Blackhawks Outmuscle Avalanche

(Jonathon Daniels/Getty Images)

I woke up early for volleyball, only got in one game since one team cancelled, and I thought "Sweet, I'll be home in time to watch the game live." If only I'd known what was waiting for me on the other side of that television.

Physicality
The Blackhawks ran circles around the Avalanche and just for good measure, they pushed them around like schoolyard bullies too. I found myself more frustrated by the lack of response to the Hawks physicality than I was by the Avalanche's lack of offense. If the freight train that is Dustin Byfuglien steamrolling Milan Hejduk doesn't get the team pissed off and fired up, then what will?

It feels ridiculously ironic that after getting Ryan Smyth back, supposedly signed for grit and offense, the team loses all its grit and a good chunk of its offense. I'll tell you what, I doubt this sort of turnaround would happen with solid coaching.

Coaching Prowess
But once Sakic and Stastny are back and the team continues to underachieve, the media story will either turn completely away from the Avalanche or gloss over the idea that the coaching squad is limiting the capabilities of the team. Whether it comes to the powerplay or to line matching or to the overall strategy of this team, not a lot appears to be working.

Hell, Guite and Lappy were the only two players with any jump yesterday and they only played 11 and 13 minutes respectively. A coach needs to recognize what works and roll with it during a game, not go with the old, tired routine no matter the situation. You have to be flexible and adjust to different teams gameplans and styles.

Strategery
Dump and chase is a reasonable strategy for a team to employ. But you can't employ a dump and chase while playing a four-man back trapping system. It's just basic mathematics that one person in the corner won't be able to attain or maintain control of the puck against two or three opposing defenders.

Powerplay
The same theory holds true on the powerplay. The Avalanche continuously have one person on each corner, 2 players at the point and another circling in the high slot. And what happens when the puck is down in the corner? The penalty killers collapse on that one player forcing a pass, which is typically short pass to a player who has snuck behind the net and the other forward goes high on the boards to block clears. But if that player never chips in to outnumber the penalty killers down low, the penalty killers will always win. And I won't even get into the audacity the team has to continue putting a forward on the point no matter how many times they get burned by it.

Low end of the stats scale
The Avalanche are 29th on the powerplay, 22nd on the penalty kill, 15th in goals against, 16th in goals scored and 29th in faceoff percentage. Those numbers are going to make their playoff hopes a 50/50 shot at best. And as a matter of fact, they lie just below the 50% line at the moment according to the Sports Clubs Stats playoff picture numbers. The loss yesterday was a huge blow to their chances.

Upcoming Games
The Avalanche have a nasty schedule coming up with 6 games in the next 10 days including contests against the Wings today and the Ducks on Wednesday closing out with games against the Flames, Oilers and Canucks. Oh, and after the Wings game today, the rest of the games are on the road. This team needs to wake up and they better do it yesterday.

Related Links
NHL.com Event Summary
In the Cheap Seats Recap
Denver Post Recap
Confidence Starts at the Top

Avalanche Commit to Pounding Blackhawks

(AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

The Avs absolutely hammered the Chicago Blackhawks tonight in a 6-3 thrashing at the Pepsi Center. Did anyone see that one coming? Heck, I barely even saw it as it was happening.

I was busy shopping assuming the game was being recorded however the feed never kicked in on Shaw's end. So I ended up watching from the midway point via an online feed. I gotta tell ya, it's just not the same as watching on the ol' tube.

Goaltending
Jose Theodore got his 11th straight start, let in one goal and then sat out the third period with reported back spasms. Otherwise known as "We just got word the deal is almost done so sit him to avoid injury." Just joking. Seriously, I'm not a "source" so don't use this on your anonymous blog.

Peter Budaj came in for the third period sporting a killer new mask and held down the fort. He gave up two late goals to Yanic Perrault but by then it was far too late to truly matter.

As for the injury to Theodore, I'm not concerned at the moment. Players get back spasms, they sit out a few shifts. A goalie gets back spasms and it's a bit more noticeable. Hell, I get back spasms. But I just ask my in-office masseuse for a massage and it's all good. Man that'd be sweet. It could be as simple as some mild dehydration, it could be as complex as a sprained back.

I'm sure at some point, the Avalanche will tell us...well they'll tell us something. Whether it's true or not, we'll have to wait and see.

