Friday Four: Avalanche finding success

Each Friday throughout the season Kevin Weekes will be bringing you his Friday Four. He will be blogging about four players, teams, plays, or trends that have caught his eye.

There's center Nathan MacKinnon, who has played really well; he has 17 goals and ranks fifth among the NHL leaders with 49 points. But there are also forwards Mikko Rantanen, with 38 points (14 goals, 24 assists) and Gabriel Landeskog, with 31 (16 goals, 15 assists). On defense, Tyson Barrie and Erik Johnson have been strong in each end; Barrie has 27 points (four goals, 23 assists) but will be out at least until the end of January with a fractured hand, and Johnson has 16 points (six goals, 10 assists).
Colorado ranks sixth in the League in goals per game (3.17), 14th in power-play percentage (19.9) and fifth in penalty-killing percentage (84.1). They have a plus-6 goal differential after finishing last season at minus-112.
Backup goaltender Jonathan Bernier has played the past three games and won them all, giving up three goals. No. 1 goaltender Semyon Varlamov, who has a lower-body injury, could return after their mandatory break ends Jan. 13.
The Avalanche have won a season-high four straight games and are two points behind the Minnesota Wild for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference. It's hard to believe they're ahead of the Chicago Blackhawks, who are in last place in the Central Division. You're not getting free points playing Colorado anymore; it can hang three, four goals on you every game.

Anaheim Ducks

Center Rickard Rakell had a six-game goal streak end in the Ducks' 2-1 shootout loss against the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday, but has been playing great. He leads Anaheim with 31 points (15 goals, 16 assists) and has helped the Ducks go 5-1-1 and climb to a tie with the Wild for the second wild card in the Western Conference (Minnesota has played one fewer game). Remember, the Ducks have won the Pacific Division the past five seasons, so this position isn't something they're used to.
A big problem for Anaheim, besides injuries, has been playing on the road, where they are 9-6-6. Maybe now that centers Ryan Getzlaf and Ryan Kesler are back from injuries, they'll be able to right the ship. It all starts with scoring and offense, which has been a problem for the Ducks; they're averaging 2.69 goals per game, 23rd in the NHL. Their defense has not been an issue; goaltenders John Gibson and Ryan Miller each have played well, and Anaheim is averaging 2.67 goals against per game, seventh in the League.

Winter Classic hangover

What a great game and experience that was at Citi Field in New York on Monday for the 10th Winter Classic. The New York Rangers and Buffalo Sabres put on a show, and it took overtime for center J.T. Miller and the Rangers to come out on top. But whenever there's such a big event like that, the next game for each team could be a letdown, and that's exactly what happened.
The Rangers were dominated by the Chicago Blackhawks at home on Wednesday in a 5-2 loss, uncharacteristic for New York, which is 15-7-3 at Madison Square Garden this season. Let's see how they respond on Saturday at the Arizona Coyotes (8 p.m. ET; FS-A, MSG), NHL.TV).
The Sabres were outplayed by the Wild in a 6-2 loss on Thursday. They were 0-for-3 on the power-play and were defeated, despite outshooting Minnesota 31-27. It definitely has been a disappointing season for Buffalo (10-21-9, last in the Eastern Conference and 30th in the NHL), after having such high expectations entering 2017-18.

Carter Hutton

Hutton, one of the better backup goaltenders in the League this season, has started and won the past three games (allowing five goals) for the St. Louis Blues in place of Jake Allen. They have formed an outstanding tandem for the Blues.
Hutton made 32 saves in a 2-1 win against the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday (which ended the Golden Knights' eight-game winning streak) and is 8-3-1 with a 1.64 goals-against average and .947 save percentage. He's a big reason why the Blues sit atop the Central Division, and if Allen were to be injured, St. Louis wouldn't have to panic and trade for a goalie; it knows what it has in Hutton.

HONORABLE MENTION

Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Cam Ward shut out the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-0 on Thursday. When the season began, it appeared he would be a backup, which he has not been used to for most of his 13 NHL seasons. But he has been better than Scott Darling, who was acquired in a trade with the Blackhawks to get the lion's share of starts.
Congrats to Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin on his 100th NHL game-winning goal. He scored twice, including at 1:57 of overtime in a 5-4 win against Carolina on Tuesday to reach that milestone.
I like the Vegas Golden Knights signing forward Jonathan Marchessault to a six-year, $30 million contract. He has been a key piece for them this season and should be for the foreseeable future.