Losing to this Boston Bruins team, which has won 11 games in a row, is no disgrace. Let's face it, the Bruins are a better and more experienced team than the Avalanche, which has fallen three points behind the Chicago Blackhawks in the race for second place in the Central Division with 11 regular-season games remaining.
The 2-0 loss to the Bruins and goalie Chad Johnson on Friday night was the first time the Avalanche failed to score a goal since a 4-0 defeat to the Phoenix Coyotes on April 6, 2013.
The Avalanche has gone 1-3-1 since its 3-2 win against the Blackhawks on March 12 that temporarily moved the team into second place, but I think it will be more important to see how these guys play down the stretch than finishing second and gaining home ice for the first round of the playoffs. The Avalanche has played well enough in Chicago this season, assuming these teams meet.
Avalanche coach Patrick Roy pointed out that his team has played a lot of hockey in a short amount of time against quality opponents since the season resumed after the Olympics. The Avalanche will be off Saturday and on Sunday, when the Avs Better Halves play host to the club's annual charity brunch and fashion show.
The next practice will be Monday morning before the Avalanche leaves for Nashville and Tuesday night's game against the Predators.
"It's a tough schedule for us right now," Roy said. "We just played our 13th game in 24 nights. We've been on the road a lot and we've had a lot of tough games at home, but I think this will prepare us really well for playoffs. I don't want to take anything for granted, but it will prepare us well.
"Thinking about the teams that we've played at home -- St. Louis, Boston, Chicago, Anaheim -- these are tough teams to play and I thought our guys were resilient, the guys worked hard, they never give up. It's going to be good, those two days off, and I think it's going to recharge our batteries and we'll be ready for our next game.
"But I was very happy with our team. I think it's a learning process for us. We were 29th (overall) last year, we missed the playoffs four times in the last five years. We have to have that in the back of our mind, but watching (the Bruins) giving their body, the way they're playing, this is pretty impressive. It's a team that has played a lot of playoff hockey in the past years and they certainly know how to play that game."
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The Bruins haven't lost since a 4-2 defeat to Washington on March 1, they're 10-0-3 in their past 13 road games, and haven't lost in regulation on the road since a 4-2 defeat to Los Angeles on Jan. 9.
Johnson made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season, and he's 10-0-1 in his past 11 decisions, allowing two goals or fewer in nine of them.
The Bruins got goals from Patrice Bergeron, who put in his own rebound at 5:12 of the first period after goalie Semyon Varlamov stopped him barreling down the slot after a turnover, and from Carl Soderberg on a power play at 13:11 of the second.
Desperate for a goal, Roy pulled Varlamov for an extra skater with five minutes to go in the third.
"Losing 2-0, 3-0, 4-0, we needed to score goals," Roy said. "There was no reason for me to wait because I thought we were doing so well offensively. We spent a lot of time in their zone and I felt comfortable. If they score with four minutes left in the game and make it 3-0, big deal. I know to score two goals against these guys you need a lot of time. We had plenty of scoring chances. Unfortunately tonight the puck didn't bounce our way and their goalie made some good saves."
Varlamov also played well and finished with 26 saves. He just didn't get any offensive support.
The Avalanche went 0-for-3 on power plays and it took 12 minutes before Colorado managed its first shot in the third period.
"I think our power play has to be better than that, especially at that point of the game, and it certainly wasn't," captain Gabriel Landeskog said. "It's something we have to work on, but some nights it's like that and tonight was one of them.
"Give credit where credit is due. (Johnson) played well and they're a good defensive team. They know how to keep us on the outside, chipping pucks out and making us turn and go back and get them. It's certainly understandable why they've been so successful lately."
Matt Duchene, who was held without a shot on goal, compared the Bruins' size and style of play to that of the St. Louis Blues, who have won all three games with the Avalanche and lead the Western Conference with 101 points.
"That’s an elite team that’s now tied with St. Louis for No. 1 in the league," he said. "We still have got some work to do. We played hard. We had some good chances. We missed a couple open nets, I know I had one and just missed wide. Varly gave us a chance to win. It's unfortunate that we weren't able to pop one and make it a game.
"They're a very good team, very well coached. They're good at clogging up the neutral zone and they took away our speed. We haven't seen too many teams like that. They're kind of the Eastern St. Louis. They play a similar style. Those are the teams were going to have to beat if we want to win the Stanley Cup. It's a good measuring stick for us. We're not going to have it all figured out in four-fifths of the season. It's going to take some time."