Offense
Marek Svatos led the way tonight with 2 goals and one of those ever elusive assist thingies. I only caught his second goal and it was a case of being in the right place at the right time.

Tyler Arnason made a beauty move down low and tossed the puck towards Svatos who had a wide open net to shoot at. The Versus announcers remarked "My what a shot" but my thought was "Damn, he almost missed that".

Tyler Arnason collected a goal of his own as well as adding two assists as he had his best offensive output of the season. Milan Hejduk had a goal and an assist and Wojtek Wolski had two assists.

Brad Richardson, fresh from a long stint with the Lake Erie Monsters, scored his second goal of the season. Keep it up, Richo. We're all rooting for you.

Commit to the what now?
The Blackhawks are no powerhouse team but you'd think they would have been a bit fired up after Denis Savard's rant about "committing to the Indian". I'm still surprised some human rights group hasn't latched on to that one yet. But we all know that nobody watches hockey so no worries.

Related Links
NHL.com Event Summary
In the Cheap Seats Game Notes
ColoradoAvalanche.com Recap

Blackhawks Defeat Avalanche 2-1 in SO

(Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

Well what can you say about last night. When 3 of your top offensive threats are out, you've got to get it done with goaltending and defensive play and hope the offense can bang home a couple goals.

The team played well defensively, limiting the Blackhawks to just 23 shots, and Theodore made the stops he needed to but the offense just didn't have enough spark to get more than one goal against Patrick Lalime.

I feel a bit complacent about this loss as it's easy to chalk up to injuries but I hope the Avalanche don't have the same attitude I do about tonight.

Marek "Wrecking Machine" Svatos
I'm going to jump right into notes after this one but I couldn't leave this one as just a sidenote.

Late in the third Marek Svatos was waiting on the wing to start a breakout but the puck went past him and he was subsequently leveled by by Tuomo Ruutu. Typically, this is the point where a player would get angry and slash at someone or try to rough them up. However I've seen that look in Svatos' eyes before and I was on the edge of my seat waiting for it.

Sure enough Craig Adams - 6'0", 200lbs - found himself with the puck circling low on the wing heading right for Svatos. Marek took 2 short strides and lowered his shoulder directly into Adam's chest, sending him flying to the ice and sending fans leaping to their feet.

This is at least the third time I've seen Svatos rock someone after taking a big hit and I love it.
He did the same thing to Getzlaf last year and it shocks me everytime. The guy is all of 5'10" and 170 lbs but can dish out some punishment when he's in the mood.

Upping the Energy
Ok, I had one more which is related to the Svatos hit. Peter McNab was stationed in the Avalanche bench for "All Access Night" tonight and after the hit, Haynes asked him what that hit did for both benches.

McNab went on to mention how both benches were on the feet trying to see what happened and after the Avalanche bench caught on, every guy on that bench was fired up and energized.

They then cut to a shot of the bench where every single player was leaning on the boards with one arm looking like they were watching paint dry.

Notes
- Lappy fought Adam Burrish early in the 1st to continue the Avalanche's fighting streak
- Brett Clark played nearly 30 minutes tonight (28:08)
- Hensick seems to be getting his legs and building some confidence
- Wolski and Svatos were showing some good chemistry together, particularly during OT
- Liles 2 great defensive plays, once diving to knock the puck from a streaking Hawk and then later hustling back to overcome a 3-on-1 and force a wide shot
- and what a shot by Patrick Kane on the Hawks goal

Related Links
ColoradoAvalanche.com Recap
In the Cheap Seats Recap
NHL.com Event Summary
NHL.tv Pre-game with Q and post-game with Theodore
Marek Svatos Hit on Craig Adams

Gameday: Avalanche vs Blackhawks

After a successful 5-game roadtrip, the Avalanche are now back in the friendly confines of the Pepsi Center to kick off a 5-game homestand starting with the Chicago Blackhawks. With a 16-6-0 home record, that's nothing but good news for a team fighting for a playoff spot.

The bad news? Well, in case you hadn't heard, Paul Stastny has joined Ryan Smyth and Joe Sakic on the injured reserve list for at least 2 weeks after undergoing an appendectomy yesterday afternoon.

The Lineup
So both top-line centers are down and out meaning somebody is going to have step in to fill the void. That someone will most likely be Jaroslav Hlinka. Although he has spent time down on the fourth line the last couple games, it's not due to lack of talent.

