OT win in Carolina could be key for Avalanche
If the Avalanche manages to earn a berth in the Western Conference playoffs, coaches and players will look at a game like Friday night's wild 4-3 overtime win against Carolina as one of the turning points in the season.
Colorado erased three one-goal deficits and gained a valuable two points in the standings when center Ryan O'Reilly, who in the third period failed to cash in several glorious scoring chances, poked the puck away from Hurricanes defenseman Justin Faulk and ripped a shot into the net with 1.2 seconds to play in the extra period.
The victory enabled the Avalanche to complete a four-game homestand with a 2-1-1 record and pull within one point of eighth-place Phoenix for the final playoff position with 26 games to play.
It was an especially important win because the Avalanche opens a difficult four-game road trip Saturday night in St. Louis against a rested and streaking Blues team that is in the hunt for first place in the conference.
"St. Louis plays the same way regardless of who they are playing," Avalanche Coach Joe Sacco said. "They are going to try and grind you down. It's going to be real important that we come out and start that game on time because they're going to come out and try and catch us on our heels.
"We have to be on our toes and make sure that we're using everybody in our lineup. We're going to have to make sure that we manage the game properly, keep our shifts short, don't get over-extended out there and play a smart, intelligent road game. We don't have anybody to impress in St. Louis."
Jean-Sebastien Giguere has started eight of the past nine games in goal for the Avalanche, and he turned aside 39 shots Friday, but Seymon Varlamov is expected to get the call against St. Louis because of the back-to-back situation coupled with the overnight travel.
Varlamov has lost his past three starts while allowing a total of 13 goals. He hasn't won since Jan. 6 when he made 27 saves in a 4-0 triumph in Chicago.
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