Brad Richardson had scored in two of the 27 games he had played this season for the Los Angeles Kings, with the Avalanche next up on the schedule Tuesday.
Naturally, Richardson scored — because that’s what you do if you’re a former Avs player.
The list of former Avs who have burned Colorado with goals is a long one, and Richardson added to it in the Kings’ 5-0 victory at the Pepsi Center that ended the Avalanche’s six-game winning streak. It was the first time the Avs were shut out this season.
“It’s tough to end this good streak on this note. We had a pretty poor game,” Avs center Matt Duchene said. “We didn’t get the bounces either tonight, but you don’t get the bounces when you don’t work hard enough.”
Whether they are star players or fringe players, they all seem to get a goal on the Avs, with Richardson a prime example. Of his five goals this season, four have come at the Pepsi Center against the Avs. He recorded the hat trick Oct. 23, then went without a point in his next 11 games. He had gone without a goal in nine straight contests entering this one, but had an easy time one-timing Drew Doughty’s centering pass at 6:31 of the second period to put Los Angeles ahead 2-0.
Dustin Brown had a four-point night for the Kings, with two goals and two assists.
“We’ve got to watch the tape of this one, then put it right in the garbage,” said Avs goalie Craig Anderson, who finished with 27 saves. “But tomorrow the sun will rise and we’ve got to think about our next game and be better.”
While the Avs had a few dangerous flurries against Kings goalie Jonathan Quick, they couldn’t get their skating game going against the Kings’ big, strong lineup. While most teams have trouble adjusting to the Avs’ speed, the Kings not only have it in good supply, they are vastly bigger, especially up front.
When the Kings get the puck in the offensive zone, big forwards Anze Kopitar, Michal Handzus, Wayne Simmonds, Ryan Smyth and Alexei Ponikarovsky — to name a few — make it difficult to get them out of a cycling game around the boards.
“They played a desperate game, more than us,” Avs captain Adam Foote said. “They were finishing off a long road trip and came in and played a desperate road game. We looked a little flat, whether we were flat or because of their game plan. Probably a combo.”
The Avs had no answers for Kopitar all night, particularly the line of Duchene, Tomas Fleischmann and David Jones. Fleischmann had his first bad game with the Avs since coming over from Washington, going a minus-3 with some sluggish back-checking.
“We had some breakdowns. On their first goal, I was out of position and we started running around a bit and it ended up in the back of our net,” Duchene said. “We’ve got to put this one behind us, but at the same time learn from it.”
Adrian Dater: 303-954-1360 or adater@denverpost.com
Avs Recap
The Post’s three stars
1. Dustin Brown.
Kings forward had two goals and two assists.
2. Anze Kopitar.
Big Kings center had two assists and several other good scoring chances.
3. Rob Scuderi.
Scored his first goal in 158 games for Kings.
What you might have missed
The Avs lost in regulation for the first time in five games this season wearing their third jerseys (3-1-1).
Up next
Vs. Minnesota, Thursday at 7 p.m.
Adrian Dater, The Denver Post
