BT's 2008-09 NHL Season Preview: Colorado Avalanche

For starters, the team will be missing both Kurt Sauer and Jeff Finger. Both defensemen logged heavy minutes for the Avs last year and made impacts—but which of the two was better depends on whether you ask Toronto or someone else.

Either way, there were some holes left to fill on the Colorado blue line that needed to be addressed.

One step Francois Giguere took was re-signing former Blue Jacket Adam Foote in the offseason. From a leadership standpoint, Adam Foote is a great player to retain—but aside from that, the Avalanche resigned a 37-year-old defensive defensman who was abused by Detroit in the playoffs, and could be a very likely buyout candidate in a year's time if his performance continues to decline.

In Brett Clark, Ruslan Salei, and Scott Hannan, the Avalanche have three defensemen who can stand up the opposition on their side of the blue line, but aren’t exactly dynamos when it comes to point production. Add in to that the defensively-reliable and hockey-smart Daniel Tjarnqvist, and the Avs have a strong defensive corps that will help keep the puck out of Peter Budaj’s net.

For points, however, the Avs are hoping for a bit of a resurgence from John-Michael Liles. In a trend never before seen in pro sports, Liles suffered his worst professional season in 2007-08—otherwise known as his contract year. He scored fewer than 10 goals for the first time in his career (he posted 14 his first two seasons), and his point total from last season was only two higher than his assist total from 2006-07 (32 vs. 30).

Liles will be looking to prove that last season was a fluke, and that he can (and probably will—flirt with the 50-point plateau once again in his career while being buoyed by his defensive teammates.

Depth-wise, Kyle Cumiskey and Jordan Leopold may also be able to provide some scoring depth on the back end.  However, that will depend on Cumiskey’s development this season—and whether or not he can tap into his offensive game at the highest level—as well as Jordan Leopold finding his stride for the first time since the lockout. Frankly, I’d put my money on Cumiskey.

So what does this all mean?

The Colorado Avalanche have been a good team for a long time, but even the best are bound to fall eventually. Unfortunately, this year seems to be Colorado’s time to tumble.

While I don’t doubt the goaltending, the problem I see with the Avalanche is quality on the back end, especially in the depth of the forwards.

Last year, the Colorado Avalanche reminded me of the New York Yankees, as they bought their way into the playoffs with older players. Well, even the Yankees have to misstep sometimes.

Fourth in Northeast

Now introducing: Jordan Walsh and Shane Giroux!

First up, Jordan:

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