Allow me to introduce... myself.
It’s quite possible many of you already know me. I’ve been covering the Colorado Avalanche for about a decade with various outlets.
If you haven’t
, no sweat. We're hockey folks. We'll still be friends.
I’m Evan Rawal, and I’m the new guy who will be covering the Avalanche and NHL for The Denver Gazette. I’d rather write about hockey than myself, but I would love to let you know what to expect.
A lot of people know what they want to do from a young age, and I guess I was one of them. Hockey took over my life when the Avalanche came to town (yes, I’m a native), and it never left. I started playing hockey at the age of 8 with Foothills Hockey Association and still play to this day, although my joints don’t quite operate as well as they used to. I played AAA hockey and a little bit of Junior hockey, but I was no dummy. The NHL wasn't in my future.
So if I wanted to have a connection to the sport I love, I had to find another way in.
Guess it’s a good thing I’m OK with words.
The player in me tends to come out in my writing. Readers can expect day-to-day reporting to always be a part of my coverage, including chats with players from inside the locker room. But I pride myself on being able to analyze the game. That’s the fun part. What went wrong on the second goal the Avalanche allowed? What did they do right in a game they dominated? And how the heck does Cale Makar do the things he does?
OK, no one might properly explain the latter, but I’ll certainly try.
If you’re itching for in-depth hockey coverage, I’d like to think The Denver Gazette now will be the place to find it. It won’t just be all about the Avalanche, either. I’m a hockey lifer, which means I’m probably still watching hockey on a night off. I just can’t help myself. NHL, AHL, NCAA, KHL, it doesn’t matter.
If there’s hockey on, I’m trying to watch it, although I might be relegated to watching on my phone while my 7-year-old occupies the TV.
I’m excited to really get going here. It's the most wonderful time of the year: hockey season.
Alright. Enough about me. Let’s talk hockey.
***
What I’m Hearing
—Through a week of training camp, there have been two constants. One, the "Roaring 20s" trio back together as the third line. Two, Jared Bednar keeping Nathan MacKinnon, Jonathan Drouin, and Mikko Rantanen on the top line.
While you can expect them to play with other forwards in preseason games, don’t be surprised if Bednar stays with what works when the regular season begins as opposed to spreading the wealth.
“Sometimes you’ve got to rely on some of your top guys,” Bednar said. “This might be one of the years you’ve got to do it right out of the gate.”
—It would be a big surprise if Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, currently in camp on a PTO, didn’t earn himself an NHL contract. The Avalanche have a need at the fourth-line center position and he fills it perfectly. He can win face-offs, kill penalties, and fill the leadership void left by Andrew Cogliano’s retirement. If it seems like a foregone conclusion that he’ll earn a job, he’s not looking at it that way.
“I’m healthy, and I’m willing to show them that I’m hungry, that I can help the team. That’s why I’m here,” Bellemare said.
—Colorado will open the season without three top-six wingers: Artturi Lehkonen, Gabriel Landeskog, and Valeri Nichushkin. While Lehkonen may return soon after the regular season begins, it likely will be a while before the other two make an appearance. That means there are spots up for grabs on the NHL roster, and it’s clear the Avalanche would like Calum Ritchie to earn one of those spots.
All the stars are aligning for the 19-year-old, first-round pick to taste NHL action to start the season. He has the most talent of the players pushing for a spot, and the Avalanche can use the first month of the season to assess whether he’s completely ready. If he’s not, they can send him back to the Ontario Hockey League for another year of seasoning. It makes sense to use the first month to see what he can do.
—There’s at least one more wing spot up for grabs. Through camp and the start of preseason, one player has separated himself from the rest of the pack: Nikolai Kovalenko. The 24-year-old winger has been one of the best players in Russia over the past two seasons, and that pro experience is showing itself. He earned the praise of Bednar in camp and is coming off a two-assist performance against a veteran-laden Dallas Stars lineup Friday.
While he’s not a big guy, he’s extremely competitive and is willing to play in the dirty areas of the ice. Bednar has moved him around in camp to play with all types of players, and he’s adjusted well to all of them. That versatility should help his case when the Avalanche make their lineup decisions in a week.
What I’m Thinking
—The NHL preseason is too long. If we’re being honest, so is the regular season. But that will never change, so there’s no point in going down that road.
Colorado will play six preseason games, but there are some teams playing as many as eight. Eight! And until you get to the end of preseason, you aren’t likely to see many stars in action. The Avalanche probably won’t play Nathan MacKinnon or Cale Makar more than two games this preseason, and even that might be one too many. I understand organizations desire a good look at everyone. And the league is a for-profit operation. But the Avalanche barely sent any NHL players to Dallas for their second preseason game. Who wants to pay to see that?
—Don’t be surprised if the Avalanche hold onto eight defensemen to start the season and roll with 12 forwards. Sam Malinski has had a strong camp and I can’t imagine he’d make it through waivers if the Avalanche tried to sneak him through, especially with a team like Los Angeles losing Drew Doughty for a few months. The starting six for opening night is still to be determined, but Jared Bednar will be able to mix and match depending on the team they’re matching up against and who is playing well. Options are never a bad thing.
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