Avs working without safety net

By Dave Krieger, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published April 30, 2008 at 7:33 p.m.

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In the category of what if, the picture of Peter Forsberg breaking for the net and being tripped from behind in the third period of Game 3 will linger for a while.

Had Red Wings power forward Johan Franzen not tripped him with his stick, Forsberg would have had a point-blank chance on Wings goaltender Chris Osgood to tie the game. Had Franzen been penalized for his trip, the Avs would have gone after the tying goal with a two-man advantage.

As it was, they got neither, and the Wings held on to their one-goal margin to take a prohibitive lead in the second-round playoff series. It may seem a tad desperate to pinpoint any single play in a series so one-sided, but playoffs have turned on lesser moments.

Still, the bottom line on the series is deceptively simple. The Avs won't acknowledge it - not explicitly, at least - because they consider it unfair, which it may be, given the nature of many of Detroit's scoring chances.

The fact remains that the main factor in the Avs' first-round victory against Minnesota was outstanding goaltending, and that factor has been absent against the Red Wings.

There are multiple explanations for this. Jose Theodore reported being slowed by the flu in the first two games in Detroit. He was pulled from each after giving up four goals. The Wings won them by a combined score of 9-4.

In Game 3, his health restored, Theodore again surrendered four goals. His goals-against average, which was better than any Western Conference goaltender except Marty Turco after the first round, now trails every other starting goaltender still in the playoffs.

"If you look at the goals, there were a lot of two, three passes, empty-net kind of plays," Theodore said Wednesday.

"As a goalie, if you do get beat, those are the plays you want to get beat on. They make a lot of passes, so I'm going to have to battle and really try to find where everybody is on the ice. But in our zone, it's really about five guys being aware of where they are because they can find the open guy and make some great plays."

It is true that the Avs have left the middle open too much against the Wings - and that red has outnumbered burgundy too often in front of the net. It's also true that Theodore's stops on the first attempt often produce free rebounds that create a second and third.

"As a goalie, there's not much you can really change technically on those kind of goals," Theodore said. "It's not like I can look back and say I would have done something different. So I'm just going to have to work through it. As a team, we need to make the adjustments. They like to make those little passes in tight, so we're going to have to be way better."

It is not that Theodore has been bad - it is just that he hasn't exerted much influence on the series. The Red Wings have outshot the Avs 111-74 through three games. They have dominated the puck and the zone time. They have looked quicker to the puck and more skilled with it.

But the Avs would not, in all likelihood, have survived the first round had Theodore not stolen Game 5 in Minnesota, when they were similarly dominated. He has not managed to do that against the Wings. Osgood, by contrast, who took over for slumping Dominik Hasek in the middle of the first round, now has the best goals-against average of any goaltender to have started a playoff game this year.

This is not so much an issue for the present, with the series all but lost, as it is for the future. Theodore is one of nearly a dozen unrestricted free agents on the Avalanche roster. The list includes many of their big-name veterans, among them Joe Sakic, 38; Forsberg, 34; Adam Foote, 36; Andrew Brunette, 34; and Theodore, 31.

One of the questions general manager Francois Giguere will have to address is whether the difference in salary between Theodore and Peter Budaj is equal to, or greater than, the difference in ability at this stage. That, in turn, will depend on the demand in the market for Theodore's services.

Theo's fine second half of the season and first round of the playoffs put him back in the conversation for the Avs, where once a buyout and goodbye party seemed advisable. But his inability to carry the Avs further also raises doubts about another expensive deal.

"I thought Jose played well and the goaltending was not . . . it was fine," coach Joel Quenneville said, referring to Game 3. "Fine" is nice, but it's not quite "unbelievable," which was the adjective being thrown around during the Minnesota series.

Theodore went a long way toward restoring his reputation this season. But not quite all the way.

• May 1, 2008

  7:30 a.m.

