The Colorado Avalanche began this season with a desire to play Alexandar Georgiev a little less after he carried so much of the workload near the end of last season, but the early-season schedule has allowed him to play every game so far.
That streak of eight straight starts will end Wednesday night when the Avs welcome the St. Louis Blues to Ball Arena. Ivan Prosvetov, acquired on waivers just before the regular season began, is going to make his first start.
Georgiev began the season with six straight wins, and still leads the NHL in that category. The Avs have dropped back-to-back games without scoring a goal, but the coaching staff saw a chance to finally give their No. 1 goalie a break.
“We’ve discussed it over the last few starts, especially,” Bednar said after practice Tuesday. “At 6-0, you’re kinda like, ‘Well, this isn’t that taxing of a schedule.’ Then you get the extra day in Buffalo. But now I think his last two games probably weren’t as sharp as the first two, three or four. That’s usually an indication that a little mental break now for him could be good.”
Colorado doesn’t have games on back-to-back days until Nov. 24 and 25, so Georgiev could have, in theory, played the first 18 contests on normal rest. The Avs have also had an extra day off in between games four times in their eight.
Georgiev was outstanding in the first four games, yielding a total of four goals. The team has allowed four in each of the past four games, though turnovers were a huge problem in Pittsburgh and one of the goals allowed in Buffalo was into an empty net.
Even after the two losses, Georgiev’s .915 save percentage is 15th in the league among goalies with four-plus starts. He’s played the second-most minutes at the position, behind only ex-Avs netminder Jonas Johansson, who is filling in for Andrei Vasilevskiy as the starter for Tampa Bay.
“(Georgiev’s) been outstanding,” Avs center Ryan Johansen said in Buffalo. “He was really great for us in all of our wins so far and being there when we need him. He’s still kept us in these games. We’ve had chances, and if we just score a goal, we’re back in these last two. We haven’t been able to do that for him.”
The Avs claimed Prosvetov on waivers because they wanted more depth at the position. Pavel Francouz remains on long-term injured reserve with no timeline for a return. Justus Annunen had a strong preseason while trying to stake claim to the No. 2 job, but he has very little NHL experience.
Enter Prosvetov, whose numbers at this level, like Annunen, are so-so, but both Bednar and general manager Chris MacFarland said the club’s scouting staff liked the big Russian goalie. Prosvetov did get a little bit of time in the Pittsburgh game — he played the final 8:05 and stopped all five shots he faced.
While he’s been sitting and waiting for his chance, Prosvetov has had the opportunity to work on some things with his new goalie coach, Jussi Parkkila.
“I think that’s been really important,” Bednar said. “Just being on the ice every day and having his own net. He’s getting used to the guys, getting used to the structure, the reads, knowing if there is a breakdown where it might come from. That gives him a better chance to succeed, both at 5-on-5 and on the penalty kill.”
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