Sure playing in Vegas was not going to be an easy task. Yet, if the Avalanche took their skill and desire to win that they had from the game two they could’ve had a better shot at game three.  Unfortunately that’s not what happened. Head coach Jared Bednar was not pleased in his post-game press conference and that’s something fans don’t see very often. He wouldn’t go into details about what went wrong other than to say that the team’s ‘commit’ level needed to improve. He did call out Phillipp Grubauer as the Avs’ best player of the night.

So what made the Avalanche go from a “firing on all cylinders” team that played a strong 60 minutes of hockey to one that got beat all over the ice? And yes, it was pretty much ALL over the ice. They lost face-off after face-off. With at least two power play opportunities, they couldn’t convert. And they chased the puck all night.

Don’t get me wrong, they played around 15 minutes of the great hockey, but fans know that amount does not win games. No matter how great a team is at believing in themselves when things go south and they aren’t winning puck battles anymore, it does have an emotional impact regardless of what people may think. And while Jared Bednar has had the Avalanche succeed in the past using speed and talent to win games when their strategy isn’t working, it will take something big to turn that around in this series.

So, what do the Avalanche need to do for game four?

Use visualization for starters. Many top athletes use it to get themselves into the mental headspace of achieving what they want to achieve. If the players who take faceoffs spend time visualizing themselves winning them, that will begin to happen. If the players see themselves out skating the Knights, winning the race to the puck, that will also happen. And, when they use this technique, it will unknowingly have a positive impact on their confidence level.  You might believe this is all too ‘woo woo’ for hockey, yet people today underestimate the power of thought and the mental aspect in hockey.

Mental attitude plays a bigger part in the game than anyone thinks possible. Yet, when you have a team that tells themselves they will win their Division and the President’s Trophy to gain the home-ice advantage, and it happens, that is what I am talking about. Although teams will tell you if you win the next shift, you can win the period, then win the game. Playing in a hostile environment like Vegas, let’s win the next face-off then go from there.

The post After first playoff loss, Avalanche need to reclaim 60 minute effort appeared first on The Rink.

Here are ten takeaways from the first round.

1.    Brandon Saad returns red hot

Brandon Saad had been injured and only returned in game two of the playoff series. But as you would expect from a veteran player with playoff experience, he jumped right back into the play and scored a goal in games two, three, and four.

His contribution on the ice was substantial and noticed by the commentators. Saad joined the third line with Tyson Jost and Val Nichushkin and helped the third line contribute especially when the Blues shut down the Avalanches top line.

Brandon Saad with goals in games 2 3 and 4 for the Avs

The Saadfather was a beast in this series#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/TicOR6w9qy

— Dude Where's Makar (@joelthesakic) May 24, 2021

2.    Landeskog leads by example

While Gabriel Landeskog scored a Gordie Howe Hat Trick in game one of the series and did something no other Avalanche player has done for many years, it was his leadership that supported the team to win the series.

Landeskog led the way in assisting and scoring at key times in several of the games. And one can only imagine his contributions in the locker room to keep the team focused on their goal of winning the Stanley Cup one game at a time. He commented at the end of game three that “Our defensive game is what’s gonna get us through.” And while he plays a key role in the forward lineup, he also supported the defensive core to shut down the Blues in many key situations.

Gabriel Landeskog got a Gordie Howe hat trick tonight in game 1.
https://t.co/j5c47hGTEn

— Bench Bros Sports (@benchbrossports) May 18, 2021

3.    Avs rolling four lines

We saw during the regular season how deep the Avalanche was when different lines stepped up on nights when the top line was shut down and gave the Avalanche the goals they needed for a win.

This series was no exception. With Jared Bednar understanding the strengths of each and every one of his team members, not only has he worked to create lines that have chemistry on nights when the opposition is shutting down the Avs’ strengths, he hasn’t been afraid to switch things up.

Interestingly in this series Nazem Kadri played games one and two in his usual role of centering the 2^nd line. But when he was suspended Bednar commented that he wasn’t going to move anyone else up into that position because the other lines, namely three and four were clicking and he didn’t want to disrupt them. Hence the move to fill Kadri’s place with JT Compher.

4.    Phillipp Grubauer shines

What can you say about Phillip Grubauer other than he was so strong during this series. For the four games he has a 1.75 goals against average and a save percentage of .936. Over the four games in the series the Blues scored a total of seven goals from 110 shots. Colorado’s defensive core has supported Grubauer during this four game stretch, especially in a couple of instances where he found himself out of the net. Ryan Graves was amongst a number of team members saving the shots in support of Grubauer.

Phillip Grubauer came up big when he needed to. In each game he made at least one if not two spectacular saves that kept the Avalanche in the game. Many of the big saves were at times in the games that could have turned the tide the Blues way. Even though the Avalanche were the stronger team, allowing goals creates an emotional shift in a game. Grubauer didn’t let that happen very often during the series.

