10 Observations: The Valeri Nichushkin Whisperer Was at It Again (+)

DENVER — What I expected to be a hard-fought heavy game against a team the Avalanche are chasing in the standings was anything but that.

Minnesota scored first and led 2-1 at the first intermission, but even then, it didn’t feel like they had a stranglehold of the game. Then the second period happened and the rest was history.

Colorado won 5-2.

What an exceptional start to the Avs’ season-long six-game homestand amid trade deadline season.

There was a lot to take out of this one, including some really cool stuff from behind the scenes. Come for the hockey breakdown, stay for the latest from the Valeri Nichushkin Whisperer.

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10 Observations

1. I touched on Filip Gustavsson’s record against the Avalanche in my postgame story yesterday. After the game, I chatted with a couple members of the Avs’ coaching staff, and they admitted that they were surprised the Wild played Marc-Andre Fleury against Utah. They were fully expecting to face him instead.

And for good reason. Fleury often plays the Avs well and was in goal on Jan. 20 when the Wild came to Ball Arena and won 3-1. Gustavsson, on the other hand, is now 1-7-1 in his career against Colorado and 0-4-0 in the last 11 months, giving up at least four goals in each of those games.

2. Nichushkin had the power-play tally in the first period. He was only the top unit because Artturi Lehkonen ate a high stick to draw the penalty. It took almost two minutes, but it eventually led to a goal.

I loved the way Nichuskin separated himself ever so slightly from the defender to make himself available for the Nathan MacKinnon feed. And that saucer pass from MacKinnon was beautiful.

Val Nichushkin's power play tally evens the score at 1 for the Avalanche!#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/dflmCGsKXq

— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) March 1, 2025

3. I said it last game. It’s only a matter of time until Nichushkin’s on that top power-play unit full-time. And you just know that Bednar will also have him on the top line at even strength as soon as he needs to shake things up. It might happen as early as next game.

4. I spoke to Jack Drury 1-on-1 after the game and he was very complimentary of what Joel Kiviranta has brought to his line. It looks like a much better fit than Miles Wood, who also looks more useful on that crash-and-bang line with Parker Kelly and Logan O’Connor.

“He’s an incredibly underrated player. I didn’t know how good he was until I got here,” Drury said of Kiviranta. “He’s so solid on both ends of the ice. Really smart defensively and really smart and strategic offensively.”

5. Kudos to Ross Colton for breaking out of the goal-scoring drought. The Avs’ depth production seemingly hangs on his and Casey Mittelstadt’s production. Colton has four points in two games during this homestand.

6. If you recall, Bednar said on Sunday that he doesn’t think this is the same type of high-flying offensive team he’s had in the past. I asked him if he expected these two games after saying that. His response:

“Well, I didn’t say we couldn’t score. We’re still sitting at eighth in goals for. It’s a pretty good offensive team,” Bednar said. “I just think that the offensive side of it comes pretty naturally to us, but there’s been a lot of games this year where we’ve had trouble creating offense, right? So that means you have to be better in other areas.

“We’ve been talking as a team for the nine years I’ve been here. You want it to be rock solid. You want to be known for your great defending, but you still want to be dangerous offensively. We’ve been trying to improve our defending for years.

“I would say, the bulk of our wins this season, we’ve been really good defensively. We’re improving. And our goaltenders are helping there.”

7. I also loved what Bednar said about the Wild’s odd-man rush late in the second period. I asked him about that dominating three-minute shift in the Minnesota end, but he made sure to touch on this to the end of his response:

“What I didn’t like about it is, at the end of that, the clock’s ticking down, it’s 20 seconds, and we kind of get a little lazy on a reload, poor recognition,” Bednar said. “All of a sudden, they’re taking off on an odd man rush and they get a grade A chance.”

8. Bednar called Oliver Kylington a high-event player. Someone who, yes, had two great assists. But he also had a turnover that led to the first Minnesota goal. Given the way the ice time was broken down among the blueline, you have to think the front office is prioritizing that for the trade deadline.

I fully expect at least one, if not two, notable adds on the blueline before 1 p.m. MT on Friday. Cale Makar and Devon Toews both had nearly 30 minutes of ice time. Samuel Girard hovered around 20 minutes while Calvin de Haan, Sam Malinski, and Kylington each played fewer than 14 minutes.

It’s a massive drop-off.

9. I can’t say this enough: With how the season started and with how last year went, I don’t think we could ever underappreciate what Mackenzie Blackwood has meant for this team. Even in a game like this, where the Avs played well defensively, he still needed to make two or three excellent saves to keep the game within reach.

That was a masterclass stop on Jakub Lauko.

10. Remember a couple months back when I said Blackwood was the Valeri Nichushkin Whisperer? That’s still the case. The two are locker stall buddies at the practice rink but sit on completely opposite ends of the room at Ball Arena.

While in the middle of my 1-on-1 with Drury, Blackwood got Nichushkin’s attention and began to shout at his with this hilarious grin on his face:

“Hey Val! Way to f—ing go! Great snipe. Great f—ing snipe!”

Nichushkin was laughing and having a great time. And to be honest, I don’t think I’ve ever heard him be this lively and chatty with a teammate before.

Truly, Blackwood is still the undisputed Nichushkin whisperer.