The Avalanche will begin the second half of the NHL season Friday when they face the New York Rangers to close out what so far is a 0-1-2 homestand.
A 5-4 loss to San Jose on Wednesday left the Avalanche with a 19-14-8 record and 46 points, just one point better than at the midway point last year (when they were in the midst of a 10-game winning streak).
Remember, they had to defeat St. Louis in regulation in the regular-season finale to squeeze into the Western Conference playoffs as an eighth seed.
At the moment, the Avalanche have the first wild card spot, one point ahead of second wild card Anaheim and two points in front of ninth-place Vancouver. The Canucks could overtake both and drop the Avalanche into the second wild card if they win in Montreal on Thursday night in regulation or overtime, though they will have played three more games.
The Avalanche have 41 games remaining, but this is exactly the kind of situation they were trying to avoid, being involved in a dogfight the rest of the way to earn a playoff berth for the second season in a row.
It’s one the Avalanche seemed likely to dodge until the wheels began to fall off in Tampa on Dec. 12 when they were drilled 7-1 to end a four-game road trip 2-2-0.
Counting that loss, the Avalanche are 2-7-3 in the past 12 games. They’ll take a season-worst six-game losing streak (0-4-2) into Friday’s game with the Rangers.
Coach
Jared Bednar’s take on the season’s first half:
“Inconsistent, average start, played really good for a while, then we go through a losing streak (0-4-1), did really good for a while (9-0-2), then average again and now back down worse than what we were in the (previous) losing streak, in my opinion. We’re doing some good things, but there’s no moral victories. You got to get results.”
One of the goals was to match last season’s record at home, where they tied a team record for wins by going 28-11-2, and to improve on the 15-19-7 road mark.
Well, they are a respectable 11-8-3 on the road but a very mediocre 8-6-5 at the Pepsi Center.
Goalie
Semyon Varlamov started out well, went into a slump, and now he’s out with a lower-body injury, an ailment (groin, hips or knee) that has plagued him throughout his career.
Philipp Grubauer somehow has managed to post an 8-4-3 record despite a bloated 3.26 goals-against average and .899 save percentage.
The Avalanche bailed him out with late goals in Arizona on Dec. 22 in a 6-4 loss and Wednesday against the Sharks.
Recent call-up
Pavel Francouz stopped 21 of 22 shots in relief of Grubauer against the Coyotes and was saddled with the loss. He was tagged with the loss Thursday after turning aside 12 of 13 shots against the Sharks despite inheriting a 4-1 deficit.
The Avalanche didn’t practice Thursday, so it will be interesting to see if Bednar elects to give Francouz his first NHL start Friday.
“I liked him again tonight,” Bednar said after the game. “He battles to find the puck, he battles to make second saves, he’s sharp and square and confident. I’ve liked what I’ve seen out of him, for sure, in both games.”
Asked if he would consider giving Francouz a start at some point, Bednar responded: “Yup.”
Goaltending isn’t the only problem.
The power play, especially recently, has been erratic and undependable. The penalty killing, which was rock solid earlier, is a disaster. They’ve allowed 17 goals in 56 shorthanded situations – 69.6 percent – in the past 17 games, posting a 5-8-4 record in that stretch.
In general, there are too many turnovers, too many blown assignments, too many scoring chances allowed.
The
Gabriel Landeskog-Nathan MacKinnon-Mikko Rantanen line has accounted for 167 points (65 goals, 102 assists). MacKinnon will captain the Central Division All-Stars in San Jose on Jan. 26, Rantanen on Thursday was named to his first NHL All-Star Game, and Landeskog is on the list for the "Last Men In" fan balloting that runs until Jan. 10.
Fans can vote at
NHL.COM/VOTE.
Problem is, the trio has slowed down a bit lately – can’t be expected to score three and four goals every game – and the secondary scoring has been a major disappointment.
The Avalanche are 4-6-8 in one-goal games; the past four losses were by one goal, and five of the past six defeats have been by a goal.
They’ve lost seven of eight overtime games -- they’ve been outshot 23-5 (winning a faceoff would be helpful) -- and lost their only shootout.
Colorado Avalanche Blogger •Avalanche Insider • 
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