He was lighting it up on the second line before Tyler Arnason came back from wrist surgery so the ability is definitely there. And given that our other centers are Tyler "What Defense?" Arnason, T.J. "Up and Down" Hensick and Ben "Banger" Guite, Hlinka gets the nod almost by default.

As for how things fill in around Hlinka, it likely won't change too much. Wolski-Arnason-Svatos have played well together so Hlinka may just slide in with Brunette and Hejduk and Hensick will then take Hlinka's place on the fourth line.

To me that seems easiest but you never know. The game could open up with Hlinka centering a line with Scott Parker and Johnny Boychuk.

The Goaltending
Jose Theodore gets his 7th straight start tonight as Joel Quenneville has shown no signs of wavering lately. And with a goaltender coming off a 30+ save shutout with a couple days rest in between it would seem a no-brainer that he'd get the start again.

Patrick Lalime will be manning the pipes at the other end as Chicago is having some troubles from their mutli-million dollar goaltender, Nikolai Khabibulin. On a 0-6-1 run, it's a situation that I'm sure all Avalanche fans can sympathize with.

The Opponent
The Blackhawks are on a terrible downward spiral going 2-6-2 in their last 10, falling to 14th in the Western Conference.

They recently picked up Craig Adams from the Carolina Hurricanes to inject some veteran presence into a young squad. They also signed Patrick Sharp, their leading goal scorer, to a 4-year extension as he's having a banner season with 22 goals in 44 games. That's 2 more than the career high 20 he put up last season.

And speaking of youth, 19-year old Patrick Kane leads the team in points with 43 as he defies critics who thought he was too small to play at the pro level. At just 163 pounds, it's not hard to see why that was the consensus. I'm curious to see what his second season will be like once teams really start keying in on him.

Related Links
ColoradoAvalanche.com Preview
Injured Sauer Receives Some Good News
Theodore piping hot at good time
Hensick in Avs Spotlight
Jose left as Avs peter out (anybody else find this to be a weird title?)
Third Man In Preview (Hawks blog)

Avalanche Fight Back But Come up Short; Lose 5-3

(Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)

Good grief. This better not be indicative of how the Avalanche will play most of their games this year. Come out flat, give up a big lead, come back firing, catch up and then late fate take over to decide the game. It's going to get real old, real fast. In fact, it already is old as the Avalanche were prone to this last year and we've now seen back-to-back games played out in this style.

Quenneville better learn how to light a fire under his team. And quick. Yes, they're calm, they're experienced, they can score. That doesn't help when the other team is already up by 3 or 4 goals though. And it's no excuse for shoddy play.

First Period
Flipping brutal. It was a complete repeat of the performance against the Flames. Turnovers at will, lack of intensity, odd man rushes galore and lack of goaltending to bail them out.

The Avs got an early powerplay and they were fairly effective. If by "effective" I mean "giving up 2-on-1 chances". Sure, they got a shot or two off on Khabibulin, who did make some nice saves, but it was nothing that felt dangerous. Even the "backdoor" play they tried wasn't crisply executed.

Arnason had a bit of jump in him in the first and a couple times he stole the puck and got a scoring chance. On the first one, it was apparently the most brilliant steal ever as McNab remarked "When Arnason is on, he's one of the best in the world". Expletives cannot define what went through my head but I'll just say this: Is McNab on crack all the time? Or just some of the time?

The expletives that came next were out of sheer amazement and awe. Jonathon Toews scored the goal of the year as he broken down the left side, slipped past Hejduk, split past our shutdown guys Clark and Hannan, and deposited the puck past a surprised, and fairly stationary, Theodore. Now, it was absolutely gorgeous. But behind every gorgeous goal there is typically an act of boneheaded idiocy on the part of a defending player. In this case, it goes to both Hannan and Clark. Hannan for doing his stupid "lean over at the waist and try to block the pass" move - which has yet to work this year - and then Clark for deciding he'd sweep the ice off for Toews. Maybe he thought if he made it a bit slicker that Toews would slip and fall? That's all I've got to explain how terrible that play was by those two defenders.

The announcers marvelled over the brilliance of the goal - we all did - and then proclaimed "Not that I want to point out when anybody does anything wrong..." and proceeded to point a finger at Hannan and Clark. Are you kidding me? Honestly. If you can't be realistic in your assessment of the game, you should take your ball and go home. These two announcers nearly crap their pants at the beauty of every opposing teams goal in the hopes that us simple-minded fans don't notice that somebody must have screwed up to lead to said goal. It's like listening to Tony Snow.