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  sqjnk writes:

  this had the potential to be a great series. It sucks it has been tainted by injuries and unfair officiating. before I'm accused of being a whiner or making excuses by some name calling, classless, muck raking wings fan (yes your team is good, which is why the one sided calls by the refs are even more infuriating) let me drop some numbers, which don't lie. In 3 games the avs are 3 for15 on the power play, the red wings 7 of 26. That's 11 more power plays for the wings. the avs have had 19:41 of power play time and no 5 on 3's (i may be wrong on this stat) the red wings have had 38:05 on the power play and several 5 on 3's. That is nearly twice as much powerplay time, nearly a whole extra period of man advantage given to the wings. sure a few calls have been let go on both sides, but many more by the wings have been let go at key times, while they are called on the avs. Or the avs get called for a piddly little play that gets let go 15 times the rest of the game. its like the refs are trying to kill any moment the avs can get. i can handle losing to a better team, and can accept that injuries are just a part of the game. I can't sit quietly while the avs get beat with the help of the guys in stripes.

• May 1, 2008

  7:59 a.m.

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  rnano1 writes:

  sqjnk,I agree with your post. But; that's what all teams
  in the playoffs deal with. So deal with it. The wings
  are good, so are the avs. I would like to see a more
  exciting series. This is nowhere near the excitement
  with the preds. Come on avs give us a good run for the
  cup. I love a close game. The refs need to be more
  consistent. GO WINGS>>>>

• May 1, 2008

  8:37 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  TruthHurts writes:

  The Refs need to be more consistent? How about the goalie being more consistent? How many times has Theodore been flopping around on the ice like a fish thrown on deck and the Red Wings had yet to shoot? He had a nice run at the end of the season and a great series against Minnesota. But the truth is, he should not be in net for this series. When a team gets inside his head he is worthless....and right now he is challenging the Dollar as to which has lesser value.

• May 1, 2008

  9 a.m.

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  champagnetony writes:

  being an avs fan, i have been distressed with the officiating, but rnano1 makes a good point - deal with it. sometimes that's how a series goes. the thing to me that has been frustrating is the goaltending situation. i've supported coach q for a lot of things that many fans have ripped him on but this time, i fully believe he has lost the series for the avs. don't get me wrong, theo hasn't helped at all and the avs have made some costly mistakes, but in my opinion, coach q has completely mishandled the goaltenders during this series. theo should not have played games 2 or 3 considering his illness in game 1. did anyone see theo's lateral movement in game 3? no, no one saw it because he was moving like he was in molasses. he couldn't track the puck and his reflexes looked like he was drunk. i could see this from the tv; i can only imagine what it looked like at the game. this avalanche team has needed a superior goalie since roy retired to lift them from good solid team to elite level team and theo finally became that guy during the last half of this season and in the first round, but this round has been lost because coach q didn't clearly assess the situation. he had to have known that theo was ill prior to game 1 and then after seeing his performance, i was really disappointed that budaj didn't start game 2, and i'm livid that budaj didn't start game 3. coach q wasted 2 games trying to give the "number 1" goaltender a chance when it was more than clear that theo wasn't up to the challenge. so why did coach q do this? i believe that coach q is a hardhead, and when a player is in his doghouse, end of story. i have seen this before and in the past supported his decisions. but i can't with a good conscience agree with a decision that has cost the avs at least one game in this series. on the other hand, the wings have played great hockey and might still be up 3-0 even if budaj had started games 2 and 3, but at least the avs would have had the best shot at winning. look at what babcock did, he sat hasek when the wings were having trouble with the predators. he has outcoached coach q and as much as i hate to say it, the wings deserve to win this series in a sweep. :~(

• May 1, 2008

  10:22 a.m.

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  SDWingNut writes:

  I swear I'm going to break out "the world's smallest violen in the world and play my heart bleeds for you" for all the Avs fans. Once again, my nerves are getting frayed from the "the world has dealt the Avs a cruel blow" stuff I have been reading about. Let me suggest this: break out your DVR (if you have one and recorded Game 3) and review the game. If you can honestly tell me that all of the missed calls were one-sided (favoring the Wings), then you have some serious vision problems or your in denial. As a matter of fact, I think one of the wing players got tripped right before Forsberg and no whistle happened there either. Maybe if "Peter the Great" wasn't such a flopper and complainer, he would have got the call. As I said before, short of mugging another player or drawing blood, the refs have allowed a pretty open game. Not just this game, but in all of the games I've watched in this playoff season. I think the refs are doing everything they can to not allow a game to be swayed on an iffy call. Avs fans, please stop the whining, and know that it's no sin to be whipped by a far better team. If the "Red Sox beat the Yankees" comeback happens, more power to you, but not this year. Go Wings!!

