Avs make it clear which team you should get on board with this spring

On Tuesday night, in a rare convergence of sports euphoria, the Colorado Avalanche, Rockies and Denver Nuggets played at virtually the same time. It was impossible not to notice the difference in desire and ability between all three. With significant things on the line for each squad, only one proved worthy of admiration.

“Soft,” said Nuggets coach Michael Malone. “Soft. They dominated us. They kicked our butt on the glass…they were the aggressor. I’m really disappointed by our effort tonight.”

Malone didn’t hold back his feelings about the humiliating 124-103 whooping his Nuggets took at the hands of the Victor Wembanyama hopeful Houston Rockets.

“We didn’t get the job done, myself included. This isn’t me against my players. This is us winning together and losing together, and we as a collective unit did a crap-poor job tonight.”

And if that wasn’t enough…

“We had a chance to clinch number one tonight. We did not take that opportunity seriously. The way we played tonight was unacceptable. Playing like THAT this late in the year, the best (that we could do) playing like that, we’ll be out in the first round…easy…easy.”

It is unfathomable to understand how the Nuggets played completely heartless with so much on the line against such a terrible opponent. The Nuggets had never in their history secured the number one spot in the Western Conference. Ever! Instead of playing with urgency and excitement, they pathetically seemed not even to care.

Nikola Jokic missed the three previous contests. The rust in his game showed as he turned the ball over a stunning eight times and was a minus 21. In terms of who he truly is as a player, his performance would be best described as abysmal.

With Joel Embiid dropping 52 in a Philly win over the Celtics, whatever chance the Joker had of obtaining his third straight MVP went into the dumpster.

If the result on the scoreboard wasn’t bad enough, Jamal Murray left the game after only nine minutes of play with a hand injury.

The basketball result was a catastrophic failure.

Thank God for hockey.

The Avalanche were playing a bad team on a good run in the San Jose Sharks. Having the third-worst record in the conference saved the Sharks from being as equally lousy as the Rockets, but not by much.

However, the Sharks were red-hot, winning their last three efforts going into the match-up with the Avs. They would not sink quietly into the deep.

With a chance to get to first place in the Central, the Avs rose to the occasion. Beating San Jose in overtime 4-3 was defined by their best players standing tall, not half-heartedly humiliating themselves.

Mikko Rantanen went into the game with 49 goals. Nathan MacKinnon was three points short of reaching a career-best 100.

Mikko was firing pucks at a faster rate than Angel Reese throwing shade at Caitlin Clark.

Early in the first period, a Rantanen rocket shot doinked off the pipe. While missing an epic accomplishment by fractions of inches may be frustrating, Mikko would not be deterred.

Seconds later, Mikko sent a beautiful delivery pass to MacKinnon. Mac whirled around with a wild backhand shot. The rebound off of Sharks goalie Kaapo Kahkonen’s pad landed on Evan Rodrigues’ stick. ERod gently placed the puck in the back of the net, making the score 2-0.

It looked like it was about to be a blowout evening. The Avs never stopped their aggressive pursuit, dominating on the power play. Mikko got chance after chance, firing three rapid shots on goal in one furious series. Again, no luck. It was clear the Avs were about to run into the curse of the hot goaltender.

Kahkonen played brilliantly, but there was only so much he could do against a relentless attack. Eventually, the Avs broke through.

JT Compher won a faceoff in the Sharks zone, and Devon Toews received the puck at the point. He calmly delivered a perfect pass to Mikko, who precisely put it in the firing zone of MacKinnon. Blasting a shot between Kahkonen’s pads, MacKinnon made the score 3-1, collecting a career-tying 99th regular season point.

Could Nate get 100? Could Mikko get 50?

Those questions would both be answered in dramatic fashion as the Sharks picked up a third-period power play goal and an equalizer minutes later.

This entire injury-plagued season has been a brutal character test for the Avs. With the game tied at 3 with 12 minutes to go, the Avs would leave their blood and guts on the ice. Despite having a 40-27 shots on goal advantage, the Avs couldn’t get the regulation score they needed to win in 60 minutes.

However, by taking the game to OT, they secured one point, and thus, a playoff spot was clinched.

In the three-on-three overtime session, the action was furious. Mikko had multiple chances, and Georgiev made the save of the night on a breakaway. Then, in true heroic fashion, Nathan MacKinnon, in a brilliant individual effort, snapped the game-winner past Kahkonen. His 100th point was a breathless, unforgettable moment.

“Overall I thought we outplayed them,” said MacKinnon on the broadcast. “(Getting my 100th point) It’s good. A lot of guys are having crazy years. I’m happy to get it and get it out of the way.”

The Avs, with a game in hand, are now in first place in the Central and control their own destiny. It was a hard-earned accomplishment in which they showed why championship experience matters.

“It was a huge two points,” said coach Jared Bednar. “I loved how our guys competed. Their goalie made huge saves at big times. But the guys stuck with it, so you have to be happy with the effort.”

It wasn’t lost on Bednar what was going on with his two best players.

“We have two guys chasing those milestones. I’m sure Nate is really happy with that. I’m really happy to see him hit that one, and hopefully we get Mikko to 50 soon.”

To top it all off, the Avalanche brought all their injured players and front office on this roadie.

“We brought the entire staff as we have the day off tomorrow, so we can have a little team bonding and make sure we are going in the right direction.”

Wait, so, is this what life is like when you don’t do a “crap-poor job”?

Rantanen goes to bed one goal short of his magic number, but it’s not as if he wilted like the leaders on the Nuggets. He threw a team-leading eight shots on net. Nobody is doubting he will reach his individual summit.

Everybody is now doubting if the Nuggets even want to participate in the playoffs.

Finally, let’s not forget about the Rockies. They lost their fourth game in a row, dropping a 5-2 decision to the Dodgers. The big highlight of the opening week was the performance of first baseman C.J. Cron, who won the National League Player of the Week award. There’s no doubt that the only All-Star for the Rox last year earned the recognition as he hit .467 with two doubles, three home runs, seven RBIs, and three runs scored over the first four games while registering a 1.200 slugging percentage and a .529 on-base percentage. However, breaking down how the Rockies lost seems like a futile gesture. Opening Day in Denver is coming. The end result of the game is irrelevant. As long as the sun is out and the beer is cold, our baseball existence will be perfect.

Remarkably, this tri-fold of action happens again on Thursday. The Nuggets are faced with a nationally televised, gargantuan matchup in Phoenix against the Suns. The Avalanche will lace it up again versus the Sharks. The Rockies will…well..I already mentioned cold beer, right?

At the end of the day, there was no confusion as to who wanted to win more or who has more talent. The Avalanche made it clear that if you need to give your sports rooting heart to one of three teams this spring, after what we saw Tuesday night, Sophie’s choice would be wearing ice skates.

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