head coach: Marc Crawford

roster: C - Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg, Stephane Yelle, Jari Kurri. LW - Valeri Kamensky, Rene Corbet, Eric Lacroix. RW - Claude Lemieux, Adam Deadmarsh, Keith Jones, Jeff Odgers, Shean Donovan. D - Sandis Ozolinsh, Sylvain Lefebvre, Uwe Krupp, Adam Foote, Alexei Gusarov, Jon Klemm, Aaron Miller, Eric Messier, Francois Leroux. G - Patrick Roy, Craig Billington.

injuries: Keith Jones, rw (knee, February); Wade Belak, d (shoulder, early February).

transactions: Recalled Christian Matte, rw, from Hershey (AHL). Assigned Matte to Hershey.

standings:

Western Conference - Pacific Division
Team         GP   W   L   T   PTS   GF   GA   
Colorado     52  24  12  16    64  153  126
Los Angeles  49  21  19   9    51  139  136
Edmonton     50  18  23   9    45  129  143
San Jose     49  18  24   7    43  120  132
Anaheim      51  17  25   9    43  124  151
Calgary      51  13  28  10    36  128  160
Vancouver    50  12  30   8    32  129  180

game results:

1/12 Florida     W 3-1
1/14 at Anaheim  W 2-0
1/15 San Jose    T 2-2
1/21 at Dallas   L 3-2
1/22 Anaheim     L 4-3
1/24 Dallas      L 3-2

team news:

by Greg D’Avis, Colorado Correspondent

Luckily for the Avalanche, there's other things in Denver taking the spotlight away right now - with the Broncos winning the Super Bowl and the Denver Nuggets tying a NBA record with a 23-game losing streak, the Avs' recent performance is a distant third on the sports pages.

Good thing. If the results of late are any indication, the Avalanche aren't remotely ready for the playoffs. Since the All Star break, they've looked sad in their first three-game losing streak in over two years, and haven't been able to compete against the Stars, who are looking more and more as if they're as dangerous as Detroit in the West.

The excuses are hollow - yes, the Avalanche are suffering from a compressed schedule, but so is everybody else; and yes, there's lots of hooking and holding, but why does that shut down Joe Sakic and Peter Forsberg but not, say, Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne? Though the Avalanche are long on talent, of late it's looked like the formula is simple: keep Sakic, Forsberg, and Valeri Kamensky off the score sheet and the wins will follow. Last year, when those players were out with injuries, the Avalanche could turn to Adam Deadmarsh or Eric Lacroix or whoever to step it up and win games; this year, the second tier players are still scoring, just not enough.

Against Florida, the Avalanche looked like a team that had lost just once in the past 13 games: they did everything right, even getting a rare shorthanded goal from Sakic, and beat the Panthers in an exciting, tough game. The foot soldiers sparkled; the red-hot Rene Corbet got a goal, Jari Kurri popped one in, and Deadmarsh - playing despite a 100-degree temperature and a bad case of the flu - got an assist.

Then came the Mighty Ducks for the first match between the two this season. With Sakic and Forsberg against Kariya and Selanne, it looked to be an open, all-out offensive battle; instead, fights were plentiful and the score stayed 0-0 until Corbet (again!) scored with six minutes to go in the game.

Afterwards, the Avalanche had to hurry back to Denver for the next night's game, the last before the All Star break. In a listless, tired performance, the team had to count on a third-period goal from Sakic to tie it up in a game most notable for the return of former Avalanche sex symbol Mike Ricci, who was warmly welcomed back by the fans.

Then came the All Star Game, and while there were plenty of Avs there, they didn't make much of a contribution. Patrick Roy played like, well, an otherwise top-notch goalie usually does in the All-Star Game; the rest of the reps didn't have much to write home about either.

If the Avalanche had their druthers, they'd likely ask that the season ended with the All Star break; with two games in a week against the Stars, they faced their biggest test of the year, and failed. The first game, in Dallas, looked close on paper but the Avalanche were dominated; Dallas caught defenders out of position and then held Colorado off on power plays. The game bolstered an already-chippy rivalry; even-strength play was rare, with extracurricular activity aplenty.

The dreaded Ducks provided the filling in the Star sandwich, winning a game that Colorado should have taken if they'd bothered to show up for the first 30 minutes. The only highlight was defenseman Aaron Miller picking up his first goal of the year.

Then came Dallas again, and all we heard about was how angry the Avalanche was; how they had something to prove; etc. Well, they were angry - it was another feisty game - and they did prove something; unfortunately, what they proved was that they can blow a lead as well as anybody. The Stars scored twice in the third period, getting goals from noted scorers Derian Hatcher and Guy Carbonneau, to send the Avalanche to their second 3-2 defeat in four days, and ending the regular season series with a 3-0-1 advantage over Colorado.

After the game, Roy ripped the team for their efforts, but a lackadaisical attempt wasn't really to blame; the Avalanche were simply outplayed in all areas. It's not a good sign.

Finally, Some Good News

After months of questions and delays, gritty winger Keith Jones will be back soon; he's been skating regularly, and should begin playing again after the Olympics. He'll provide a much-needed spark; Corbet and Claude Lemieux can't do that themselves, and Jones was a very valuable player last year when the stars went down, and will come in handy in the games against the Red Wings and Stars.

Kamensky: Maybe, Maybe Not

The Russian Ice Hockey Federation offered Avalanche winger Valeri Kamensky the captaincy of the Olympic team. Kamensky, who's previously captained national teams but never an Olympic team, initially turned it down; however, he says that if no other suitable candidate accepts, he will take it. The decision will be made when the team gathers for the Olympics. Avalanche defenseman Alexei Gusarov may be the next one asked.

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