• May 1, 2008

  10:52 a.m.

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  josecanuc writes:

  Here's how it works folks. The Wings are a PUCK POSSESSION TEAM. That means they are going to take fewer penalties because they have the puck most of the time. The idea is not to take penalties when you have the puck. Get it? And if you check the stats, it will be pretty clear that the minutes add up significantly in Detroit's favor for time of possession vs. the Avs - or just about anybody else all season.

  Articles lamenting the officials and the comments to follow are a waste of time because, most generally, the writers are only adding up the penalties they think should have been called in their team's favor. There are plenty that are missed all the way around and making judgments from the stands or from a camera are not the same as making calls on the ice. Additionally, if one knows that there will be a certain percentage of "bad" calls or no calls during the game, the contingency is to score enough to overcome that problem so that one doesn't look like a crybaby blaming the officials after the fact. But, if it makes you feel better as you lament your fate, Filppula told the Detroit Free Press he probably should have received a penalty for the hit on Foote. He stated that Foote turned his back to him at the last possible second after he had committed to the check but that it should have been a penalty.

  Finally, the article above presumes that Foppa would have scored and expresses amazement that Ozzie now has the best GAA in the playoffs. That presumption assumes Ozzie couldn't have stopped the shot and forgets that Ozzie also had the best GAA for the season, so nothing new here. Enjoy the game tonight. I know I will.

  Let's Go Red Wings!

• May 1, 2008

  11:43 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  tarabusikid writes:

  These forums aren't as fun as freep.com. I'm going back home.

• May 1, 2008

  11:58 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  T1anda writes:

  Send your son to us Patrick!! We need him!!! Bye tarabu..don't let the door........

• May 1, 2008

  1:47 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  skilledwinger writes:

  I read the "refs screwed us" excuse from every opposing teams fans the Red Wings face. The Wings never get credit for being good, it's always the refs...the Wings have dominated teams for what, about 10-15 years now. The conventional wisdom on how to beat the Wings is to punish them physically, all the so-called experts say this. Every team tries this and you think the rock-heads would finally realize that - NO - this is not the way to beat the Wings. All this does for the other teams is put the Wings on the powerplay where their superior skill wins out every time. You cannot beat the Wings playing the physical game, even Brian Burke of the Ducks said their goon tactics did not work on the Wings last year, what beat the Wings was the talent of Niedermayer, Getzlaf, Perry and company. So if you want to use the refs screwed us angle, go ahead but your wrong. With that being said, I feel bad for the Avs that they've suffered so many injuries but maybe you also need to get younger and more talented to beat the Wings. And if this is it for Sakic (I hope not) I tip my hat to one of the greatest players I ever watched.

• May 1, 2008

  2:16 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  coastiehero writes:

  DEFENSE wins games period. The Avs are not playing defense like
  they did against the WILD. The intensity is not there like it
  was in round 1... it seems like the Avs are content to just be
  there now and are not really in the same mindset that they once
  were. I think that coach Quenneville has done a decent job this
  year considering all of the injuries and line-up changes.
  I think he should have given Budaj a chance to win a game or
  two after he knew that Theodore was not 100%. But coulda
  shoulda is neither here nor there... and the "Fat Lady" will be
  singing soon enough.
  The Avalanche have a lot of issues to tend to in the off season
  ahead. Getting a tougher, grittier team is a must... we need
  more of the muckers and grinders now more than ever before.
  The war is won in the trenches and we do not have enough of
  the proper weapons to use right now.
  My hat is off to the Red Wings management for at least keeping
  their team very competitive throughout the years and especially
  after the salary cap took effect. I am an Avalanche fan and
  always will be win or lose. Good luck to both teams tonight
  and may the best team win and move on to play a very tough
  series after this one ends... May the Wings/Avs rivalry never
  end!

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