Grubauer makes a great save on the initial chance and then makes 4 or 5 extra saves. The first save is all about a great route towards the net and then incredible athleticism and strength keep the puck out on the multiple rebound chances. #threesavesaday #HockeyTwitter #Avalanche pic.twitter.com/WdZGyJUynH

— Rob Gherson (@goalie_school) May 23, 2021

5.    No serious injuries (fingers crossed)

If you watched all four games, you probably saw the sacrifice the Avs players endured with all of the hits and blocked shots.  Yet Colorado came away with no serious injuries. At least until there is confirmation that Alex Newhook is not out longer-term, which is our understanding so far.

Given the physical nature of this series that is a pretty amazing feat. The Blues seemed determined to injure or take out some of the key Avalanche players, initially targeting Tyson Jost, then Samuel Girard. Mikko Rantanen and Joonas Donskoi were also being targeted. But while players fell awkwardly or were tossed hard into the boards, no one sustained serious enough injury to take them out of the game long term.

6.    Defense, defense, defense

Watching Colorado’s defensive core of Samuel Girard, Devon Toews, Cale Makar, Ryan Graves, Patrik Nemeth, and Connor Timmins do what they do best is a testament to not only the players themselves but also the coaching staff. Not in a long time has the Avalanche had the depth and strength in their D core to be seen as one of the tops in the League.

Ryan Graves with a key defensive play to keep Colorado in the lead pic.twitter.com/Kf8HVPbuaM

— Shayna (@hayyyshayyy) May 18, 2021

Any hockey fan knows that a team can be great offensively but without a strong defense they lose. Not only does the Colorado Avalanche have a very strong set of defensemen, but those same defensemen also aren’t afraid to jump up into the play and play offensive hockey. Look at the number of times Cale Makar is being credited with either scoring goals or getting an assist. Ryan Graves is fast becoming another player to do that same thing. Samuel Girard is also strong in both defense and offense.

7.    Alex Newhook scores first NHL goal

Alex Newhook played only six regular-season games before the end of the season and then played his first Playoff games in this series. He had tallied three assists in the six games he’d played, but no goals, so imagine the excitement when he nailed his first NHL goal in game three of the series.

The FIRST NHL goal for Alex Newhook! #GoAvsGo | #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/R7tfSWlZS7

— NBC Sports Hockey (@NBCSportsHockey) May 22, 2021

Newhook commented in an interview during the third game that he was a little nervous before taking the shot, but watching the look on his face after the shot went in, I am sure that was temporary.

His teammates, both those on the ice and on the bench helped him celebrate this wonderful milestone in his NHL career. Ryan Graves even fought to get him the game puck so he had a momento.

Ryan Graves makes sure he gets the game puck for Alex Newhook, who scored his first career NHL goal in Game 3 pic.twitter.com/nTcKS1Jrn1

— Brady Trettenero (@BradyTrett) May 22, 2021

8.    Ball Arena hosts nearly 7,500 fans

.@Avalanche fans singing 'All The Small Things' last night was electric. #StanleyCup #ItsOn pic.twitter.com/WRbT2PIj1B

— Tim and Friends (@timandfriends) May 20, 2021

The Avalanche knew that if they won the President’s Trophy they would have home-ice advantage for the entire playoff series. They know the depth of support they have from their fans, at home, in Ball Arena. That was evident in the noise that could be heard in game two on Wednesday night May 19^th. Colorado Avalanche fans love their team and when they are at Ball Arena they show that support stronger than ever.

As a fan that attended game two, not only was there support throughout the entire game for the team but the chants of “Go Avs Go” and “Let’s Go Avalanche” on the way out of the stadium following the game was extraordinary. Avalanche fans are passionate. And that goes for the ones that don’t make it into the arena too. Many of the Sports bars around Denver were full of fans cheering just as loud as those in Ball Arena, as was evidenced by the packed DNVR Sports bar for game three.

pic.twitter.com/Eh1j7DR6eP

— Robert Butler (@Robbie_Butler12) May 22, 2021

9.    Conn Smythe favorite up for grabs

Peter Baugh a journalist with the Athletic asked Avalanche fans at the end of the series who was their pick for MVP. Some fans found it easy to respond with Nathan MacKinnon, others as strongly with Phillipp Grubauer. Then others thought it was Gabriel Landeskog.

Some chose other players such as Brandon Saad, and even Jared Bednar got a mention. I agree with one of the fans in that I found it hard to find one play to pick as the most valuable. Each of the four games was different and for each one there were a number of players that stood out. Ryan Graves for his spectacular defensive plays for example. I lost count of the number of times PE Bellemare threw himself in line of the puck during most of the games. Different players were valuable at different times.

The one thing that was evident throughout the entire series was that this was teamwork, nothing but teamwork from the entire Avalanche team. No one player let the team down. Each player contributed and each player stepped up when they were needed the most. When someone made a mistake, another player stood up and put the puck on the net to score.

I’d say the entire squad were MVP’s for this series.

#Avs fans, who is the MVP of Round 1?

