Avalanche fans are upset at their struggling team and want something done about it. Aside from the usual remedies — trades or firings — the avenue for change is to call up players from the farm. But it doesn’t appear as if the ground is very fertile at Lake Erie right now.
The Avalanche’s American Hockey League team, the Monsters, is struggling even more than the parent club with a 6-9-1 record — although it has won two in a row. The club’s leading scorer is winger David Van Der Gulik, who has spent some time with the Avs but never got much ice time or made much of an impact. Van Der Gulik has 13 points (four goals) in 11 games.
The Avs’ two top prospects arguably are defensemen, and the numbers have been just OK so far for both. Stefan Elliott, a second-round pick in 2009, has seven points (two goals) in his first 16 games and a plus-3. Tyson Barrie has six points (two goals) in 16 games with a minus-5.
The Avs took the day off Sunday after seeing their home record fall to 2-6-0 with a loss to Calgary. While the Avs nearly made a second straight rousing comeback, the booing got intense at times in the second period when they trailed 4-0.
Avs coach Joe Sacco tried to sound optimistic about the road ahead, which begins Tuesday against the NHL’s co-leader in points, the Pittsburgh Penguins.
“We get back on the road now for a couple of games, get back to our winning ways (the Avs are 6-2-1 on the road) and hopefully carry that momentum back home,” Sacco said.
Adrian Dater: 303-954-1360 or adater@denverpost.com
