Colorado Avalanche Offense: 5 Questions for the Upcoming Season

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The Colorado Avalanche have always been a high-octane offensive threat. From the time of Joe Sakic and Peter Forsberg to the present of Matt Duchene, Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog.

This season the Avalanche offense is taking on a different look. Obviously there are still the skill players in Duchene, MacKinnon and Landeskog. However, defense is also being emphasized. No longer are the skill players being allowed to cherry pick.

Likewise, Colorado lost a key member of the offense in center Ryan O’Reilly. While it’s true the trade had to happen, no question his loss changes the makeup of the team.

On the flip side, the Avalanche have a few new acquisitions up front — specifically Carl Soderberg, Mikhail Grigorenko and Blake Comeau. Soderberg at least is expected to skate with the top-six. Indeed, as of right now, the top three lines look like this:

Alex Tanguay-Matt Duchene-Jarome Iginla

Gabriel Landeskog-Carl Soderberg-Nathan MacKinnon

Blake Comeau-John Mitchell-Mikhail Grigorenko

Keeping in mind Colorado has always been an offense-first team, let’s look at five big questions for the offense going into the 2015-16 season.

Next: Power Play?

Dec 17, 2013; Dallas, TX, USA; Colorado Avalanche defenseman

Tyson Barrie

(4) and center Matt Duchene (9) and center Nathan MacKinnon (29) and defenseman

Erik Johnson

(6) celebrate Duchenes goal against Dallas Stars goalie

Dan Ellis

(not pictured) during the first period at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Will the power play be able to score?

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It got to be ugly last season. All of Avs Nation, including the players themselves, watched helplessly as the Colorado Avalanche power play remained scoreless for long stretches of time.

It was just so baffling. During the 2013-14 season, Colorado was tied for fifth place in the NHL with a 19.8 power play percentage. Just one year later, the team was in 29th position with a 15 percent power play conversion.

Wings Jarome Iginla and Gabriel Landeskog were the big power play players with eight goals each. Iginla had an additional five power play assists to Landeskog’s nine. Tyson Barrie (14), Alex Tangay (12) and Ryan O’Reilly (10) were the big assist men on the man-advantage.

Of all those players, only O’Reilly is gone. Probably Carl Soderberg or Mikhail Grigorenko is going to take his place. That said, forwards Matt Duchene (2 goals, 5 assists) and Nathan MacKinnon (3 goals, 4 assists) are also to see time on the power play as is defenseman Erik Johnson (3 goals, 3 assists).

Most of those players are the same from two seasons ago. Can they regain that spark? Will they at least end up somewhere in between #5 and #29?

Will they stop passing the puck around like it’s a tray of cookies at a garden party and actually shoot it for a change? We can only hope so.

Next: MacKinnon?

Dec 20, 2014; Buffalo, NY, USA; Buffalo Sabres defenseman

Andre Benoit

(61) and Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon (29) go after a loose puck during the first period at First Niagara Center. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

Will Nathan MacKinnon start taking over centerman duties?

Nathan MacKinnon was drafted first-overall as a natural centerman. Yet he’s spent the majority of his two-year career on wing. That’s pretty natural. Center is something of a quarterbacking position with a lot of two-way play. MacKinnon has needed to grow into that role, especially when it comes to the defensive side of his game.

Faceoffs weren’t great either as he earned just a 47 faceoff win percentage last season.

That said, MacKinnon is no longer a teen, and he’s entering the third year of his career. He spent the majority of the last two summers training with one of the best centers in the NHL, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ Sidney Crosby.

MacKinnon spent a lot of time on Ryan O’Reilly’s wing last season, and, of course, O’Reilly is gone. Avalanche execs acquired Carl Soderberg for that position. However, it’s also no secret that Soderberg is supposed to be a temporary fix until MacKinnon is ready to take over those duties.

Ever since drafting Nathan MacKinnon, the Colorado Avalanche have made no bones that their expected one-two punch on center is MacKinnon and Duchene. Will this be the year MacKinnon steps more into that role? Or will Soderberg center that line for the majority of the season?

