see some added offense, and hopefully Kevin can help provide us with some.”
Porter, acquired last week as part of the trade that sent Wojtek Wolski to the Phoenix Coyotes for Peter Mueller, won the NCAA player of the year award at Michigan in 2008.
