The Avalanche will begin second-half play Monday night against the Calgary Flames at the Pepsi Center, with an eye on solidifying a Central Division playoff berth.
The team is in good shape, sitting third in the division with a 26-11-4 record and 56 points, seven ahead of fourth-place Minnesota, which has played three more games, and nine in front of fifth-place Dallas.
It was an extraordinary first half under new coach Patrick Roy, who had his players believing from the first day of training camp that better days were ahead after last season's last-place finish in the Western Conference and 29th place finish overall.
Let's face it, even the most optimistic of those who follow the Avalanche could never have envisioned this much success so soon.
Roy has to be the early favorite as NHL Coach of the Year, but he credits his assistant coaches and players for the team's quick turnaround.
"I didn't know what to expect," Roy said. "When I looked at the roster I thought we had a really good team. I'm not here to talk about what happened in the past, but especially the first day we went on the ice I saw how receptive the guys were and how willing they were to work. I like the attitude of our team. I thought it could be a good mix.
"I don't want to take all the credit because it's the players. I took a group that missed the playoffs four times in the past five years and I think they had enough. It was perfect timing, a perfect situation, and we have a lot of good young talent on this team and I think the job that the coaches have done is to expose that and make them believe in themselves and trust each other and come and work hard every day. We've been saying all along, one day at a time."
Hiring goalie coach Francois Allaire might have been the most significant move that Roy and executive vice president of hockey operations Joe Sakic could have made. The turnaround in Semyon Varlamov's play has been remarkable.
The 25-year-old Russian went 19-8-4 in the first half with one shutout, a 2.35 goals-against average and .927 save percentage. He held teams to two goals or fewer 20 times. Varlamov won seven of his first eight decisions, went 9-7-1 during a difficult time from when he was charged with assault in an alleged domestic violence incident until it was dismissed, and has since gone 3-0-3.
In his past 11 games, which included stopping all 13 third-period shots he faced after relieving Jean-Sebastien Giguere in a 7-2 loss in Chicago on Dec. 23, Varlamov has gone 5-0-4 and held teams to two goals or fewer six times.
Again, Roy gives the lion's share of the credit to Varlamov and Allaire.
"We changed a couple things on his positioning," Roy said. "The first thing was his glove. He covers more space (now) and changes the view of the shooters when they're coming at him. Varly is so quick. He's moving side to side, it's amazing how quick he is. What Francois wanted was for him to be a little more under control. I started to be more under control when I got older. If Varly gets this at his age, imagine the difference it's going to bring to his game.
"He's been very under control, always square to the shooter. Francois is also working with him to be positive mentally. He gives us a chance to win every night and I think the players appreciate that. We don't ask for more than that because this is the role of a goalie, to give his team a chance to win."
Roy's positive attitude has worked wonders with defenseman Erik Johnson, who has seven goals, 12 assists and a plus-12 plus/minus rating in 41 games. Defense partner Jan Hejda's career also has taken a positive turn after he agreed to Roy's demand to change his positioning in his own end, moving farther away from the net. Hejda has four goals, seven assists and a plus-12 rating in 37 games. He missed four with a knee injury.
"I'm saying all along how proud I am of our team," Roy said. "The guys are working hard every day. They go out there and they apply what we ask them to do and they're extremely receptive to the teaching that we've been doing. They're willing to try things that we've been doing. That pleases me a lot.
"We're all about a team. It's a team concept here and everybody is pushing hard, everybody wants to give ourselves a chance to make the playoffs. We're giving ourselves a chance right now. We'll see how it goes. The second half of the season will be another good challenge for us, but I'm very happy with our team. It's a great start for us, but it's only a start. Let's make sure we're ready now for that second half."
*****
Center Matt Duchene is having another terrific season, leading the team in goals (16), assists (21) and points (37). Four other forwards have at least 10 goals: Ryan O'Reilly (14), Gabriel Landeskog and rookie Nathan MacKinnon (12 each) and Paul Stastny (11). Jamie McGinn, with a goal in three consecutive games, has nine.
Role players like Patrick Bordeleau, Marc-Andre Cliche, Cody McLeod, Brad Malone, John Mitchell and Max Talbot have been invaluable, and the much-maligned defense corps has bent but held on most nights while combining for 18 goals and 55 assists.
PA Parenteau will miss another five weeks to recover from his knee injury and the Avalanche is expected to learn Monday or Tuesday if Alex Tanguay will be able to come back at some point this season or need hip surgery that likely would end it.
*****
First overall draft pick Nathan MacKinnon started the season as a third-line center, has played right wing on the first or second line and is back on the third line -- as a right wing. Yet MacKinnon is getting better despite all the adjustments, and remember he's still only 18.
MacKinnon has six goals and three assists in the past 12 games and has taken over the scoring lead among NHL rookies with 26 points (12 goals, 14 assists). San Jose's Tomas Hertl, who has 15 goals and 25 points, is recovering from knee surgery and expected to miss about a month.
"I think it's been going pretty good," MacKinnon said. "I'm still 18 and I'm learning the game and the NHL and I'm figuring out things I can and can't do. Overall it's been pretty solid. It's a lot more fun that we're winning. The scoring thing is nice, but it's not that important to me. That's not my focus. It's a long season, and if I end up leading it, I lead it. If not, I just want the team to have a good record and make the playoffs."