Denver Post NHL reporter Adrian Dater posts his Avs Mailbag on Wednesdays during the 2010-11 NHL season.
for future Avs Mailbags.
It’s obvious the Avs main problem this season (and the last few, to be frank) is the lack of urgency put forth by Greg Sherman and Avs upper management to solidify the defense, don’t you think? Not saying Craig Anderson is by any means Patrick Roy, but he’s a heck of a lot better than Peter Budaj. And the fact they average 30-plus shots against per night should maybe make Sherman scratch his head and say “Gee, maybe we need to get a defensemen.” I think Anderson deserves a better effort by management to get him a little help.
—Tim Connette, Rapid City S.D.
There’s no doubt the defense just isn’t good enough – again.
I really thought the defense was better earlier in the year, but a couple of things have happened to change that. First, Kyle Quincey was lost for the year with a shoulder injury and that has hurt more than people might have thought it would. He was big and could get to pucks in the corners.
Second, the Avs essentially chose to go with Kyle Cumiskey over Jonas Holos, and that decision has been an out and out disaster. Cumiskey just doesn’t work anymore for this team, while Holos played a steadier brand of defense the Avs actually, you know, won games with him in the lineup.
Third, Scott Hannan was traded, along with rookie prospect Colby Cohen. Cohen was dealt for Matt Hunwick, who has been so bad since coming here that a popular Twitter hashtag among Avs fans is #blamehunwick.
The Hannan deal proved to be a good one for Greg Sherman. Tomas Fleischmann put up 21 points in 22 games with the Avs after coming over from Washington for Hannan. But now he’s done for the year with blood clots.
The defense is the major problem on this team still. Hunwick, Cumiskey and John Liles all look the same and play the same (though Liles has clearly had a good year). Cumiskey and 39-year-old D partner Adam Foote has been a disaster so far. Ryan O’Byrne, after a strong start with the Avs, has not been as good of late. Too many penalties, for one thing.
The Avs shouldn’t have tried to fix what wasn’t broken with the Holos/Cumiskey situation, and the Hunwick trade clearly has looked like a mistake so far. I think Hunwick could still get his game together, but it hasn’t happened yet.
The Avs need to blow some things up on D and start over – and that means identifying and sticking with young prospects with promise like Cohen and sticking with him – not going out with a guy like Hunwick and making your defense smaller and easier to play against.
What is it going to take to get back the Craig Anderson of last year? Hockey is such a tough-guy sport, but for some reason goalies seem to be so fragile in their confidence and game play. We have two OK guys in the net now, but we are far from being where we should be at this point in the season.
—Cami, Denver
It’s a chicken-and-egg thing sometimes with goalies. No, Anderson hasn’t been the goalie of last year. But how is anyone supposed to be a goalie with that defense in front them?
Still, it’s clear that Anderson seems less confident than last year, and it’s shown on the ice. He just hasn’t “stolen” the kinds of games he did last year. The month he missed with an injury clearly hurt his season, but the reality is he has struggled some since last season’s all-star break. Remember that slump he had after the break? Yes, he was brilliant at times in the first round, but he also let his team down some in that Game 2 in San Jose – when the Avs scored five goals and had a lead with a minute to go but still lost. That would have put them up 2-0 in the series.
An area I thought the Avs would be set in for a few years is clearly back to being a big question mark, and goaltending is the one place you don’t want that uncertainty to be.
AD, Boods and Andy haven’t been stellar so far this season. Meanwhile, John Grahame was AHL goalie of the month with Lake Erie. If one of the Avs duo doesn’t get it going do you see any chance of the team placing one of the guys on waivers and pulling Grahame up to the big leauges?
—Jay, Cleveland
If the Avs are way out of the playoff hunt by later in the year, you might see that. But let’s not pretend that John Grahame is any answer for the future. He’s in his mid-30s and hasn’t played in quite a while now in the NHL.
Dater, do you anticipate any major transactions to occur with the Avs come the trade deadline or do they bite the bullet and press on with their lineup intact?
—John, Snowy Hooksett, N.H.
Tough to say. If the Avs are out of it, you’d assume they’d be “sellers.” But they also have one of the youngest teams in the NHL, so they have to be careful about what they might sell. Do you give up on a TJ Galiardi or Brandon Yip already and deal them off for draft picks? Do you trade a Craig Anderson as a rental? And what about trading Peter Forsberg as a rental (I went over that scenario in a blog last night). Yes, Foppa has a no-trade deal, but plenty of guys have waived such deals to go to a Cup contender at the deadline.
I don’t think you’ll see anything huge either way, but that could prove very wrong, we’ll see. I don’t think the Avs want to blow everything up again if they don’t make the playoffs. They need to build their defense, and there are some good prospects in junior coming (Tyson Barrie, Stefan Elliott, etc.).
If someone is dealt off the current roster, I would guess they’d be someone in the Cumiskey/Ryan Wilson/Hunwick/Yip/David Jones range.
We’ll see.
Why was Ryan Stoa benched?
—SuperFan, Minnesota
He just hasn’t brought the consistency to this level. While he had a good game or two in his most recent callup, he also looked invisible a couple nights. Oh, and let’s not forget a guy named Peter Forsberg came back, and they needed to make room for him. But Stoa just has yet to show the kind of consistent play to warrant staying at this level.
Of course, many guys are playing badly right now, but they have one-way contracts and would have to clear waivers if the Avs wanted to send them down – unlike Stoa.
Hi Adrian, would you pay money to see the Avalanche right now if your job didn’t require you to be at the games?
—Logan, Littleton
Maybe for Forsberg’s first game back. Otherwise, no.
But I don’t really enjoy going to sporting events as a fan that much anymore anyway. I’ve gotten old, in other words. I’d rather be home either watching on the HD, or doing something else. I guess when your job is covering sports, you don’t want to go out and see other sports with your free time. I know, it’s sad. It’s not that I’m not still interested and don’t like to follow things. I do. But the whole super fan experience is more for the young in my opinion – and, if you’re an adult when it’s not your profession.
Where does Pierre Lacroix fit in with the Avs these days?
—Kevin, La Junta
Pierre is still around. He’s the team president and alternate governor. He’s not at every game, but he’s still there and has a big say in what goes on with this franchise.
But Greg Sherman really does make the personnel decisions when it comes to trades, signings, etc. Lacroix is there to advise and give his say, but he doesn’t do the day-to-day stuff anymore.
Adrian Dater has covered the Colorado Avalanche since the team moved to Denver in 1995. for the Avs Mailbag.
