Avalanche's top scorers are back, but they still struggle in goal and lose to Capitals.

The Colorado Avalanche were eagerly anticipating the arrival of reinforcements on Friday night, but unfortunately, they were met with an all too familiar headache. The Ball Arena was buzzing with excitement and ready to celebrate, but the Avs' ongoing goaltending issues quickly put a damper on the mood. Justus Annunen, who was starting in place of the injured Alexandar Georgiev, allowed two goals on the first two shots he faced and three out of the first six before being replaced by Trent Miner for his NHL debut.

Avs coach Jared Bednar didn't mince words when he addressed the media after the 5-2 loss to the Washington Capitals, saying, "We weren't good enough. Especially Justus. The first shot, a point shot with no screen. The second one...not good. And the third one...I didn't like that one either." It was a tough night for the Avs, who were also without key players like Valeri Nichushkin, Jonathan Drouin, and Miles Wood due to injuries and suspensions.

Despite having their six best forwards in the lineup for the first time since last regular season, the Avs struggled to generate offense and were outshot by the Capitals. Drouin acknowledged the team's lackluster performance, saying, "I think they won their battles a little more than us today. They kept it simple. No excuses, though. You have to be ready to play no matter how long you've been out. They played better as a team and we have a lot of things to look at."

The game got off to a promising start for the Avs when Parker Kelly scored his first goal in an Avalanche uniform just two minutes into the game. However, the Capitals quickly answered with a power-play goal just over two minutes later. Despite a strong performance by rookie goalie Trent Miner, who stopped the first three shots of his NHL career, the Capitals managed to score four times on just 10 shots.

The Avs' defense also struggled with turnovers and the forwards were unable to produce much offense, resulting in a disappointing loss. Bednar summed it up simply, saying, "It was definitely an off night. In its simplest form, it looked like we were second to the puck all night and our execution was not good."

The Avs will have to regroup quickly as they head out on a four-game road trip starting in Philadelphia on Monday. Georgiev, who was absent from the morning skate due to an upper-body injury, will join the team on the trip. The Avs will be hoping for a quick recovery for their starting goalie as they continue to battle through their early-season struggles.

[This article has been trending online recently and has been generated with AI. Your feed is customized.]
[Generative AI is experimental.]