Three Reasons to Hate the Colorado Avalanche

Jan 11, 2014; Saint Paul, MN, USA; Colorado Avalanche forward

(92) celebrates his goal with teammates during the second period against the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Blackhawks finally got back to their winning ways with a victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday January 13^th.  The Blackhawks will square off against the Colorado Avalanche.  The teams have split their last four meetings and the winner has won by at least three goals in each meeting. This matchup should be equally as exciting.

As this series continues to evolve, the Blackhawks faithful should be developing a hatred of the Avalanche and here are three reasons why:

1. Patrick Roy: Patrick Roy was one of the greatest goalies in NHL history and a fiery Coach. Roy had very heated exchanges as player, we are well aware of them.  As coach the fire continued to burn strong within Roy.  In his first game as an NHL coach, he got into a heated exchange with Bruce Bordeau of the Anaheim Ducks. The exchange was so heated that both coaches tried pushing the glass onto each other.  Earlier in his coaching tenure Roy also got suspended in QJML when he encouraged his son to fight another goalie. His son was brought up on assault charges.  Fiery is not a bad thing. This fiery coach has gotten the AVS out of the cellar of the NHL and into the light.

2. They are young and talented: Matt Duchene, Semyon Varlamov, and Nathan MacKinnon are all under 27 years old.  These three are the core of the Avalanche. They are all extremely talented. Duchene has 16 goals and 23 assists for 39 points. He is a plus 6 rating on the season. Duchene was also selected to Team Canada Olympic team over Superstars such as Martin St. Louis and Claude Giroux. Varalmov has been reborn this season. Varalmov is having his best season ever. He is currently 21-8-5 with 2.35 goals against average and .926 save percentage. MacKinnon was the 1^st overall pick in the last season’s draft. He should be in the running for the Calder Trophy. He has 15 goals and 14 assists. He is a plus 6 in his first NHL season and the kicker is he is only 18 years old. That means he has room to improve.

3. History:  The Blackhawks and the Avalanche formerly the Nordiques are both proud franchises. They both have gone through periods of great success, the Avs won two Stanley Cups in 1995-96 and 2000-01, The Blackhawks have won two Cups 2009-10 and 2012-13. The Blackhawks pride themselves on selling out the United Center; the Avs currently have the record 487 games in a row. The attendance streak ended against the Blackhawks in 2006. It was only fitting that the Blackhawks streak of 24 games with a point ended in Colorado. There is history will be added too every season as they play in the same division now.

The Blackhawks takes on the Avalanche January 14^th at the United Center.

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LET’S GO HAWKS