The Colorado Avalanche looked flat last week in their 4-3 loss to the New Jersey Devils.
Things have not improved much for Colorado, but it has a chance to turn things around when the Devils come to Denver on Wednesday night.
The Avalanche have lost three of their past four games, with all the losses coming on the road. The perennial Stanley Cup contenders acknowledge they have had issues with intensity lately but vowed it will be different going forward.
“I think it’s us as a group just not being good enough,” Colorado captain Gabriel Landeskog said. “There’s been games where it’s been good, and there’s been games where it’s been really bad. I think we’re also used to winning. But this year, we’re not winning. We’re finding ways to lose games here and there, and the bad ones have been real bad.
“Those are the ones that (the media) and us … we’re trying to find the answers to. But, I have full confidence in this group. We know what we’ve got to do. We got to dig our way out of it.”
The one-goal loss in New Jersey on Oct. 20 was deceiving because Colorado scored two goals in the final 3:13 of the contest. Both of those were by Artturi Lehkonen, who has been the hottest goal scorer on the team. Lehkonen’s 10 goals lead the team, with six coming in the past five games.
Despite the recent struggles, Nathan MacKinnon is off to a strong start with 21 points (seven goals, 14 assists).
The Devils come into the game off a 5-1 win in Dallas on Tuesday night in goaltender Connor Hellebuyck’s debut with his new team. Jake Allen likely will get the start in net against the Avalanche and has a chance to sweep them this season.
Allen had 31 saves in beating Colorado on Oct. 20, a 4-3 win that kickstarted the current four-game winning streak. He is 5-2 with a 2.84 goals-against average in seven starts this season, and with Hellebuyck joining the Devils, they have a formidable goaltending tandem.
Logic dictates Hellebuyck, the 2025 Hart Trophy winner, is the No. 1 goaltender for New Jersey, but Allen is not worried about his standing with the team.
“Whatever they need, whatever Connor needs,” Allen said. “Obviously it’s going to take a little bit of time to get going here, but I’ve never in my career had a set number of games. I can play whenever he needs a night off or things like that.
“Like I said earlier in the year, I’ve held just about every position in the league, from a tandem to the starter to a glorified backup. Nothing is new to me. I’ll be ready to go.”
Captain Nico Hischier comes into Wednesday night’s game on a bit of a roll after a slow start to the season. He had two goals in the win at Dallas on Tuesday night, his second two-goal game of the season, and he has four points in his past four games.
