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Have the Avalanche already locked up the Central Division? |
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As I type this the Colorado Avalanche are 37-10-4 and lead the Central Division by a beefy 12 points with 31 games to play.
While there may still be time for St. Louis, Nashville, or Minnesota to catch and then pass the 'Avs, it seems far more likely that Colorado will cruise to a second consecutive division title and the 11th in franchise history.
If we scrap the first dozen or so games, Colorado is arguably playing its worst hockey of the season right now despite being 7-2-1 in its last 10 games. I say this despite them not having lost back-to-back games since early November.
Yes, this constitutes a slump of sorts for the Avalanche.
The 'Avs are 3-2 in its last five games with lopsided losses to Dallas and Boston. The Bruins game was by far this team's worst effort in what seems like ages. Even head coach Jared Bednar said it wasn't his team's most "competitive effort."
Still, it's hard to imagine the 'Avs playing a game like that too many more occasions if at all.
And calling a 3-2 stretch a "slump" is a bit tongue-in-cheek on my part. However, when referring to this group it more than qualifies and that's why I see this team winning the division handely. In fact, they pretty much have it in the bag already.
If a couple of bad games among dozens of superior performances is the lowest this team can fall then we're witnessing either one of the longest streaks of luck in history or this team is just too good to falter even a little bit.
Colorado is on pace for more than 120 points this season and it took a whole 50 games for them to lose a 10th game in regulation. Nearly a third of the club's remaining games are against non-playoff or bubble teams. It's in the bag and baring a colossal disaster the Colorado Avalanche should easily win the 2021-22 Central Division.
And I have even more good news to share...
If that's not a sign of good things to come, what is?
Thanks for reading,
Steve
Colorado Avalanche Blogger • 
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