Reliance on top line dooms Avalanche as season ends

Point blame for the Avalanche’s demise in the Stanley Cup Playoffs in any direction you’d like. Youth. Injuries. Talent. However, in the aftermath of its Game 6 elimination against Nashville, consider the Avs’ top line.

The combination of center Nathan MacKinnon and wingers Gabe Landeskog and Mikko Rantanen, coined the “MGM line,” provided the wind for Colorado’s sails since October. The trio tallied 243 of the roster’s collective 658 points to end the regular season — and it kept that momentum rolling for much of the playoffs.

Entering Sunday night, MacKinnon ranked as the team’s highest postseason points producer (minimum 10 games) in franchise history at 1.33. Landeskog checked in with 0.92 to rank sixth. Statistics made more impressive by youth with MacKinnon at age 22 and Landeskog at 25.

“We rely on those guys because that’s our core,” Avs’ coach Jared Bednar said. “Every team relies on their core.”

But when Colorado’s top line didn’t produce — neither did the Avs.

A trend that’s easily identified when breaking down the line’s points production in its playoff series with the Predators:

• Game 1: Nashville 5, Colorado 2: MacKinnon (1 point), Landeskog (0), Rantanen (1)

• Game 2: Nashville 5, Colorado 4: MacKinnon (0), Landeskog (2), Rantanen (0)

• Game 3: Colorado 5, Nashville 3: MacKinnon (2), Landeskog (3), Rantanen (2)

• Game 4: Nashville 3, Colorado 2: MacKinnon (2), Landeskog (1), Rantanen (0)

• Game 5: Colorado 2, Nashville 1: MacKinnon (1), Landeskog (1), Rantanen (1)

• Game 6: Nashville 5, Colorado 0: MacKinnon (0), Landeskog (0), Rantanen (0)

The Avalanche lost in every playoff game the MGM line scored fewer than three points, but when Colorado’s top group exceeded that total in Games 3 and 5, the Avs found victory. At no point was that discrepancy more apparent than Sunday when Colorado’s top unit failed to produce a single point, and neither did any other line in the 5-0 blowout loss.

“That’s not the way you want to finish,” Landeskog said. “It’s tough to sum up the series right here and right now. But we made them fight for it.”

Some good news for Colorado? The MGM line remains under contract next season as the Avs aim to develop ways to further support their young stars.

“It’s important to find some secondary scoring,” Bednar said. “Some of it will be from the growth of our kids and the maturity of those guys. Some of that I’m sure will be additions. Anything we can find tactically or systematically do to keep helping them along.”