And as I was ranting on about this in my head...the Hawks went up 2-0 on a Guite giveaway and Theodore bobble. Guite laid out a nice hit but had a pass - which I think would have ended up in the slot anyways - deflected right to Jason Williams. He tossed a quick shot on Theodore to which Theodore replied with "Good one. Hey Patrick, want to try?" and tossed the rebound out. Sharp gobbled up the huge rebound in the slot and buried it up high.

Feeling left out, Jordan Leopold decided he wanted to get in on the action. So he gave the puck away at the blueline which led to a 2-on-1 with Kane and Patrick Sharp. Sharp fed Kane and Kane put a beauty of a shot high glove on Theodore. 3-0 Blackhawks and they haven't broken a sweat yet. Also, "Kane" is an awesome name. Whether it's your first or last name. But if it's your first AND last name, that's a bit weird.

The Avs then got another PP chance which meant a couple more Hawks 2-on-1 chances. They couldn't cash in but at this point, they were likely just feeling sorry for the Avs. The period ended 3-0 for the Hawks. Just like the other night against the Flames. Sigh.

Second Period
The Avs had a bit more jump to start this period. Svatos had a brief shift with Sakic and the two worked well together. Not well enough to put the puck in the net of course. The Avs put a couple big point shots on net but Khabibulin got a hold of both. There were rebounds on each but he was able to keep them out as well. *hint, hint*

The Avs kept pressure on and the Hawks eventually iced the puck. Q tried to hurry up the faceoff but Savard called a timeout to give his players a break. So Savard has used up his only timeout but he had to be thinking there would be no need for one later on in this game the way things were going.

Patrick Sharp got another chance on another Avalanche turnover and Karlis Skrastins defended him the best way he knows how. Yep, he just sprawled on the ice as big as he could, closed his eyes and hoped for the best. Sharp didn't score, but Skrastins managed to trip him and take a penalty. Defence. It's what's for dinner.

The Avs looked ok on the PK but Leopold decided there weren't being tested enough. So he smashed Toews into the boards from behind and headed to the box. Although McNab tried to be an apologist and do the "He turned at the last second" bit, Leopold had plenty of time to let up and he didn't. It didn't help that Toews was off-balance when he got shoved but that's about the only saving grace for Leopold on that play. Thankfully they killed off the 5-on-3 and the remainder of the Leopold penalty to keep the game from running away. Farther away I mean.

The first line, which had been buzzing all period long finally broke though and got rewarded for their effort. Wolski was holding the puck in deep and decided to get rid of it and head to the front of the net. Andrew Brunette saw him heading there, fed him a great pass and Wolski buried it past the Bulin wall. Sakic was factor in that he had 2 Hawks players defending him in front of the net, freeing up Wolski to pull the trigger.

Theodore made a few more saves on which he looked very shaky. He's really bobbling rebounds and not looking confident. He's not kicking them out far or to the corner, but he's not putting them close enough for him to cover up. He nearly made a huge save on a 3-on-1 but turns out...the post did it. He likely wasn't there for it anyways judging by the reverse angle.

Third Period
It was a good start to the third. Svatos worked hard to keep the puck in, raced to the net, got the puck and made a beauty of a backhand that got up high past Khabibulin. A sweet, sweet shot. Not as nice as the Selanne backhand on Theodore in the 06 playoffs - remember that one? - but very nice. Anyways, 3-2 Hawks at that point.

The Avalanche then went back on the PK which again looked pretty good. Brett Clark was able to negate the penalty after he lost an edge and the trailing referee called Robert Lang for a hold. It was not, but I'll take it. Liles successfully defended the inevitable Hawks chance on the PP as he broke up a HUGE up ice pass to Kevyn Adams. The Avalanche then did the unthinkable.

Joe Sakic circled back in the neutral zone, took a slash to the wrist, put on the after burners, broke in past the Hawks blueline, dished it to Brunette who immediately fed it to Smyth and Smyth made no mistake as he redirected it past Khabibulin's outstretched pad. Yep, the Avs have fought back from deep deficits twice in two games. Be still my beating heart. Wait...that can't be right. I want it to keep beating, don't I?

