DENVER (AP) — Back in late October, the Colorado Avalanche fell to Carolina at home in a shootout.
They haven't lost in their own building since, reeling off 17 straight wins. The Avalanche are a home win away from matching the team record set by the 2021-22 Stanley Cup-winning squad.
Maybe it's the benefits of playing at elevation — a lung-searing 5,280 feet (1,609 meters) above sea level. Maybe it's the crowd noise. Or maybe, as defenseman Cale Makar
believes, the secret behind their home success boils down to something more simple: "Not talking about it,” he said with a chuckle.
Colorado, 2-0 on its seven-game homestand, currently has the sixth-longest home win streak in NHL history. The record is 23 in a row by the 2011-12 Detroit Red Wings.
On top of all that, the Avalanche (19-0-2) have yet to lose at Ball Arena in regulation. Their 21-game home point streak is second in team history to the 2021-22 squad (22 games).
“It’s important that we’re a stingy team at home,” said Makar, whose team has a chance to tie the franchise mark Monday night against Toronto. "Teams have got to know when they come in here they’re going to get our best effort and it’s going to be a tough challenge for them.”
Playing at a higher elevation can be draining for an opponent. Especially a team coming in on the second night of a back-to-back like, say, Ottawa did last Thursday. The speedy Avalanche pushed the pace and raced to an 8-2 victory over the Senators.
Colorado can also grind it out, too. That's what the team did against Columbus on Saturday when its top line, led by Nathan MacKinnon, was kept off the scoresheet. Brent Burns, the 40-year-old defenseman who is chasing his first Stanley Cup title, stepped up with two goals. Also playing a big role was backup goaltender Trent Miner, who stopped 29 shots in the 4-0 win over the Blue Jackets. It was not only Miner's first NHL shutout but his inaugural win.
“It seems like they’re always fired up to play at home,” said Blue Jackets forward Charlie Coyle, who finished last season with Colorado after being acquired at the trade deadline. “You’re going to get their good game. It’s not going to be a back-and-forth or anything like that. They play well. They play consistent.”
The building is always loud, too. The Avalanche have sold out 174 straight home games, including the postseason.
“We’re comfortable here,” said defenseman Josh Manson, who had a Gordie Howe hat trick with two goals, two assists and a fight against Ottawa. "We can get the momentum behind us and when we get the momentum behind us, with the fans and such, it really helps. We can keep rolling.
“You can make whatever excuses you want about the altitude or whatever, but you add all the factors together, and I think it makes it a pretty tough place to come in to play.”
The Avalanche own the best record (33-4-7, 73 points) in the league and entered Sunday with a 12-point cushion on the next closest teams, which just so happen to be their Central Division rivals, Dallas and Minnesota.
Colorado is missing some key players, too, with captain Gabriel Landeskog (upper body), goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood (lower body), defenseman Devon Toews (upper body) and forward Joel Kiviranta (lower body) all sidelined. Logan O'Connor has yet to play this season as he makes his way back from offseason hip surgery.
“I’m proud of what our team has done to this point,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said. "But as a coach, you’re always kind of like, ‘OK, what’s next?’
“You've got to prove yourself every day in this league, right? It’s never about what you’ve done. I love the first half we've had, but that’s what it was — the first half. It doesn’t guarantee you anything tonight or in the second half or in the playoffs."
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