Jets’ big goaltending advantage seems to have narrowed
The Colorado Avalanche’s supposed Achilles heel supported a good amount of weight in Game 2 of its playoff series with the Winnipeg Jets.
If that continues, the biggest advantage the Jets seemed to have going into this series may have shrunk a tad.
After giving up seven goals in the opener, Avalanche goaltender Alexandar Georgiev was solid in his team’s 5-2 win on Tuesday, out-stopping Vezina Trophy candidate Connor Hellebuyck at the other end.
As always, the men behind the masks will have a lot to say as the series shifts to Denver for Games 3 and 4 on Friday and Sunday.
“It’s always going to come down to that,” Jets coach Rick Bowness said Wednesday. “We can get to the net harder, we can direct more shots at the net. We still pass up the odd chance to put the puck on the net and crash the net, so we have to do a better job at that.”
Georgiev rebounded from an early Jets goal by David Gustafsson and settled into a groove he never found in Game 1, stopping 28 of 30 shots.
“I felt I played pretty good in that moment,” the Avs stopper said. “The puck was going to my right side and he gets the rebound to the left and then it bounces back to the right. Kind of a tough position. It’s a long game, try and reset … and trust the process.”
The 28-year-old says the fallout from Game 1 was made easier by his teammates.
“They showed so much support to me over the last couple of days,” he said. “A very rough first game, obviously. I just felt so much trust in the room from everybody and I appreciate it so much. It helped me reset, to know that they have got my back. I know I’ll help them out as well during this playoff. It was huge from them. I appreciate it.”
The six-year NHL veteran from Bulgaria also appreciated the Jets crowds.
“I’ve seen the atmosphere here before on Youtube. It’s one of the more fun buildings probably, in the playoffs, the way that they come together, and the whole crowd is white. It’s super fun, even though I don’t really focus on them.
“But you feel the energy, you feel the atmosphere, you feel how important it is, how much fun those games are.”
As much of an advantage as the playoff whiteout is for the Jets, Colorado led all NHL teams this season with 31 home wins.
“It’s 100-plus sellouts in a row,” Colorado coach Jared Bednar said after Game 2. “Our guys really understand, truly, deeply in their heart, that we have to put our best foot forward and reward our fans for supporting us. And this was a great environment. One of the best I’ve been in, and I know our building is going to be rocking when we get back home.”