With a comeback win against the Bruins, the Avs extended their franchise-record home win streak to 17 and a record of 13-0-1 in January. That’s one way to ring in the New Year. It hasn’t been easy, it certainly hasn’t all been pretty, but with seven come from behind wins, it sure has been fun.
The last time the Avs lost at home was on November 3rd in an OT loss against Columbus, and their previous regulation loss fell back on October 26th. There must be something in the water at Ball Arena; maybe all that recycled aluminum is giving the Avs some good karma, either that or the Avs are that good. I’m going with the latter. After their overtime loss to Nashville, which I still blame the referees for a phantom extra man call, the Avs have won eight in a row and sit on top of the league with 63 points.
Gaining their 63rd point did not come easily. MacKinnon went down within minutes of puck drop from a hit by Bruin Taylor Hall that forced MacKinnon’s stick to collide with his nose. Watching your superstar pour blood onto center ice while wailing in pain did not set a nice tone for the game, neither did the absurd number of Boston fans in attendance. It is not unusual that so many Bruins fans climb out of the woodwork like an unwanted pest invasion when they come to town. I often wonder where these fans come from, are they transplants, travelers, or do they think putting on a Boston sweater gives them an excuse to be an asshole? Spoiler alert, Boston sweater or not, you’re still an asshole.
While everyone was looking to Kurtis MacDermid to retaliate for the hit against MacKinnon, Hall chose to ignore the instigation, so MacDermid did the next best thing: he scored his first goal as an Av gave the Avs the one-goal lead. The Bruins would tie it up at one seven minutes into the second, where Hall continued to ignore provocation and led to Erik Johnson taking a penalty that would give the Bruins a 5-3 advantage. While I can’t deny it was gratifying to see Johnson crosscheck hall repeatedly, it was an emotional play that led to the Bruins capitalizing on the power play and giving them the 3-1 advantage. At the end of the second period, the game had a feeling of “all good things must come to an end.” Sixteen home wins is a lot, after all.
Fans started exiting the stadium halfway through the third, but those fans (can we call them fans?) have not been watching the Avs, for anyone who has would be able to recognize the energy on the ice and know that a goal was imminent. With under nine minutes remaining, Sammy G fired one past the netminder, Ullmark, to put the Avs within one. It took nearly another nine minutes, but with Keumper on the bench and a beautiful cross-ice pass by Kardi, our captain buried the puck in the net to tie the game with 36 seconds remaining.
A minute into OT, and the momentum in the Avs' favor, the Bruins went down a man after a tripping call, giving the Avs the 4-3 man advantage. With the penalty close to expiring, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that young Cale Makar wristed the puck to the back of the net and silenced the Bruin fans. That is how we take care of business in Denver.
While the Avs are acquiring all the points, there is still a lot that needs developing. It is exciting to watch comeback after comeback, but it is not sustainable and losing the lead is never good. However, the Avs have been finding a way to win and having the confidence to know that being down two (or three) does not mean the game is over. The Avs play with patience rather than with urgency, which can lead to costly mistakes. When the puck isn’t bouncing their way, they have not given into frustration but continue to play their game. As cliché as it is, patience is a virtue, and the Avs have been reaping the reward of their sustained effort.
At 41 games played, the Avs are officially halfway through the season, and there is still a lot of hockey to be played. MacKinnon didn’t return to the game and is unlikely to travel to Chicago for the next game with an “upper-body injury.” We can take solace in that the Avs have already shown that they are capable of winning without their star center and will take on the Sabers on Sunday in hopes of continuing their home win streak. The current record for consecutive home wins is Detroit with 23 games. Seven more home wins is a lot, but beating the Red Wings’ record sure sounds appealing. 17 down, what’s another seven?