The Colorado Avalanche will take on the Chicago Blackhawks at the United Center on Wednesday night with hopes of clinching a playoff spot. The Avs aren’t quite there yet but can get close with a win.
Firstly, the Avalanche, currently on a two-game slide, will be looking to beat the last-place Blackhawks who are on a three-game slide of their own. The Blackhawks are 1-9-0 in their last 10, while the Avs are 6-2-2 after riding a 15-game point streak.
So, it looks like Wednesday night’s game is winnable for the Avalanche. Of course, the Avs should not underestimate the Hawks, as the Hawks would certainly love to play the role of spoiler.
Nevertheless, the Avalanche must win their game against the Blackhawks in order to have a chance to clinch a playoff spot this week. In short, the mission is: Win and you’re in.
Colorado Avalanche win and they’re in the postseason
The Avs play back-to-back games on Wednesday and Thursday nights. Thursday night’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets is another must-win for Avs to seal their playoff ticket. The mission is quite simple.
All the Avalanche have to do is win their next couple of games and they’re in. Now, getting some help could make the path that much easier. If the Avs win, and the Vancouver Canucks lose to the Seattle Kraken, the Canucks won’t be able to catch the Avs.
That leaves the Calgary Flames as the only other team standing in the Avalanche’s way. The Flames play on Thursday night against the Anaheim Ducks. If the Ducks defeat the Flames, and the Avalanche win, they’re in.
It seems simple because it is. All the Avalanche have to do is win to position themselves in a playoff spot. The remaining games will serve to determine the final playoff seeding. As it stands, the Avalanche look firmly entrenched in third place in the Central Division but with the way the St. Louis Blues have been playing, they could still catch the Avalanche.
Now, I’ll go out on a limb and say that allowing St. Louis to climb into the third spot in the Central would not be the worst thing in the world. That scenario would allow the Blues to play the Dallas Stars in the first round.
While finishing in the first wild card spot would leave the Avs playing the Vegas Golden Knights, such a matchup might be more palatable for the Avalanche than the Stars. It’ll be an interesting next couple of weeks as the season winds down.