Well, the Colorado Avalanche have advanced to the second round and will enjoy some time off, and that means it’s time for another installment of Mile High Pollster!
First, we will start with the most pressing matter at hand for the Avalanche, and that’s if it will be the Minnesota Wild or the Dallas Stars in round two.
Jared Bednar and his players will get to kick their feet up and watch as Dallas and Minny beat up on each other, but make no mistake, no matter who Colorado gets next, it’s going to be a battle.
First-round MVP
We had this question at the roundtable, so I figured I’d share it with our community as well! I picked Artturi Lehkonen, whose talent still shone despite LA’s shutdown approach.
Gabe Landeskog posting four points in four playoff games is nothing to scoff at, and of course, only allowing 5 goals all series (with just two against at 5-on-5), Scott Wedgewood has to be a part of the conversation.
You might go with a dark-horse like Logan O’Connor, who, despite coming back from hip surgery, looks quick and engaged so far during the playoff bracket.
Power Play Still
The Avalanche went 1/11 on the power play against the Kings, but should we really be worried?
The unit looked plenty dangerous, and LA’s approach suggests fewer goals per period, no matter the situation.
Thank goodness Nate MacKinnon got a power play tally in game four, or else this would be an even bigger talking point.
I, for one, am a little tired of talking about the Avalanche power play.
Not So Controversial
Sunday night, after the Avalanche had dispatched the Kings, the hockey world got its first controversy as the Ducks beat the Edmonton Oilers in OT on a goal that has many (mostly Oiler fans) questioning the validity of the call.
Oilers fans say there wasn’t a ref in position to deem the call a goal on the ice.
In the chamber of the only version of events that helps Oilers fans cope, they don’t believe that there’s conclusive evidence of a goal, and had the call on the ice been no goal, it would have been upheld.
To that I say, the situation room has final say, and the call on the ice has no constraints on what the situation room decides is a goal.
Also, it was a goal.
The Anticipation
It’s nice that the Avalanche got the sweep, even though for some reason the dialogue was around how ‘close’ LA was.
They really weren’t ever close. The Avalanche dominated the expected goals per sixty share, earning almost 2/3 of the chances in the series.
The Avalanche gave up two goals at 5-on-5, and one of those went in off of Josh Manson.
Now that it’s over, Manson and company can tend to their wounds and get ready for round two.
Let us know what your answers are in the comments, and be sure to follow us on X for future polls!
