Colorado Avalanche Players Mourn Derek Shepherd

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Spoiler alert: If you haven’t watched the latest episode of Grey’s Anatomy but are a fan who somehow made it to a Colorado Avalanche site… you are a selective Internet surfer. Oh, and you’ll want to head over to one of our other posts.

Because the rest of us know by now that Derek Shepherd, longtime cornerstone of Grey’s Anatomy and McDreamy himself, is dead.

Awhile ago, I wrote a post comparing Avalanche players to Grey’s Anatomy characters. Turns out, Colorado Avalanche players, rambling around after being eliminated from playoff contention, are actually secret Grey’s Anatomy fans. They watched the iconic episode in which Shepherd is killed by doctors’ ineptitude with varying degrees of shock. Here are their reactions.

Matt Duchene (Meredith Shepherd)

Colorado Avalanche center Matt Duchene in the home jersey. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Center Matt Duchene, listening to the most soulful of country songs, expressed shock at Dr. Shepherd’s passing. He shook his head, his pompadour even looking droopy, as he remarked, “I can’t believe Shonda Rimes killed off Derek Shepherd. She really put the boot on the throat of McDreamy, really just pounded the nail in the coffin.”

Duchene’s brow furrowed as he spoke. “You know, this reminds me of that terrible playoff elimination.”

At the hands of the Minnesota Wild last year?

Duchene shook his head. “No. May 26, 1997. The Detroit Red Wings eliminated the Colorado Avalanche by winning Game 6, 3-1.” He mumbled. “Brendan Shanahan. Sergei Federov and Martin LaPointe also scored, but… Brendan Shanahan.”

Dutchy, you were only six at the time.

“Doesn’t matter — history matters.”

Duchene pursed his lips with sudden determination. “I’m motivated to work that much harder in the off season now.”

Because the 1997 Detroit Red Wings eliminated the Avalanche or because Derek Shepherd died?

Never mind. Let’s see how Tyson Barrie is handling things.

Tyson Barrie (Lexie Grey)

Defenseman Tyson Barrie was lounging by a pool in Arizona. He had his sunglasses on and an impossible amount of sunscreen to protect that china-like skin. (Seriously, what is his skin care regimen?) As he huddled under his umbrella, you could tell he was trying to act tough.

He bumped his chin up when asked about the death of the beloved Dr. Shepherd. “You could tell he took one for the team.”

How so?

“Those doctors at the country hospital — they have to learn to be better. That’s how I did it.”

You have a lot of talent, T-Bear.

“Patty Roy — he game me a chance. He was tough on me, and that’s why I got better.”

What’s that have to do with Derek Shepherd?

“More Meredith — she had to be tough with those doctors so they’d get better.”

Barrie squirted a handful of sunscreen into his palm and started slathering it on. “Got to be better. Big boys out there. Big Buff, Chief Hunt, Cooke…”

Wait, Owen Hunt’s not a bad guy.

“Neither is Big Buff, really. He’s just a big boy.”

Speaking of big boys, we wonder what Condor has to say about all this.

Erik Johnson, (Owen Hunt and Christina Yang)

Colorado Avalanche defenseman Erik Johnson is a great leader on the team. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

“That Derek Shepherd played a hell of a game.”

Well, he didn’t play so much as operate…

“You know, you’ve got to play through the pain until you can’t. This game… it’s 80 percent mental and 20 percent physical. If you’re not 100 percent focused, you’re in trouble.”

Ah… ok. So… Derek Shepherd’s head wasn’t in the game?

“You can’t get fancy. You’ve got to shoot the puck, maybe get an ugly goal. Same thing with brain surgery.”

Ugly brain surgery?

“You know, you’ve got to play with speed. Strength is great, but you’ve got to move fast and see everything as it goes down.”

Ok… that sort of sounds like brain surgery…

“Derek Shepherd — it’s very frustrating when you can’t be in the game. ”

Ok, about that time we realized that, between horse racing, his pack of dogs and an intense training regimen with famed trainer Andy O’Brien, Erik Johnson might not really have much time to watch Grey’s Anatomy.

Never mind. Let’s hear what the captain, Gabriel Landeskog — Derek Shepherd himself in my original post — had to say about McDreamy’s death.