This is how bad it went for the Avalanche on Sunday night against the Anaheim Ducks:
They couldn't beat an emergency goalie who had to fly from Norfolk, Va., to Denver (with a connecting flight in Atlanta) after playing AHL games Friday and Saturday, a 34-year-old journeyman who didn't know he'd start until a few minutes before the game.
All Jason LaBarbera had to do was make 16 saves, seven -- seven! -- after the first period in a 3-2 Ducks win at the Pepsi Center.
LaBarbera was playing for Edmonton when he picked up his previous NHL win -- Oct 7, 2013 against New Jersey.
Here's my NHL.com story on LaBarbera's long travel day and eventful evening.
The regulation loss ended the Avalanche's point streak at six games (2-0-4) and left them with a 3-5-5 record and in last place in the Central Division. Seven of their losses have been by one goal. Oh, they aren't practicing again until Tuesday morning before that night's game against Vancouver.
The Avalanche managed two shots in the second period -- one by Erik Johnson with 4:32 remaining and the other by rookie Dennis Everberg from long range as the buzzer sounded ending the period.
"We just played brutal," Matt Duchene said. "There’s no other way to say it. We just didn’t play well. That’s the bottom line. I don’t know why it happened. We worked hard in the third and had some chances. I think we should have come away with a point tonight, force it to overtime. We lost the game in the second period and usually you can’t play that poorly and expect to have a lead going into the third.
"We don’t really care who’s in net, we have to take care of our side of things and we didn’t do it in the second period. First period was great, third period was pretty good, we just lost the game in the second period. Two shots on a guy who obviously got called up at the last second isn’t good enough." LaBarbera was recalled from Norfolk because Frederik Andersen experienced tightness in his leg and didn't skate in the morning. LaBarbera was pressed into action when John Gibson sustained a lower-body injury in the warmup, prompting the Ducks to dress 45-year-old goalie consultant Dwayne Roloson in case they needed an emergency backup.
"I haven't played a game in the NHL in over a year," LaBarbera said. "All of it is kind of goofy. I've been around a lot, never had to deal with something like this. Luckily came out on the right side."
The Ducks were especially effective in front of LaBarbera in the second period. They outshot the Avalanche 12-2 and went ahead 3-2 on goals by Hampus Lindholm and Cam Fowler that came 1:44 apart. Lindholm scored his first goal of the season at 6:04, a few minutes after goalie Semyon Varlamov made a save against Andrew Cogliano on a shorthanded breakaway. Patrick Maroon was behind the net when he passed to Lindholm in the slot for a quick shot past Varlamov.
Fowler put the Ducks in front for the first time with his first goal of the season at 7:48. He skated from the left circle into the slot untouched for a backhander past Varlamov.
"I was joking with the guys that maybe there was a penalty on the play, the whistle had blown or something," Fowler said. "I almost couldn't believe it. Those guys were on the ice for quite a bit of time. Any time you get that, you get guys who are a little fatigued. I was lucky enough to make a good move. It's always good to get the first one out of the way."
Avalanche coach Patrick Roy said a major defensive breakdown led to Fowler's goal, and he only mentioned veteran forward Jarome Iginla.
"That third goal we were just lost," he said. "Jarome lost his position and it was an easy walk-in for Fowler. It was not a pretty period, that's for sure."
The Ducks kept the Avalanche hemmed in their own zone for long stretches throughout the game.
As poorly as they played, the Avalanche had a chance to send the game to overtime with a power play that started with 3:07 left in regulation. But they couldn't even muster a single shot on goal even after Varlamov (30 saves) went to the bench for a 6-on-4 advantage.
"It’s too bad because it hurts us right now," Roy said. "We have to find ways to play 60 minutes. It doesn’t have to be always pretty. Just good game management, be smarter in our decisions and keep it more simple. It’s not always going to go our way and it’s when things are not going our way we try to force plays, push plays. This is where we get into trouble."
The Avalanche took a 2-1 lead in the first period when Everberg and Nathan MacKinnon sandwiched goals around one by the Ducks' Corey Perry.
Everberg, playing in his eighth NHL game, scored his first NHL goal 2:18 into the game when he skated down left wing into the Ducks' zone and took a shot from the bottom of the circle that skimmed between LaBarbera's pads.
"Well, obviously it was a relief and a good feeling to get it and something I’ve been waiting on," Everberg said. "I’ve had a lot of chances and it’s a good feeling, but too bad it ended up in a loss anyway.…
The Ducks tied the game at 7:20 on Perry's NHL-leading 11th goal. Perry drove to the net and took a shot that hit Varlamov and bounced off Perry into the net as the players collided. The goal stood after a video review.
The Avalanche went ahead with 59.6 seconds left in the period when MacKinnon cut inside Ducks forward Devante Smith-Pelly in the right circle and beat LaBarbera with a shot to the far post. He has four goals in three games after going the first 10 games without one.
"He skates well," Roy said of MacKinnon. "He’s playing better and better. We're going to need more from our guys. We’re going to need more consistency, especially from our forwards. Everyone’s talking about our 'D,' but I think we have some forwards that are capable of giving more to the team."
The Avalanche did kill all five of the Ducks' power plays, running their streak to 25 in a row.
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Remember the good ol' days? You know, last season? Might make you feel better to check out Save by Roy, an in-depth look at the Avalanche's surprising 2013-14 season. It can be purchased on amazon.com and will be available wherever books are sold beginning Wednesday. It's written by Denver Post sports reporters Adrian Dater and Terry Frei.