Next: Duchene?

Mar 12, 2014; Denver, CO, USA; Colorado Avalanche center Matt Duchene (9) celebrates after scoring a goal against the Chicago Blackhawks in the second period at the Pepsi Center. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Will Matt Duchene finally have his breakout year?

At the time of his draft in 2009, center Matt Duchene was the highest draft pick the Colorado Avalanche had ever had — #3. Ever since then, all eyes have been on Duchene as something of the team’s savior.

I don’t want to say Matt Duchene has failed to produce. However, he finished fourth on the team for scoring last season (21 goals, 34 assists) — that’s not really what we’ve been expecting, especially since he played all 82 games for the first time in his career.

Duchene has certainly had some good years, including 70 points (and team leader) in 71 games during the 2013-14 season. His 27 goals during the 2010-11 season were pretty special, as were the 24 goals his rookie season.

Matt Duchene has never cracked that 30-goal mark, and he can get downright streaky in his scoring. Can he at least crack the former and be a dominant scoring force on the team again?

Next: Grigorneko?

Sep 21, 2013; Buffalo, NY, USA; Buffalo Sabres center Mikhail Grigorenko (25) waits for a face-off against the Toronto Maple Leafs at First Niagara Center. Mandatory Credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports

Will Mikhail Grigorenko pan out?

Of all the Colorado Avalanche acquisitions, perhaps the most questionable is Mikhail Grigorenko. I don’t mean that negatively — I mean, there are just so many questions surrounding the Avalanche’s new forward.

Grigorenko performed so well at major juniors. Avalanche head coach Patrick Roy was his coach with the QMJHL Quebec Remparts, and that relationship worked out well. Grigorenko scored 92 goals under Roy’s coaching those two years and scored 115 goals with the Remparts overall.

Grigorenko also did well with the AHL Rochester Americans last season, scoring 14 goals and earning 22 assists in 43 games. However, in 25 games with the Buffalo Sabres… not so much (3 goals, 3 assists).

There have been many players who have looked like scoring geniuses at major juniors and the minors yet been unable to transition that to the NHL. It’s just that Grigorenko’s scoring ability looks so exciting. His chemistry with Patrick Roy is so good. The Buffalo Sabres were so bad, and Grigorenko is still so young (21).

Will Mikhail Grigorenko be able to find his scoring touch with the Colorado Avalanche and, perhaps, even spark some scoring on a team that struggled with it last season.

Next: Fourth Line?

Mar 27, 2014; Denver, CO, USA; Colorado Avalanche center Matt Duchene (9) celebrates after scoring a goal with forwards

Patrick Bordeleau

(58) and

Cody McLeod

(55) during the first period against the Vancouver Canucks at Pepsi Center. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

Who will comprise the fourth line?

Well that’s the million-dollar question, isn’t it? (Even though most potential fourth liners make less than that.)

The Colorado Avalanche fourth line has lately been a hodge podge of prospects and energy players. There’s no reason to think that’ll be any different this season. The Avalanche have two energy players from whom to choose, Cody McLeod and Patrick Bordeleau. Mcleod is an alternate captain, so you have to think he’ll make the roster nightly, but nothing’s ever certain with a fourth liner.

It’s hard to know who the center is going to be. The Avalanche acquired Jesse Winchester for that spot last summer, though he missed the whole season with concussion syndrome. Marc-Andre Cliche took over that position most of last season, though even coach Roy stated he wants Cliche to be the 13th forward.

Colorado also has no shortage of prospects for this line. Dennis Everberg will probably be out at the beginning of the season since undergoing shoulder surgery, but winger Borna Rendulic has been training hard. Center Joey Hishon has been gunning for that spot, too, since last season. This year’s #10-overall draft pick, Mikko Rantanen, might make a surprise visit on this line. Freddie Hamilton, Andrew Agozzino — there are a few players competing hard for this line.

This particular battle is going to make training camp and the preseason all the more exciting.

What about you, Avs Nation? What are your big questions for the Avalanche offense going into the 2015-16 season?

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