Colorado Avalanche: Best Goals from the Checking Line

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DENVER, CO – JANUARY 18: Carl Soderberg #34 of the Colorado Avalanche celebrates with teammate Matt Nieto #83 after scoring a goal against the San Jose Sharks at the Pepsi Center on January 18, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Michael Martin/NHLI via Getty Images) /

The Colorado Avalanche’s checking line was surprisingly good last season. Here are three great goals the players potted in.

The Colorado Avalanche had two consistent lines last season. One was the superstar line — which never got a proper name. It consisted of our stars, Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen and Gabriel Landeskog.

Surprisingly, the other consistent line was the checking line. More games than not, coach Jared Bednar lined up Carl Soderberg, Matthew Nieto and Blake Comeau. While the rookies and other veterans vied for spots on the second and fourth lines, these three players consistently found work together.

As you can imagine, this was not a high-scoring line. That said, they were just oh-so-consistent. They were numbers six, seven and eight on the team for scoring:

Carl Soderberg: 37 points (16 goals, 21 assists)
Blake Comeau: 34 points (13 goals, 21 assists)
Matt Nieto: 26 points (15 goals, 11 assists)

So, as you can see, the line accounted for 97 points (44 goals, 53 assists). That’s really not too shabby for a checking line.

Now, NHL journeymen such as the players on this line aren’t known for scoring highlight-reel goals. Nonetheless, let’s look at some of the notable tallies these players scored in the 2017-18 season.

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