The Colorado Avalanche are hoping to bounce back from a rocky stretch when they face off against the Calgary Flames on Thursday. Entering Wednesday, the Avalanche held the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference, just two points behind the injury-depleted Minnesota Wild for third place in the Central Division. However, their recent form has been anything but consistent.
After a 3-0 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday, the Avalanche are stuck in a 6-7-1 stretch. The frustration is compounded by their inability to mount a comeback in a game that was 1-0 heading into the third period, despite having two shutout victories in their previous games. The team managed only four shots in the final frame, with four penalties contributing to their struggles.
“It’s disappointing,” said coach Jared Bednar. “This felt like a playoff game in February. I just didn’t like the way we competed to win. We were smart for the most part, but in the trenches, we weren’t tough enough.”
The Avalanche’s missed opportunities were also a factor, as they hit the post three times in the first period, setting a frustrating tone for the start of a five-game road trip.
Defenseman Cale Makar shared his frustrations, noting the team’s struggle with consistency: “We can’t string together a couple of good games right now, and it’s unfortunate.”
Meanwhile, the Flames, who held the second wild-card spot in the West as of Wednesday, are also looking to recover after a 6-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday, the first in a three-game homestand. Calgary, having lost four of their last six games, scored first but faltered with penalties and turnovers that allowed Toronto to capitalize on odd-man rushes.
“We forced offense and got ourselves into trouble,” said Flames coach Ryan Huska. “The pressure to win got to us. We have to trust our game and play it until the end.”
On a positive note, the Flames scored multiple power-play goals for the first time this season, with new acquisition Joel Farabee scoring his first goal since joining from the Philadelphia Flyers.
“Winning is the most important thing, but it feels good to get that first one out of the way, even though it took a couple tries,” Farabee said. “At the end of the day, I’d rather never score and win every game than score and lose.”
