The Colrado Avalanche worked hard and came away with another postseason win against the Minnesota Wild on Monday night, gaining a 3-1 advantage over their division rival.
Star forward Nathan MacKinnon has been the best of the group statistically. Through eight games, he has six goals and six assists, which leads the team. However, he’s still got a ways to go if he wants to end the postseason with a Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe trophy.
The Conn Smythe is given to the player who is voted as the most important to his team during the postseason. It wouldn’t necessarily shock me if MacKinnon didn’t earn it, but I think that he still has a chance if the Avs go far. He’s currently tied for second in goals, with Matt Boldy, Brett Howden and Logan Stankoven in a three-way tie for first place.
I would actually love to see Scott Wedgewood or Mackenzie Blackwood earn the Conn Smythe because it would kind of bring the Avs’ goaltending spot full circle with their ups and downs. That probably won’t happen, however, because even one disappointing performance could mean the other guy gets the shot in net for at least one game.
That’s what happened when Wedgewood got pulled in Game 3 for Blackwood. Blackwood has played great in his limited time in net this postseason, but the question is, will it continue? We’ll have to wait and see for that. Perhaps it is now Blackwood’s time to shine.
There is one solid goaltending performance this postseason that could hurt MacKinnon’s bid for the Conn Smythe. Frederik Anderson of the Hurricanes is 8-0 with a goals-against average of 1.12, and just 10 goals allowed.
Back to MacKinnon, he’s in a five-way tie for postseason power play goals with three. The Avs’ power play was up and down during the regular season. They were among the very worst in power play goals for the longest time, but after the Olympic break, it started to heat up. They have six power play goals through the first eight games of the postseason, at 26.1%.
I would love to see MacKinnon take even more control of the ice going forward and shut down the Wild. Doing so could increase the thought of giving him the Conn Smythe. The Avs are the most-feared team in the Western Conference, and #29 is a huge part of their success. Move on to the Stanley Cup Final (likely against the Carolina Hurricanes), continue to dominate, and bring home the Conn Smythe and the Stanley Cup.
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