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Colorado Avalanche have real shot at first-round elimination

By Graham Tiedtke

Apr 22, 2023; Seattle, Washington, USA; Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar (8) celebrates with the bench after scoring a goal against the Seattle Kraken during the second period in game three of the first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Climate Pledge Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 22, 2023; Seattle, Washington, USA; Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar (8) celebrates with the bench after scoring a goal against the Seattle Kraken during the second period in game three of the first round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Climate Pledge Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Colorado Avalanche are tied with the Seattle Kraken in their first-round playoff series, each winning two games. The Avalanche have done so without several key stars including Gabriel Landeskog and most recently Valeri Nichushkin (due to a very weird, no-update situation).

Now, the Avalanche face yet another real problem. Cale Makar has been suspended for Game 5 against Seattle for his hit against the boards on Jared McCann.

Makar was initially called for a major penalty (which is a five-minute penalty), but upon referee review, it was reduced to a minor (two minutes).

The Colorado Avalanche fought and clawed their way into the playoffs this season despite the constant injuries and going the whole season without Landeskog. Not only are they down Landeskog and now Makar, but yet another top-line guy in Nichushkin for at least this next game.

In my opinion, it just feels like this could be a first-round exit from the Avalanche. Based off of their inconsistent play throughout the course of the season, even though they found their way into the postseason, losing Nichushkin and  Makar just feels like too much of a blow to overcome.

It’s also worth noting that MacKinnon recently pointed out that the Seattle Kraken have been his “toughest first-round foe.”“toughest first-round foe.”

Obviously, the Avalanche aren’t out of it until they officially are, but it’s a tall order to come back and win these games against a Kraken team who has outplayed them at times. Alexandar Georgiev and Pavel Francouz will need to play their tails off in these next two games if the Avalanche have a shot at advancing past the first round.

If the Colorado Avalanche don’t make it past the first round, they didn’t deserve it. Unfortunately there’s no excuse. They have played all or parts of this season without their star players, so they need to find a way to continue their success. Will the loss of Makar prove to be too big? We’ll find out in the next couple of days.

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