In seemingly unrelated news, earlier this week, NHL teams, including the Colorado Avalanche, released their yearly headshots.  (PS – check out Brett Burns!!!)

Question: What happens when you mix test surveys and Avalanche headshots?  Answer: Blogging magic.

I surveyed 14 women and asked them to rate the hotness of each Avalanche player on a zero to 50 scale, using this year’s headshots.  Its important to note that most of the survey takers were not hockey fans – so the players talent level was not a factor (which the results show).

So, without further adieu…

HOT:

3. Chuck Kobasew: Direct quote from one survey taker:  ”I am publicly announcing that Kobasew is dreamy with those broken eyes.”

2. Steve Downie: Must be the long hair…

The most attractive Avs player is:

1. Gabriel Landeskog: Freakin’ Swedes.  BTW – If you ever want to be angry with God, just consider Landeskog’s fellow countryman Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist – not only is he talented enough to be one of the very best goalies in the world, he’s also unbelievably attractive (just ask your girlfriend).  I’d gladly take one of those things.

NOT:

3. Jamie McGinn: Sorry, Jamie.  You are more attractive than two other players on the team, but less attractive than that ginger Cody McLeod.

2. Milan Hejduk: I guess its hard to hang with the young guys when you’re the old man on the team in more ways than one.

The least attractive Avs player is:

1. Greg Zanon: The Avs blogosphere might be in love with your epic beard, but the ladies are not.

Complete Results:

Here we are, smack dab on the middle of the dreadful off-season…  UGH!!!  I don’t know about any of you, but I am seriously jones-in for some hockey action.  Anyway, as the off season drags along, I thought I would throw out a few fun facts, thoughts, predictions and prognostications about our beloved Avalanche…  ENJOY!!!

• Only 4 players on the team have more than 5 years experience in the NHL – Milan Hejduk (13), Jean-Sebastien Giguere (13), Chuck Kobasew (8) and Jay McClement (6).
• Matt Duchene and Ryan O’Reilly will be able to legally drink in the USA about the same time the All-Star break takes place.  Party hard, boys!
• 3 of the 5 U.S. born players on the team (Erik Johnson, Peter Mueller & Ryan Stoa) are from the same town – Bloomington, Minnesota.  There must be something in the water there!  The other 2 are from Michigan (different cities though, darn it).
• The Avalanche defense only scored 22 goals last year.  With no John-Michael Liles or Kevin Shattenkirk in the line-up, I’ll be AMAZED if they get anywhere close to 20 in the upcoming season.
• When did this team decide to become the Irish National team?  With players like McClement, O’Byrne, Cumiskey, O’Reilly, McCleod, O’Brien, and Porter, we may as well have Guiness on tap and dye the ice green…
• Is Super-Joe really Superman?  Did you see that hole-in-one?  Sheesh…
• The Avs will play 3 Eastern Conference teams twice this year – the Penguins, the Devils & the Jets.  Speaking of conferences, when is the NHL going to change things up and get the divisions right?
• Maybe Mueller’s health would improve if he ditches the #88…  It didn’t work out so well for this one fella named Eric Lindros!
• Speaking of numbers, 21 will be retired on October 8^th.  Thanks, Foppa – for everything (except the Brett Favre impersonation last year).
• There are 7 – yes I said 7 – center ice men on the Avalanche roster.  How’s that gonna work out?  I hope Kevin Porter’s not the only one able to play another position…
• The longest road trip of the upcoming season will happen right away – a 5 game stint October 10-17.  But January will be hell – 9 of the 12 games that month will be on the road.
• The longest home stand is an 8 gamer that takes place in late November thru early December and 7 of the 8 are against conference rivals.
• The Avalanche had 36 different skaters and 3 goalies take the ice last year.  Will the injury bug rear its ugly head again this season?  If Semyon Varlamov has anything to say about it, that would be a resounding YES.

And finally…

• How’s this for the opening night starting line-up versus the Dead Wings:  C Matt Duchene, LW Gabriel Landeskog, RW Milan Hejduk, D Jan Hejda, D Erik Johnson and G Semyon Varlamov.  Sounds intriguing to me…