Avalanche Steamroll Thrashers - Colorado Avalanche Updates, News and Game Reviews at Avs Talk

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Avalanche Steamroll Thrashers


(AP Photo/Gregory Smith)
You've got to beat the teams you're supposed to beat and the Avalanche did just that tonight with a 5-2 victory over the Atlanta Thrashers. The win moves the Avalanche into 2nd place in the Northwest and 6th in the Western Conference with just under a dozen games left to play.

Thar be the goals
Adrian Dater posted in his blog that it was about time David Jones started scoring if he wanted to solidify his spot. Well Jones had the same idea as tonight he was the #1 star with 1 goal and 2 assists. His goal was a pretty play as he circled the net and left the puck for Joe Sakic who then fed it back to Jones who had cut to the front of the net. He also had the lone assist on the first two Avalanche goals and had just one heck of a game.

Wolski Out, Parker In...then out
Wojtek Wolski was a healthy scratch tonight as he apparently continues to not get the message Q is trying to send him. He wasn't great in the Dallas game but nobody was so I'm not sure why Wolski warranted the benching in favor of Scott Parker.

Parker left the game in the first period with what looked to be a leg injury. I guess his first name starts with S so it shouldn't be entirely unexpected. Once the curse ran out of last names to target, it jumped up to the first names. So walk on eggshells, Hannan.

Foote In...then out
Adam Foote only played for the first half of the first period and then never set foot on the ice. Not really sure what happened as I had the Thrashers feed and they didn't seem to mention it. Hopefully he didn't rush back in and bugger his hip up again.

Injuries
And speaking of injuries, Jordan Leopold and Ruslan Salei sat out this game after their respective injuries in the Dallas game. Both received good news as Salei doesn't have a broken orbital bone and Leopold's head appears to be fine. It appears Leopold will undergo another test before being inserted into the lineup. Fine by me. Head injuries are not something to be trifled with no matter how tough people want to appear.

Oh, and Forsberg didn't play either which means he wasn't just tired, he's actually injured. Yeesh.

Notes
- I swear I heard the announcers claim Cumiskey was 6'4, 220 at one point
- I know I heard Iron Man playing during a stoppage and I gotta say...not much of a hockey song (as pertinent as the lyrics/theme may be)
- Cody McLeod appears to have reigned in his temper a bit lately
- Sakic finally fired home a wrister after what seemed like an eternity
- the PA announcer appears to clarify minor stoppages in play to the fans by announcing the reason for the stoppage (I caught this with high stick calls but didn't hear it on things like gloved passes)
- Carey Price got a 38 save shutout against the Devils including 20 saves in the first period alone (what? That's not pertinent information?)

Related Links
NHL.com Event Summary

2 Comments:

Shawn said...

Finally the avalanche could pull away with more then 3 goals in a game latley! good to see the boys get back on the winning track hopfully they can pull out a winning streak like they did last year before the playoffs and actually make it in! Any news on when forsberg is returning?

Shane Giroux said...

If it wasn't for pesky Nashville, I'd say the Avs were a lock to make the playoffs. Thankfully the Sharks and Wings both took down the Preds recently to keep them below the 80-point barrier for another day.

There hasn't been much on Forsberg other than Q saying he looked fine in practice. I'm going to take a shot and say he'll be in the lineup on Thursday against the Oilers.

Unless he slips on a banana peel.