Colorado Avalanche Must Beat Edmonton for Playoff Hopes

DENVER, CO - DECEMBER 11: Gabriel Landeskog #92 of the Colorado Avalanche skates against the Edmonton Oilers at the Pepsi Center on December 11, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Michael Martin/NHLI via Getty Images)"n
DENVER, CO - DECEMBER 11: Gabriel Landeskog #92 of the Colorado Avalanche skates against the Edmonton Oilers at the Pepsi Center on December 11, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Michael Martin/NHLI via Getty Images)"n /
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 The Colorado Avalanche need their two remaining home games to be wins, starting with tonight against the Edmonton Oilers.

The Colorado Avalanche stole a point in St. Louis thanks to a heart-attack, last-second goal from Alexander Kerfoot. They also did not lose in overtime, which is refreshing. They actually played something called defense which was very weird-looking when executed by the Avs. Alas, thanks to a bizarre decision to send Sven Andrighetto out as the third shooter in the shootout, they did ultimately lose.

But the Avalanche got a point, so their playoffs hopes are still alive with just three games left in the regular season. As of right now they have two points up on the Arizona Coyotes, who also have three games remaining.

Colorado doesn’t have an easy schedule. They do have today’s game against an Edmonton Oilers team that was eliminated by last night’s Avs-Blues game. However, they host the powerhouse Jets for the final home game of the season before heading out to San Jose, which is always death.

So tonight’s two points are crucial. They need them both. They cannot let that final game in San Jose be the deciding factor. The Coyotes, meanwhile, play the Kings in Arizona tonight, the Knights in Vegas and finish at home against the Jets. A pretty similar schedule.

Before moving on to the keys of the game, Go Kings, Knights, and Jets in Arizona, not Colorado.

How to Enjoy the Game

Game time: April 2, 7:00 pm MT
TV Networks: ALT, SNW (Oilers’ feed)
Radio: Altitude Radio (FM 92.5)

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The Colorado Avalanche are in their second game of a back-to-back tonight, having played in St. Louis last night. What’s more, the game not only went to overtime, it went all the way to the shootout. So, the players might be feeling some fatigue, especially since they’ve been playing playoff hockey for a while now.

Well, luckily for Colorado, Edmonton is also on the second game of a back-to-back. They played in Vegas last night. So, there might be some fatigue in their bodies as well.

Especially since there is so little oxygen here in Colorado… Boy, it would be a shame if some of the players, especially those named Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, were to experience some altitude sickness.

I know, they’re elite athletes, so they’re highly unlikely to be affected. We can hope, though.

Top Line

Hockey players look so awkward when they’re not on skates:

I mean, you see the elite skill in the upper body, but the lower body seems to be slogging through mud! Like, his legs are so confused by the method of deployment.

The point is, the Colorado Avalanche are still without Mikko Rantanen, who’s not even skating yet.  However, we still have two elite players in Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog.

As Avs insider Adrian Dater loves to point out, your best players need to be their best when the game is on the line. Colorado needs this win tonight. We need our captain to lead and to grit it out. And we need MacKinnon to be electric.

If any of the other players would like to have a highlight-reel night, I’m certainly not going to complain.

Quick note: If you want positive love posts about the Colorado Avalanche, click on and comment on the positive love posts we write. If the negative posts get the most views and comments, we’re certainly not inspired to write the love pieces. 🤷‍♀️

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Anyway, the Colorado Avalanche are taking us on one helluva ride. Let’s strap in and enjoy the Avs hockey we have coming our way.