Heartbreaker

Well, what can you say? The Avs have been defeated 4-2 in the series against the San Jose Sharks. As a fan, it is a bitter disappointment right now. But there is a lot of positive to go on as well. Look back to October 1st, game one on the season. Did anyone honestly give the Avs a shot at being in the playoffs? Nope. When the Avs actually made the playoffs, everyone pretty much blew them off and figured it would be an easy first round for San Jose.

The Avs definitely gave the Sharks a run for their money. They stormed into San Jose and took game one on the road, surprising pretty much everyone. The series was very physical and for the most part, very close in scoring. The Sharks outshot the Avs drastically, and yet thanks to the play of Craig Anderson the Avs managed to stay in the series. This was a very close battle as 3 of 6 games went to overtime and 2 others were close to it (game 1 was a last minute victory and until they pulled Anderson tonight, it could've easily been tied up again).

Right now, it's nothing but a heartbreaker for Avs fans, but still we have a lot of positives to go on. I think that next year this team is going to be a force to be reckoned with. The Avs' young stars played magnificently this year and they'll only get better with age and experience. The team surprised a lot of people including all the experts that predicted another season much like last year. Honestly, I didn't know what to expect for the Avs this season, so I was pleasantly surprised when things came together the way they did.

We do have one more thing to look forward to as Avs fans. June 23rd is when the NHL Awards take place in Vegas. The Avs' star rookie Matt Duchene, 3rd overall draft pick in 2009 is one of three players nominated for the Calder Trophy. Duchene lead all rookies with 55 points (24 goals, 31 assists) in the regular season. There's no guarantees that Matt will win it, but it's something to look forward to anyway.

And now, it's time to finish up. I just want to say, thank you from the bottom of my heart to the Avalanche. There have been a lot of memorable moments and I have a lot of new favorite players (Yes, I'm one of those people who can't pick just one favorite). This season was really a lot of fun and more than I would've thought it would be after last year. I am so proud of everything the Avs have accomplished this season and I am going to start counting down the days until next season rolls around. It's only a little over 5 months until the next NHL season starts!