Mikko Rantanen carries a huge load and, according to the expert, it goes to the emotions: “With Mikko the pot is boiling”

Hardly anyone believed that the reigning champion Colorado would have to squeeze really hard to even reach the playoffs. However, this is realism for a team playing a very broken season.

Heavy load

Last week’s match rush started already at the weekend: Friday, Saturday, Monday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday.

The machines started to be in the red at the end of the week. New Jersey and Dallas hit the puck seven times in Colorado’s net, and Seattle claimed an away win over Denver at the end of the week. The losing streak is now three games long.

In the big picture, the load is already building up from last season. The team played the last final match after Midsummer on June 26 and after a short summer returned to the training camp already in September. On top of this have come the heavy match load of the new season and numerous injuries.

Colorado has only four players who have played all the games of the season.

Sports expert Ismo Lehkonen has followed Colorado closely throughout the season.

– Even now, the team will have an insane number of games here. It’s pretty bad, says Lehkonen.

– I watched the Seattle game carefully and quite well some still skated and twisted. You should still be able to grind for three weeks and try to score points here and there.

The team’s most important players have been under a heavy load throughout the season, because there have been a lot of injuries. Mikko Rantanen and by Nathan MacKinnon ice time has increased from last year by about one and a half minutes per match.

If the NHL’s playing time statistics are viewed through averages per game, no less than five players from Colorado can be found among the 20 forwards who have played the most in the league.

In Rantase in particular, the burden is visible, sometimes also as a fire of emotion. And he’s not the only one. For example, a superstar defender Cale Makar hasn’t shined in an injury-plagued season like he did a year ago.

– When the pot boils, because consumption has been so heavy. And on the other hand, why not boil over in these losing matches, because that guy is only interested in winning. It seems that in a tight spot he still turns on the aggressive gear and thereby takes on additional power from the tanks, Lehkonen states.

Colorado’s situation is not without problems, as there is less than a month and a half left in the regular season. Will Colorado still be able to charge the tanks in a way that would allow the fight for the Stanley Cup?

– Damn good question, Lehkonen laughs.

– The last two weeks in the regular season will decide everything. The body and mind must be fresh when the real games start. If they now have to press all-in all the time through the result, it may be too much, Lehkonen gets serious.

Lehkonen says that in an optimal situation, for example, Rantanen would get a little rest before the end of the regular season, even for a game or two, but can a team fighting for the rankings afford that?

– The result now guides everything we do. In a perfect world, coaching would certainly like to play chains with a 1–2–3–4 rhythm, but if even individual games are tight, the top guys will definitely pull with a really big load, Lehkonen estimates.

Balance

Along with some degree of fatigue, Colorado suffers from a lack of balance in the group. Captain Gabriel Landeskog hasn’t played a game yet this season, but is coming back during the spring. The page also has important role players Josh Manson in the manner of.

Making a result is too much on the shoulders of a few top players.

– Yes, injuries are visible when playing in two directions. The light orchestra in that team has to constantly play on the limits. Last year, the roles were completely clear at this stage, now the balance is still being sought. This gang needs big boys in the lineup, Lehkonen’s line.

Game-wise, behind the losses there is no structural problem, but rather personal mistakes. With a more careful approach, the profit situation will take a better direction.

– There is over-attacking and it seems that after a couple of years of playing quite an attacking game, everyone now wants to take part in those things. When the game turns, there will be marking errors and other things, Lehkonen explains.

Inciting any kind of panic is still pointless in the case of Colorado. Even after a difficult period, the Avalanche team is among the champion candidates.

– Coach Jared Bednar is like Tampa’s coach Jon Cooper, coldly analytical rather than bigoted. Yes, they understand there that this is a good enough gang to play anywhere. The atmosphere in the team is great and the leaders are tough.

Lehkonen expects a lot from the starting week’s home game.

– Tuesday’s match against San Jose must be a statement game, Lehkonen demands a posture movement.