"I think Carl and Nieto are playing outstanding, and its made my job easier," said Comeau. "They are both hard working guys, we have been fortunate enough to play with each other all season long. We know how each other plays and what to expect. Both of my goals, it's just kind of going to the net, being in the right spot at the right time.
"Carl made a great play last night and the other one was just him shooting it and me going to the net. Hopefully we can keep contributing. We know that we have one of the best lines with [Nathan] MacKinnon's line in the NHL, but it's going to be important that we have secondary scoring moving forward."
Comeau made his Stanley Cup Playoff debut with the Columbus Blue Jackets on April 16, 2014 and now has three goals in 14 postseason contests.
The Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan, native recorded 34 points (13 goals, 21 assists) in 79 outings this year and led the team with three short-handed markers.
"That line has been dominating all year," said defenseman Nikita Zadorov. "They were unbelievable, so much fun to go out there and play with them because they battle hard. They win those battles, they give you pucks so you can do something, create some chances. [Comeau] has so much experience in the Stanley Cup (Playoffs)--we don't have many guys who've ever played a game in here. It's great balance for us. Listening to his experience, talking in the room, whatever he brings to us."
Though his contributions to the team's success has been apparent on the ice, his experience and guidance in a young dressing room has benefited the Avalanche exorbitantly.
"I think in knowing Blake, that he's a real even-keel guy, but he plays the game with a lot of emotion and passion," said head coach Jared Bednar. "When he says something, he's not the most vocal guy, but when he says something, everyone listens. He has the ability to calm our team down, let them know we're alright. He has the ability to try and ramp us up if we need that. It's invaluable. To have a handful of guys that our younger guys look up to, that have been through it before, I think it's real important."
Colorado ended the 2017-18 campaign as the NHL's youngest team with an average age of 25.8 and opened the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs with the same title. The Avs dressed 11 different rookies during the season, the most in Avalanche history, and the group combined for 419 games, tops in the NHL.
Before the series began, only half (14) of the Avalanche's 28 active players had participated in the playoffs. Colorado skaters combined for 175 postseason contests, the fewest of the 16 playoff teams.
"One of the things I am trying to do is keep the nerves down and keep it loose a little before games, maybe lose a little bit of the nervousness going into the first playoff experience," Comeau said. "But we got a great leadership group, and we are just trying to keep guys playing the same way that they have played all season and not grip their sticks too tight."
With Erik Johnson out of the lineup, Comeau has filled an alternate captain role and has been impressed by the poise the young Avalanche squad has played with through the first three games of the series.
"To be honest, I haven't really noticed any nerves from our young guys," said Comeau. "They have played key roles for us all season long, whether its penalty kill, power play, some tough 5-on-5 minutes, and they have been contributing. We have had a huge turnover from last year and a lot of it is the youth that we have had. They are a big reason for our success this year, and they are a big reason why we are in the playoffs."
