The Colorado Avalanche reached six-straight wins, defeating the New York Islanders at home on Sunday night, and continue to roll at the top of the league standings with 31 points. While some of the wins aren't as pretty as most Avs fans would like, and many of the points that cushion them at the top of the standings come from overtime play, there is one specific tactic that is aiding in all these Colorado wins.
This Avalanche squad loves to score early.
In their 19 games played, Colorado has scored in the first five minutes eight times, and have a 5-3 record when scoring early. While that stat alone might not be too impressive, the icing on the cake comes from four of those matchups in which the Avalanche scored in the opening minute of the game.
Colorado defeated the Golden Knights 4-2 in Vegas after getting on the board 41 seconds into the game. They did it again the very next day in San Jose with a goal that came 30 seconds after puck drop, though they ultimately lost 3-2 in overtime. A little over a week later, Artturi Lehkonen opened the scoring at Ball Arena against the Anaheim Ducks by finding the back of the net 28 seconds into the matchup, and a fourth time two days later against Buffalo, with a tally hitting the scoreboard at 52 seconds into play.
Leading these opening-minute goals is none other than Martin Necas, who recently penned an 8-year extension with the Avalanche on October 30th, and then followed up the new contract with the early goal against Vegas the very next day. Necas contributed two more early goals, one against San Jose and the other against Buffalo, giving him three total opening-minute goals in a two week span. The winger has set a new franchise record of the most opening-minute goals by a player in a single season.
The Avalanche now own a 3-1 record when scoring in the first minute of a game this season.
While these early goals aren't the sole reasoning for Colorado's ability to win lately, they do offer more than just a fun stat for Avs fans. Alongside being notable, the opening-minute goals shine a light on the man who was the talk of the town this off-season: Martin Necas.
Lots of rumors swirled this summer and early in the season surrounding Necas and what was his expiring contract with Colorado. Some sources claimed he was reluctant to stay in Denver, citing unhappiness from his sudden trade from Carolina. After the announcement of his new contract came through and details were shared, many fans took to social media to express hesitance or disappointment in the terms as lingering fears and heartache of losing Mikko Rantanen resurfaced. A big issue seemed to be that fans believe it would've been worth Colorado offering the same deal they now gave Necas to Rantanen back in January instead of rushing the trade that brought Necas over to Denver. The exact situation and negotiations with Rantanen last season are still up in the air, and the truth is, Avs fans will most likely never know what went down, but the Necas signing and subsequent point production should be more than enough to close that chapter.
Necas has more than proved himself worthy of his shiny new deal, sitting on 25 points with 13 goals and 12 assists, a 16 plus-minus rating, and a new franchise record with the three opening-minute goals that followed his contract extension. Early goals are sweet, new records are too, but what's even sweeter is knowing that Colorado has locked up a point-producing, red hot Necas for a long while, and they're chugging ahead with a new determination to win this season.