Buyer Beware of the Avs' Third Jersey This Holiday Season

Getting a blue Avalanche jersey this year might be worse than getting coal.

Call it superstition, call it voodoo, but I believe these things are so cursed that not even an exorcist can remove it.

11/14/09 —A Saturday night against Vancouver was the audition of these bad boys. And what an audition it was. Anderson allowed four goals before being yanked, and Budaj came in cold and let in another four goals. An 8-2 loss, easily the Avalanche's worst loss of the season (at that point).

11/25/09 —Game two with the jerseys was a success...up until the Avs blew the lead with less than two minutes left in the third period, and eventually lost in overtime.

12/11/09 —Third time actually was a charm in this case, with the Avalanche defeating Tampa Bay 2-1 in a shootout.

But hey, this game was practically a gimme, and the Avs still nearly blew it. Their only goal in regulation wasn't even shot in, it deflected off the glove of Wojtek Wolski.

12/15/09 —Remember how I mentioned the Vancouver game was Colorado's worse loss to that point ?

In Jose Theodore's return to Denver, Colorado was blown out 6-1 by the Caps, even though Ovechkin and Semin were both held goal-less. Craig Anderson, again, was pulled after allowing five goals on 21 shots.

If you're keeping track, that was the second time he was pulled in four games wearing these monstrosities. The funny part? He's started 33 games this year, and both games on this list were the only time he's been pulled.

12/22/09 —Avs up 2-0 over Anaheim with 12 minutes left in the third period, all is well...until Neidermayer scores, and then Colorado somehow allows another three goals in the final five minutes.

There's no better send off to the Christmas holiday quite like getting embarrassed on home ice.