Wojtek Wolski then got sprung on a breakaway, was in the clear and being hooked by two Hawks players, didn't get the shot off... but was not awarded a penalty shot. I thought the NHL wanted to call more penalty shots this year? Well, maybe these refs didn't get the memo. Maybe it didn't have had a cover sheet. Unfortunately the Avs couldn't take advantage of the penalty but were able to generate some chances.

Brett Clark decided to make it a perfect repeat of the Flames game as he took a silly holding penalty late in the game. My heart may have stopped beating during this PK, I'm not sure. Thankfully they killed it off so Clark won't be the scapegoat of this game.

The Avalanche than took an ill-timed icing call and they paid for it. Savard quickly put out the young guns and they were flying. Kane circled the net, fired it out to the far point, Johansson blasted it and Ruutu deflected it home. With just 1:25 left to play, that one definitely ended the game.

And just to make sure, the Hawks put in an empty netter and that was that. 5-3 Hawks and the Avs still don't have a road win. Minnesota is up next. Good luck guys.

Stats
Brunette and Sakic had 2 assists each, Svatos, Wolski and Smyth were the goal scorers and Stastny got his 9th assist of the year.

Wolski and Sauer were the only players in the + column. Hlinka was at -3. Clark, Hannan, Guite, Lappy and Stastny were at -2.

Clark led the team with 24:10 in ice time. Sakic was next with 22:06 followed by Stastny with 20:49. Liles put in 20:08, a shade more than Hannan's 19:59. I don't want to look it up, but that sounds like the least ice time Hannan's had so far. He still managed 34 shifts which tied with Clark for tops in the game and put in 6:22 on the PK.

Stastny and Svatos got off 5 shots while Wolski had 4. Laperriere, Guite and Sauer were the only Avs not to record a shot.

Yanic Perrault was 100% in the faceoff circle. 12 for 12 including a crucial defensive zone faceoff against Sakic late in the game.

Notables
- Toews faced off against his hero Joe Sakic to start the game
- Svatos was all over the ice with tons of energy
- Toews and Kane are dynamite
- Kane is only 5'9" and 160lbs (that's as "big" as me)
- Guite had some good energy and hits (but a terrible giveaway on 2nd goal)
- Leopold turned the puck over a lot (don't trust the scoresheet)
- every Avs PP led to a 2-on-1 for the Hawks at some point
- Liles unloaded some good point shots
- Stastny took a hard shot to the back of his leg but didn't miss a shift
- Pierre Turgeon is coaching the Women's Select hockey team in Denver

The Good
- fighting back from a lead again
- decent PK (killed all 5, now 30 for 31)

The Bad
- in a deep hole early on
- lack of stand-up defensive play (flopping is not defending)
- I think I've said enough in the rest of my comments

The Ugly
- Brian Engblom (get a haircut!)

Related Links
NHL.com Scoresheet
ColoradoAvalanche.com Recap
In The Cheap Seats Recap
Toews Goal on Youtube

Game Preview: Avalanche vs Blackhawks

(AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

It's time for the Avalanche to embark on a 4-game roadtrip as they head into Chicago tonight. Well, I'm sure they're already there and are enjoying the Windy City. The Avalanche are headed in on a 2-game winning streak, both wins coming at home, while still searching for their first road win.

They will be attempting the feat with Jose Theodore in net. Well, he'll be starting the game anyways. The Denver Post reported on the starting goaltender choice yesterday afternoon and DD from In the Cheap Seats subsequently had an embolism. Ok, he wasn't that upset but judging by Dater's headline, sensationalism is where it's at when writing so I figured I would jump on the bandwagon.

In other goaltending news, Jeff Hacket is now a full-time goaltending coach with Theodore and Budaj. To that I say...he wasn't before? Why not? Wasn't it obvious that the team had goaltending issues? Or was everyone living in the glorious land of Oblivitarion?

Milan Hejduk is set to rejoin the lineup after sitting out a game with a sore back. The offense didn't suffer without him in terms of production but the jump he's shown all season long might have helped their anemic first period against the Flames. This means we'll see Marek Svatos back on the third line as the original RPM line is reunited after their brief breakup. It's unfortunate that Svatos has to work on the third line but you have to make the best of your opportunities.

