Avs Take Over NW Division Lead w/ win vs Oilers

Despite missing key players by the names of Peter Forsberg, Adam Foote, Ryan Smyth, Marek Svatos, Brett Clark, and Jordan Leopold, the Avs were able to take it to the Edmonton Oilers early and often.

In a 5-1 victory, goals were scored by Jeff Finger, Jaroslav Hlinka (on a terrific steal in the zone and an even more terrfic shot), Tyler Arnason, David Jones, and Wojtek Wolski, while Peter Budaj stopped 23/24 to help the Avs pull off their sixth straight home victory.

Before the game, Colorado knew that they could take over the division lead with a win. Calgary gave up a 3-0 lead to the Atlanta Thrashers and ended up losing 6-4. Also in the Avs favor was a New Jersey shootout win over Minnesota. Later on in the night, Vancouver also lost.

What are are the odds that every team in the NW Division would lose except for the Avalanche? Whatever they are, that's exactly what happened last night. With the wins/losses, the Avs are now in first place and third place in the Western Conference!

29th Ranked Power Play

With another power play goal last night, the Avs are now the 29th ranked team in the NHL. Obviously that won't work heading to the playoffs, but the special teams have improved since the deadline.

Three Stars of the Game

1. Jaroslav Hlinka (2 Goals, 1 Assist for the former Czech league star_
2. Tyler Arnason (Big time power play goal to seal it)
3. Peter Budaj (Big saves in opportunity to succeed)

Next Up

The Avs will try to keep the lead in the NW Division on SATURDAY at 3:30 PM EST against the beast of the East - the New Jersey Devils.

On the Bubble

Guess what? The Avs are no longer on the bubble! Well, they are and they aren't. Teams behind them still have games-in-hand, but here's how it looks.

Northwest Division Leader: Colorado Avalanche - 84 Points - 10 Games Remaining
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6. Minnesota - 82 Points (11 Games Remaining)
7. Calgary - 82 Points (11 Games Remaining)
8. Vancouver - 80 Points (11 Games Remaining)
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9. Nashville - 78 Points (10 Games Remaining)

Video Fix

It looks as if I owe you a David Jones video! Here's his first NHL goal. It came on March 11th against the Atlanta Thrashers. Fast foward to 2:34 on the video to enjoy it.