The Colorado Avalanche lost their season opener 5-4 in a Wild game — pun intended (let’s not be too sad about this just yet). It was a tough loss, but to be honest, it could have been worse after that atrocious preseason. Four goals after only a single one in the final five preseason games is a huge step forward. Even aside from that, there were more than just a few bright spots throughout the game.
Patrick Roy’s “insane” line combinations did work in part, but not everything went perfectly. It was only the first game with completely shuffled lines, so that doesn’t come as a surprise.