I'd also expect Wojtek Wolski to remain on the JAW line with Sakic and Brunette. And that's just where I'd like to see him stay. Wolski has improved his game noticeably this year and I've been very happy with what he brings each night. He's stronger on the puck, he's stronger in the corners, he's stronger on the forecheck and he's starting to learn how to backcheck. He may not be the most defensively responsible forward out there, but is that what everyone truly expected him to be?

I've seen people dismiss the "He's young and learning" line of thought when it comes to Wolski's "liabilities" using an argument of "Well Stastny is young and look at him". Now I know I'm not the only one who sees the flaw in that logic. I never expected Wolski to be a 100 point getting, Selke winning machine so maybe that's why I'm not on his case as much. But he got 50 points in his rookie season and has 4 points in 6 games so far this year. So what exactly is the problem?

During the blogger roundtable, I gave Wolski the runner-up choice on being the new whipping boy. I hope that doesn't turn out to be right as I don't believe he deserves it. But it does give me a pedestal to stand up on and rant which is always fun.

So with that rant behind me, let's get back to the upcoming game. The Blackhawks will ice a lineup that won't include their leading scorer from last year, Martin Havlat. He is undergoing rehab on a shoulder he injured in their season opener. But fear not Hawks fans, youngsters Jonathon Toews and Patrick Kane are making up for his absence and then some. Toews has 4 points in 4 games while Kane has 4 points in 6 games. Young blueliner Brent Seabrook is at magic number 4 as well. The youth movement is strong in this one.

With Khabibulin turning back into the Bulin Wall, the Hawks aren't a team to be taken lightly this year.

Oh..and Stastny for President.

Related Links
NHL.com Preview
ColoradoAvalanche.com On the Road Feature
Tapeleg Tears Dater a New One

Pre-game vs Chicago - Mar 1, 2007

The 5-game roadtrip for Avalanche makes its first stop in the Windy City as they invade the United Center. It's hopefully the start of a 5-game winning streak as well! The Avalanche are coming off a 3-2 win against Columbus which say a 3-0 lead nearly evaporate in the final 2 minutes of play. The Hawks are coming off a loss to Detroit in which leading scorer Martin Havlat did not play. And of course Bryan Smolinski, their #2 point getter, didn't play as he was traded to the Canucks on Monday.

Struggling goaltender Peter Budaj put in a good showing against the Jackets and will get the start in goal tonight. Budaj has seen his GAA drop from 2.41 in early January to his current 2.85. A bit of the mid-season doldrums it appears as he seems to be turning his play around. And if I were to hazard a guess at a starting goaltender for Chicago, I think the safe bet is on Khabibulin being between the pipes. His stats are on par with Budaj's as he's had an up and down season as well.

It sounds like Scott Parker will be in the lineup so look forward to seeing him. For about 2 or 3 minutes. He's coming off an ankle injury and he was never really deserved of playing any more than 5 or 6 minutes a game so he'll likely see limited ice-time, skating on the fourth line ever 3 shifts or so. But I could be wrong and he'll skate on the top line with Sakic and score seven goals. It's possible.

Peter Statsny continues his hot streak tonight according to tsn.ca. I don't know how he continues to rack up the points considering that he doesn't play anymore, aside from a backyard rink from time to time. His son Paul continutes to light the lamp as well as he's on a 13 game point streak. That streak is tops in the NHL at the moment. 8 goals and 11 assists during that time have propelled him to #2 in the rookie scoring race.

Injuries
Brisebois - back, LTI
Leopold - wrist, mid-March
Skrastins - knee, day-to-day
Turgeon - calf, IR

Barker - ankle, day-to-day
Handzus - knee, mid-March
Salmelainen - hip, IR
Vandermeer - ankle, IR

Hot
Stastny has 19 in 13, Brunette has 14 in 8, Sakic has 19 in 12, Hejduk has 4 in 2, Rycroft has 3 in 3, Guite has 2 in 2.

Hamilton and Seabrook have 2 in 2.

Cold
Both Colorado goaltenders

Lapointe and Arkhipov have 0 in 6, Bourque has 0 in 4, Ruutu has 1 in 6, Sharp has 1 in 5.

Goaltenders
Peter Budaj - 19-15-4, 2.85 GAA, .903 save pct
Nikolai Khabibulin - 20-19-5, 2.78 GAA, .902 save pct

Standings
Colorado - 30-29-5, 5th in NW, 10th in West
Chicago - 23-31-9, 4th in Central, 13th in West