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About Mike Cook

Mike Cook spends much of his time writing about politicians and pucks. In addition to his full-time job covering the Minnesota House of Representatives, he does freelance sports writing – including pro and college hockey – for the Associated Press and other entities.

A lifelong resident of the State of Hockey, he grew up a fan of the Minnesota North Stars and still misses Met Center. He looks forward to when his three young children are on skates at 6 a.m. practices.

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2010-11 preview: Colorado Avalanche Print
Northwest
Written by Mike Cook   
Thursday, August 26, 2010 00:00

A young Avalanche squad stunned the league by making the playoffs in 2009-10. The roster hasn't changed much during the off-season, leaving the same group intact to prove if last season was a fluke.

• 2009-10: 43-30-9, 95 points, lost in conference quarterfinals.  

• Key additions: C/W Daniel Winnik  

• Key losses: D Brett Clark, F Chris Durno  

• Overview:
Last year was supposed to be a rebuilding year, but the Avs surprised everyone by making the playoffs, and playing San Jose tough before falling in six games. They won’t sneak up on opponents this season. Colorado's front office did not pursue any big-name free agents in the offseason, preferring to let its youthful players to develop together. With a young nucleus, the Avalanche is in a position where it should contend for the division title for many years. C Matt Duchene had a solid rookie campaign with 55 points, RW Chris Stewart was 28-36-64 in a breakout year and C Paul Stastny had a quiet 79 points. LW/RW Peter Mueller, acquired March 3 from Phoenix, took part in drills at the University of Denver's pro camp last week and says he is recovered from an April concussion that ended his 2009-10 season. Newly acquired Winnik is a good defensive forward. In 74 games last season with Phoenix, he netted just 19 points, but blocked 54 shots and had 30 takeaways. In his first year as a No. 1 netminder, Craig Anderson faced the most shots (2,233) and had the most saves (2,047) of any goaltender last season. Can he provide a repeat performance? Will he need to? Colorado returns six defensemen who played regularly last year (Kyle Cumiskey, Adam Foote, Scott Hannan, John-Michael Liles, Kyle Quincey and Kyle Wilson).  

• What they’re missing:
Colorado re-signed Peter Budaj to back up Anderson, but we'll see if he can gain more trust from coach Joe Sacco. Even though Anderson seemed to tire after his hot start, Budaj appeared in just 15 games last season, going 5-5-2 with a 2.64 GAA and a .917 save percentage. Is he the guy that can give Anderson a bit more of a breather?  

• Player to watch in camp:
RW David Jones, who was 10-16-26 in 23 games before suffering a season-ending knee injury Nov. 28, believes he'll be ready for training camp. "It would be tough to say it's 100 percent at this point, but I'm skating, I feel great on the ice and it's very close. I don't know if I could put a number on it, but I feel close to normal," he told the Denver Post.

HPT is counting down one team each day before NHL training camps open on Sept. 17. Tomorrow: Columbus Blue Jackets

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Last Updated on Friday, August 27, 2010 04:47