The NHL’s 2020-21 coronavirus-altered, regular-season schedule is far from ideal. But it is enticing.
American teams will not face 24 NHL clubs and Canadian franchises won’t play 25. The Avalanche and the West Division’s seven other teams won’t face an Original Six opponent. And make no mistake, playing the Blackhawks, Red Wings, Bruins, Rangers, Maple Leafs and Canadiens is always special.
But the NHL’s temporary move to all inter-division games in small series for the regular season is bound to add some Original Six anger to the mix. The league grew from six teams that hated each other, forging rivalries that still exist to this day.
The same-opponent repetition breeds emotion, and feeding that emotion in a small series is what the NHL normally lacks. Yes, the NHL has its seven-game playoff series, but only 16 teams get to that point. Regular-season series of any length should become a staple of the game.
NCAA hockey and many junior leagues play weekend series against the same team. The NHL’s feeder league, the American Hockey League, often does, too. What happens the first night often carries over to the next. And the physical nature of the game breeds contempt.
I’ve covered enough University of Denver-Colorado College or DU-vs.-North Dakota series to become an expert on what guaranteed theatrics look like. In 1997 I covered a DU-CC series that saw the Tigers win the chippy opener 9-1 at the Air Force Academy. The Pioneers won the finale 6-0 in another chippy affair the following night at Denver Coliseum.
It was an emotional weekend. CC couldn’t prevent the beat down it had just delivered, even though the Tigers knew exactly what to expect from the angry Pios in Denver.
Expect to see that regular-season drama frequently with the Avs this season, with or without fans. Expect it to begin Jan. 13 when Colorado kicks off against St. Louis at Ball Arena. The Blues will remain in town and play the Avs on Jan. 15 to complete the series.
It should play out in three stretches where Colorado plays the same opponent four straight times: Jan. 30-Feb. 4 vs. Minnesota; Feb. 14-22 vs. Vegas; April 30-May 5 vs. San Jose. The Avs have never played a team four consecutive times in a regular season.
Their entire schedule features eight games against each of the West Division opponents: Anaheim, Arizona, Los Angeles, Minnesota, St. Louis, San Jose and Vegas. All but two games will be part of a two-game series; the Avs’ have a stand-alone game April 3 at St. Louis and April 20 against the Blues at Ball Arena.
The repetitious schedule may seem monotonous to some. But this is how good rivalries begin.
Team Canada. The Blackhawks’ Kirby Dach remains captain for Canada at the World Junior Championship in Edmonton, but the Avalanche’s Bo Byram wore the “C” in Saturday’s opener against Germany at Rexall Place. Byram and Buffalo Sabres prospect Dylan Cozens will alternate wearing the C in replacing Dach, who broke his wrist in Canada’s exhibition game.
Under International Ice Hockey Federation rules, one player must wear the “C” at the under-20 tournament.
The Avalanche, which has an NHL-leading three draft picks playing for Canada, the defending gold-medal winner, was well represented in Saturday’s starting lineup. Boston College’s Alex Newhook (selected 16th overall by Colorado in the 2019 draft) took the opening draw as Canada’s top-line center. In addition, defenseman Justin Barron (25th overall in 2020) was a primary penalty killer for Canada.
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December 27, 2020 at 07:45PM
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Chambers: NHL embarks on Original Six rivalry-building schedule - The Denver Post
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