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Desperately seeking defense |
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Rick Sadowski
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The question now isn't when the Avalanche will win their next game, but will they win another?
Ridiculous? You'd think so in normal times with 34 games remaining, but these are hardly ordinary times.
The Avalanche mess continued Wednesday with a 5-0 shellacking in Los Angeles, where the Kings scored on their first shift against Spencer Martin (35 saves), grabbed what amounted to an insurmountable 3-0 lead in the first period and coasted the rest of the way.
The latest loss came on the heels of a 5-1 loss in Anaheim.
“We allow 10 goals against. How are you going to win, ever?” Matt Duchene said to the Denver Post after the game.
Yup, excellent question. The Avalanche have been outscored 35-15 during an embarrassing nine-game losing streak (0-8-1) with a three-game homestand starting Saturday against Winnipeg, followed by Pittsburgh and Montreal.
Ugh.
It's obvious why trade rumors have been circulating for so long, with Duchene and Gabriel Landeskog heading the list because they can bring the most. General manager Joe Sakic has said he won't deal Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen or last year's first-round pick, Tyson Jost.
Jarome Iginla, by the way, told Puck Daddy's Josh Cooper on Wednesday that he would welcome a trade to a Stanley Cup contender. No surprise there. Iginla is in the final year of his contract and I'm certain that Sakic will deal him before the March 1 deadline, but he isn't likely to fetch the kind of help the Avalanche need.
Defense, with a capital D.
Yes, they also need better third- and fourth-line players, but some of that help will eventually come from San Antonio, where J.T. Compher and A.J. Greer are gaining valuable pro experience. Defenseman Chris Bigras, who missed a chunk of the season with injuries, also is very much in future plans.
"I would like to, at the deadline, go somewhere,” Iginla said. “I would like to be in the playoffs. I would hope that there is some opportunity to go and play in the playoffs. Those are the best games, the most fun for sure, and you have a chance to win. So no, I haven’t given up on that chance to win.”
"I’ve been a part of it long enough to know that that’s just a part of the process and if they can get draft picks and stuff, you know for their older guys, the guys who are not in their future plans, that’s part of it and I definitely would be open to that. I have enjoyed it (in Colorado) and there are lots of great young guys here, and I think it’s going to be a promising future. But yeah, my window’s not the same as the other guys for sure.”
As for Duchene and Landeskog, the asking price appears to be extremely high, as it should be. The Avalanche need to get a solid, top-four defenseman as part of any package in return.
The Avalanche would be foolish to deal either out of desperation, just to say, 'Well, we did something.' Those are the worst kind of trades, and it's not like any trade they make before the deadline will have any effect on the rest of this season, which has been a lost cause for two months.
If Sakic can't make an extraordinary deal, keep Duchene and Landeskog, and try to figure out another way to improve this team. No, it won't be easy.
The Avalanche on Thursday claimed defenseman Mark Barberio, 26, on waivers from Montreal and placed Eric Gelinas on waivers. Colorado traded a 2017 third-round pick to New Jersey a year ago for Gelinas, who in 32 games since then has zero goals and one assist.
A future draft pick wasted.
The same can be said for Duncan Siemens, the last defenseman drafted by the Avalanche in the first round. He went 11th in 2011 and in four pro seasons has played in one NHL game. Why not bring him up from the Rampage and give him a chance?
Of the eight defensemen on the team, Erik Johnson remains out to recover from a broken fibula and Fedor Tyutin has missed two games in a row with a groin injury.
Johnson, Tyson Barrie, Francois Beauchemin (who hasn't played well since the first half of last season) and now Barberio are signed through at least next season.
Six players -- Iginla, Gelinas, Tyutin, Rene Bourque, Cody Goloubef and John Mitchell -- are in the final year of their contracts and will eligible for unrestricted free agency. The Avalanche might be able to acquire something of value for Iginla, who is more of a power-play specialist these days. As for the rest, getting anything in exchange would be just fine.
Two defensemen, Nikita Zadorov and Patrick Wiercioch, will be restricted free agents. Zadorov will certainly be re-signed to join Johnson, Barrie and I assume Barberio and Beauchemin for next season, unless they can find a buyer for Beauchemin, who has a no-movement clause.
That group won't be good enough, not even close.
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