DALLAS — For one or two roster hopefuls, their performance in the Avalanche’s 2-1 loss to the Stars on Thursday night helped their cause, and for a few others it hurt their chances of sticking around into the regular season.
On the positive side, Philippe Dupuis, a fifth-year pro with just 12 NHL games on his resume, displayed impressive energy, defensive-zone awareness and even a little offensive flair to boost his prospects of making the opening night lineup.
“I think that’s the kind of game I wanted,” said Dupuis, who earned an assist on the Avs’ only goal, a Kevin Porter score early in the third period that put Colorado up 1-0. “Be good in my zone, on the PK — and if I can chip in offensively, that’s great. But my main job is to be physical and be good in my own zone, and that’s what I did tonight. So I’m pretty happy.”
In addition to his assist, Dupuis registered a plus-1, had two shots on goal and won 3-of-4 faceoffs.
“I like Phil’s game tonight, I thought he played hard,” Avs coach Joe Sacco said. “I thought he had good competition in his game, and he’s another guy that’s battling for a spot. You want guys to make the decisions hard for you, not easy.”
For a couple of the other forwards attempting to land a job, the night wasn’t so great.
Mark Olver had an up-and-down night, generating a few offensive chances but also taking an ill-advised slashing penalty late in the third period that allowed Dallas to tie the score 1-1 on the ensuing power play.
Ryan Stoa and Patrick Bordeleau received just 8:56 and 6:07 of ice time, respectively, and did nothing to distinguish themselves.
On defense, rookie Colby Cohen damaged his chances with a performance that included some strong offensive moments but also a third-period hooking penalty. He was also on the ice during the final minute, with goaltender Craig Anderson on the bench for an extra attacker, but his shot from the left point was blocked, leading to Dallas clearing the zone.
“We’re trying to give him a look, we’re trying to give him an opportunity to show us what he can do,” Sacco said. “He’s a right-handed shot. We had a faceoff in the offensive zone, he ended up getting the puck but he didn’t get it through. Those are the things that young players just have to continue to work on. It’s a process. He’s just got to keep battling, he’s fighting for a spot.”
“Not my best performance,” said Cohen, who had seven shots, but only got one on net. “Hopefully, I’m still here tomorrow, we’ll see. It’s a day-by-day thing. Hopefully I get another chance. I just need to make better all-around decisions.”
The other rookie defenseman looking to make the squad, Norwegian Jonas Holos, didn’t do much to stand out in 19:21 of ice time, but he also didn’t seem to hurt his chances, either.
