Dater Column: Struggling for something to play for might be Avs problem down stretch

I think this is going to be an occasional problem for the Avs down the stretch: boredom.

Let’s face it, this team already has the Western Conference and Central Division crowns wrapped up. They entered Thursday with 14-point leads on the teams nearest them in the West – St. Louis and Calgary. They went into desolate Gila River Arena Thursday night and, while technically playing a pretty solid game, didn’t seem to have the passion required to put such an easy team away.