The annual tradition that has become the NHL’s Frozen Frenzy is back this season. And the Colorado Avalanche are right in the thick of it.
All 32 teams will be in action on Tuesday night, with one mad dash of games featuring head-spinning action leading the event. A total of 16 games will be on the slate.
The concept is pretty straightforward: Every team plays on the same night, with staggered start times helping create a continuous stream of hockey. ESPN's coverage includes a tripleheader, while additional games will be available through the ESPN App and NHL Power Play.
ESPN2 will also provide a whip-around show featuring live looks at games around the league.
Frozen Frenzy is still a relatively young tradition, but it gives the NHL a chance to put its entire product on display. Instead of asking fans to settle in for one game, the league offers a buffet of goals, big saves, rivalry matchups and potential late-game drama.
For Avalanche fans, nonetheless, the team being part of the feature tripleheader is just a part of the story.
Colorado heads to Dallas for a showdown with the Stars. The game is a crucial one, as Colorado will be looking to bounce back from arguably its worst showing of the season. As such, the Avalanche have some unfinished business after Saturday's ugly 6-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Avalanche need a response against Dallas, and Blackwood could deliver it
Let's call a spade a spade: Colorado's performance against Toronto was just not good enough.
The Avalanche took a 3-2 lead into the second half of the middle frame, only to watch the Maple Leafs score twice in less than a minute. William Nylander ended up torching the Avalanche to the tune of five points, while Auston Matthews did his bit, racking up four points in the Maple Leafs' victory.
Mackenzie Blackwood, for his part, stopped just 17 shots in a letdown showing.
The Avs cannot afford another defensive meltdown against Dallas, and the night could be a very long one.
And that brings us to the biggest question heading into Tuesday: Who gets the nod in net?
If Jared Bednar goes back to Blackwood, the pressure will be on the veteran to bounce back in a hurry. One bad outing does not define a goaltender, of course, but Colorado needs timely saves when games start getting away from it. The Avalanche can generate offense with the best of them. But the club cannot realistically expect to win if they don’t get that one save that Bednar so adamantly pointed out following Saturday night’s loss.
Scott Wedgewood, meanwhile, has already given Bednar a reason to trust him after stopping 26 shots in Colorado's 7-3 win over Calgary last Thursday, helping the Avalanche get back on track after their first loss of the season.
Here's where things get interesting.
Colorado and Dallas are playing a home-and-home series on back-to-back nights, meaning both Blackwood and Wedgewood could get an opportunity to make their case. That's a rare chance for Avalanche fans to compare the two goalies under similar circumstances, against the same opponent, with the stakes cranked up a notch.
It won't settle the debate overnight. Still, if one netminder stands tall while the other struggles, Bednar will have a difficult decision to ignore.
Frozen Frenzy might be the league's big showcase, but for Colorado, the immediate priority is much simpler: respond against Dallas, get the goaltending sorted out and make sure the Stars do not turn one bad night into a troubling trend.
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