Avalanche's scoring depth, improved goaltending has them among NHL elite

The Coaches Room is a regular feature throughout the 2021-22 season by former NHL coaches and assistants who will turn their critical gaze to the game and explain it through the lens of a teacher. Rocky Thompson and Dave Barr will take turns providing insight.
In this edition, Thompson, who was an assistant with the Edmonton Oilers in 2014-15 and an associate coach with the San Jose Sharks in 2020-21, takes a closer look at the ascension of the Colorado Avalanche this season.

The Colorado Avalanche's ride to the top of the NHL standings has been impressive on many fronts, one of them the historical similarity I see between their top line and No. 1 defense pair and that of the famous "Russian Five" that once played for the Detroit Red Wings.
Avalanche coach Jared Bednar likes to use forwards Gabriel Landeskog, Mikko Rantanen and Nathan MacKinnon and defensemen Cale Makar and Devon Toews together frequently in 5-on-5 situations, a talented, powerful and versatile five-man unit that has driven them to first place in the Central Division (36-10-4) and the NHL.
The chemistry of that group is undeniable and brings to mind the fearsome five-man unit the Red Wings employed during the mid-1990s, matching forwards Sergei Fedorov, Vyacheslav Kozlov and Igor Larionov with defensemen Viacheslav Fetisov and Vladimir Konstantinov. Though not on the ice together in every situation, the Russian Five was a favorite weapon for Detroit coach Scotty Bowman.
Bednar appears to have taken a similar approach with his "Colorado Five" unit as an effective tactic, especially for offensive zone face-offs. It's not unusual to see those five players get double shifted when an offensive-zone face-off happens shortly after their previous shifts have ended.
With defensemen Erik Johnson and Samuel Girard playing together and at times split to strengthen the bottom pair, this has enabled Bednar to keep his top five together most shifts.
The Avalanche, however, are much more than a one-line or one-group team, a fact driven home during their 19-game (17-0-2) point streak from Jan. 2 to Feb. 13, the longest point streak in Avalanche/Quebec Nordiques history and the longest in the NHL this season.
A second line of Nazem Kadri, Andre Burakovsky and Valeri Nichushkin has made a major impact, partly through the chemistry developed between Kadri and Nichushkin.
Kadri is having a breakout season, leading Colorado with 63 points (21 goals, 42 assists) in 47 games and has a personal NHL-best plus-20 rating. I've seen some maturation in his game this season, with more control of his emotions while still playing with an edge. Not to be overlooked, confidence is a powerful weapon in any player's game. Kadri clearly is exuding confidence in his ability shift to shift. When he caught fire with a 10-game point streak early in the season (six goals, 15 assists from Oct. 28 to Nov. 24), the momentum developed with the line and away they went.

Nichushkin has scored 26 points (13 goals, 13 assists) in 34 games, putting him on pace to eclipse his NHL-best 34 points (14 goals, 20 assists) in 79 games with the Dallas Stars in 2013-14. His combination of size (6-foot-4, 210 pounds), speed, improved skill and confidence has made him an offensively productive, tough player to play against. He's on the second power-play unit and is an effective penalty killer. It's no wonder he's averaging 18:00 of ice time per game this season, up almost four minutes per game from the 14:06 he averaged last season.
Certainly it's a line that makes other teams think. They have to formulate some kind of match against the top line and that often leads to more favorable matchups for the second line, which really has fueled Colorado's scoring.
A third line of Alex Newhook (5-10), J.T. Compher (6-0) and Logan O'Connor (6-0) brings energy and speed. None of the three is taller than 6-foot but each is a good skater and plays an intense game while providing some scoring.
The fourth line of Tyson Jost, Nicolas Aube-Kubel and Darren Helm is a line with speed, solid skill and an ability to manage pucks well. They make you work when they're on the ice and that complements the other lines, giving Colorado a balanced attack.
Colorado is a top-five team in most offensive categories. They are second in goals per game (3.92), fifth in shots on goal per game (35.1) and fifth in shot attempts percentage (53.4).
In particular, the Avalanche power play is formidable. It's tied with the Nashville Predators for ninth in the NHL at 23.8 percent, but that doesn't tell the whole story. Colorado leads the NHL in power-play goals (43), power-play opportunities (181) and power-play time per game (5:50).
Defensively, the Avalanche are tied with the Florida Panthers for 14th in goals against per game (2.84). It's not terrible, but something I'm sure they'd like to improve. And again, the numbers don't tell the whole story.
This area was more of a concern during the first two months of the season, when goalie Darcy Kuemper was not in top form. In 15 games through Dec. 7, Kuemper was 9-5-0 with a 2.84 goals-against average and .903 save percentage, and the Avalanche's team save percentage was .886.
Since then, however, Kuemper is 16-1-2 with a 2.21 GAA and .929 save percentage in 21 games, and Colorado's team save percentage is .907.

During that same time frame, Colorado is an NHL-best 23-3-2 and has allowed an NHL-low 2.36 goals per game. I would call this trending in the right direction.
So what concerns lie ahead?
One area I could see general manager Joe Sakic trying to address before the NHL Trade Deadline on March 21 is more depth at defenseman. Their top four are good, but they lack that hard-nosed defenseman who can kill penalties, play against top lines and punish them all at the same time. It's an area, with help, that could make Colorado even more dangerous in the grind situation that the Stanley Cup Playoffs undoubtedly will become.
Another concern might be their penalty kill. It's 21st in the NHL at 77.4 percent after being eighth last season (83.1 percent). Ryan Graves, their best penalty-killing defenseman, was traded to the New Jersey Devils on July 15, which undoubtedly has hurt. But Colorado also was much more aggressive in their penalty killing structure last season. I think they've stepped off the gas a little bit, but with Kuemper back on form, it may pay dividends to go back to their previously aggressive penalty killing style.
Outside of these two small critiques, in my opinion Colorado is poised to be the lead horse coming down the stretch.