Mixed Emotions After Colorado's 2-2 Road Trip

WASHINGTON--When the Colorado Avalanche reviews its most recent road trip, the team will look at a lot of the good things that were accomplished.
A 2-2 record on the road is generally suitable, as playing .500 hockey in visiting buildings and taking care of one's own business at home are usually ingredients for success and playoff berths in today's NHL.
For the Avs, they will gladly take the four points earned but also realize the missed opportunity to pick up a few more over the past week.

"I think if you look at it as a whole, you'll say you're going to Tampa, Florida, Pit and then here in Washington after having a tough homestand--it's a pretty good road trip coming out 2-2," said Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar. "I would have liked to have another point or two out of it, but it's satisfactory, let's put it that way. We still have pretty high standards for our team and feel we can win every night."
It was a sentiment that was also echoed by captain Gabriel Landeskog.
"At this point, we're not looking to play .500 hockey. We're looking to do better than that," Landeskog said.

Colorado dropped the final game of its four-city tour on Tuesday as it lost 5-2 to the Washington Capitals, the reigning-Presidents' Trophy winners, at Capital One Arena.
The Avalanche was coming off a pair of solid victories, 7-3 over the Florida Panthers on Saturday and 2-1 over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday.
"Our execution wasn't all the way there," said defenseman Mark Barberio after the contest. "I thought they brought the game to us more than we did to them. I think we got pucks in deep enough and got on our forecheck, which has given us some success the last few games. They were really hard on their forecheck, causing us extended time in our D-zone."
Bednar noted that the amount of time the Capitals spent in the Avs' zone was often the result of odd-man rushes given up.
"If they didn't score on the rush, it led to some scrambles on arrival in the D-zone," Bednar said. "[Washington] can make plays. They have some guys that can bury the puck. We just weren't quite as sharp as we needed to be tonight."

Colorado had its chances to find the back of the net and picked up two hardworking goals. The club received secondary scoring from players not named Landeskog, Nathan MacKinnon or Mikko Rantanen for the third consecutive game.
Colin Wilson scored his third goal of the season, and second in the past three, to tie the outing at 1-1 and Tyson Jost tallied late for his first marker since Oct. 11.
"A couple guys that haven't had much production for us as of late, are really starting to play well and do some good things out there, which has given us some depth," Bednar said. "Partly one of the reasons why we won the other night in Pittsburgh. There are some positives out there, for sure."
Matt Nieto had an assist and now has four points (goal and three assists) in his last three contests and Carl Soderberg also had a helper, his third point (goal and two assists) in the past three outings.
Barberio assisted on Wilson's tally to bring his point streak to three games, tying a career long (one goal and two assists). The last time the blueliner found the scoresheet in three consecutive contests was March 10-15, 2016 as a member of the Montreal Canadiens.
"It's important in this league to get secondary scoring, and we're getting it right now," Barberio said. "Our top two lines have been really good for us, generating lots of chances and generating momentum for us. I think it is up to everybody to create offense, not just the top lines. All four lines and the D can get involved, for sure."

While Tuesday's outing was the last one of the season between the Avs and Capitals, the team's next three opponents will be familiar foes. Colorado has a homestand against Florida, Tampa Bay and Pittsburgh--three clubs it just faced.
Putting its game all together will once again be key as the Avalanche looks to end a three-game slide at Pepsi Center.
"We'll review this last game we just had," Barberio said. "Our coaches are always prepared for the upcoming games, making sure we have scouted the other team's properly and have a good game plan going in. It's up to us as players to execute that game plan."

KERFOOT INJURY UPDATE

Rookie forward Alex Kerfoot missed his first game of his NHL career Tuesday after getting hurt the previous night, but he may not be out of the team's lineup for a long time.
According to head coach Jared Bednar, Kerfoot is day-to-day with a foot injury after he accidently blocked teammate Erik Johnson's hard shot midway through the second period of Monday's contest at the Pittsburgh Penguins.
"Good news on both his X-ray and CT scan," Bednar said of Kerfoot prior to the contest at in Washington. "He took a shot on the foot, day-to-day. He'll be reevaluated when we get back to Denver."
Kerfoot entered the game tied for third on the team in goals (nine) and points (21) and ranked tied for sixth and fourth, respectively, among NHL rookies in those two categories.

BOURQUE'S BACK IN

Kerfoot's injury meant an opening in the team's lineup, and left wing Gabriel Bourque was the forward that took the spot.
It was Bourque's first game since Dec. 3 versus the Dallas Stars; he was a healthy scratch for the past four outings.
Bourque played on the team's fourth line with Tyson Jost and a rotating crew of the Avs forwards. Colorado used an 11-forwards, seven-defensemen lineup, and several different players double shifted on the bottom trio.
He finished with three shot attempts and three hits in 11:40 of ice time.