— Peter Baugh (@Peter_Baugh) May 23, 2021

10.           The Stats

Winning 5-2 tonight, the @Avalanche take their Rd1 series vs STL as they outscore them 20-7 to tie for the largest goal differential (+13) by a team in a 4-game playoff series sweep since the Red Wings beat the Sharks with a +18 differential in their 1995 Western Conf. SF (24-6)

— StatsCentre (@StatsCentre) May 23, 2021

Goals: Avalanche 20   STL 7

SOG: Avalanche  145   STL 110

Faceoff%: Avalanche won game 2 & 3  STL won game 1 & 4

Power Play: Avalanche 6/12  STL 2/9

PIM: Avalanche 33  STL 33

Hits: Avalanche 63  STL 113

Blocks: Avalanche 62  STL 62

Giveaways: Avalanche 34  STL 40

Takeaways: Avalanche 30  STL 22

The post Colorado Avalanche: Ten takeaways from round one appeared first on The Rink.

Regardless, the game came down to the wire with the Blues trying their hardest to push the series to a fifth game. Unfortunately for them, it was too hard to stop the Colorado Avalanche who proved to be the better team.

First Period

Mark Rycroft of Altitude TV was asked before the game how we will know if the Avalanche are on track to win the game? His response was, “Tape to tape passes versus Tommy turnovers in the first ten minutes of the game.”

The pace was slow to start the period with both teams feeling each other out. The Avalanche did have some close chances, but none went in. Blues forward Ryan O’Reilly had an opportunity to try and bank the puck off of Avalanche goaltender Philipp Grubauer’s shoulder, but Grubauer made a great save to keep the Blues off the scoreboard.

Similar to in game one, Coach Bednar called for short shifts, trying to get the momentum going. Alex Newhook took a big hit from a Blues defenseman and slid into the boards looking like he injured his back. He slowly made it to the bench then left for the dressing room to not return.

Late in the period, Ryan O’Reilly put the puck on net and Grubauer missed it as he was screened. But Ryan Graves saved the day again, just as he had in game one. The first penalty of the game came when Mikko Rantanen was called for tripping St. Louis forward Vladimir Tarasenko with two minutes left in the period. The Blues weren’t able to capitalize and the period ended with no score with shots on goal nine for Colorado and four for St. Louis.

That period didn’t feel like playoff hockey. Not a ton of intensity from either side, to be honest.

— Evan Rawal (@evanrawal) May 23, 2021

Second Period

The Avalanche started the second period with time to kill on the penalty and they did that successfully. With 15:35 remaining in the period, Tarasenko sprung loose on a breakaway and scored the first goal of the game.  It was the first lead of the series for St. Louis.

Nearly halfway through the period and the shots on goal were the Avalanche 16 and Blues 9.

With 8:23 remaining, Cale Makar found Brandon Saad in the slot on the powerplay who let a wrist shot go and it hit the back of the net tying the game at one. Philipp Grubauer had passed the puck out to Cale Makar who then sent the puck to Saad, so Grubauer registered his first assist for the Playoffs.

That goal gave the Avalanche the momentum they needed when three minutes later Gabe Landeskog tipped in a Samuel Girard shot to give the Avalanche the lead.

Now that's OUR Captain #GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/crnH4WLOqT

— x – Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) May 24, 2021

Third Period

Brandon Saad was interviewed in the second intermission and when asked what the Avalanche needed to do in the third period he responded with “Keep it simple. The only chances they get are the ones we give them.”

Walking through that goal with Saader!

: @AltitudeTV#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/NmZf3eTXEa

— x – Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) May 23, 2021

The third period was going to be make or break time for the Blues. Avalanche players were peppering the net with good shots and at one point Jordan Binnington was laying on the puck as it was the only way to stop the Avalanche from scoring.

The commentators noted that at this point in the series that Connor Timmins and Patrik Nemeth were the only two Avalanche players without points on the entire team. That shows the depth of this team.

Mikko Rantanen silenced the crowd at Enterprise Center when he put the Avs in front 3-1 on a beautiful pass from Nathan MacKinnon.

Give us every angle of Mikko's goal EVER#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/wfHX6U9SFR

— x – Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) May 23, 2021

With just under two minutes remaining in the period, the Blues pulled Binnington. Not long after that Nathan MacKinnon was hit with a high stick and a double minor was called that sealed the game for the Avalanche.

This, of course, put Colorado on the power play but with the empty net, it remained five on five hockey as the Blues put an extra attacker on the ice. This didn’t stop the Avalanche’s Nathan MacKinnon from scoring the first of two empty-net goals, with the second by Valeri Nichuchskin with only two seconds remaining.

It may be an empty net but Baby!!!! I GOT MY VALLLLLLLLL GOAL

— She.Loves.Avs.n.F1 (@Avs_n_F1) May 23, 2021

The final score was 5-2 giving the Avalanche the first round sweep.

Gabriel Landeskog in his post-game interview said “Our defensive game is what’s gonna get us through. It was tonight.”

The post Avalanche sweep Blues, advance to second round appeared first on The Rink.