Inside NHL | Glory days: Avs look to return to dynasty form

     Rewind to the 1995-96 NHL season. The Colorado Avalanche, formerly the Quebec Nordiques, was beginning its first season since making the move to Denver, and Walt Disney himself could not have written a happier start for the young franchise. Led by captain Joe Sakic, forward Peter Forsberg and goalie Patrick Roy, the Avs brought the Stanley Cup back to Colorado in their first year of existence.
    The next year, the Avs seized the Presidents' Trophy for finishing with the best regular season record in the entire league. Quickly endearing themselves to their new hometown fans, the Avs in the late '90s were simply one of those legendary hockey dynasties that people will continue to talk about for a very long time.
    It seemed for a time that Colorado would continue to dominate the hockey scene, winning its division every year until 2003-04, including a second Stanley Cup victory in the 2000-2001 season. The Avalanche's nine consecutive division titles broke the former NHL record of eight, set by the Montreal Canadiens between 1974 and 1982.
    But despite their early franchise success, the Avalanche has failed to advance past the Western Conference Semifinals since 2001-02. Why? Roy retired in 2003; Forsberg was injured the entire 2001-2002 season, and only played in 39 of 82 games in 2003-2004 before finally being traded out of frustration to the Philadelphia Flyers in 2005; and by 2006-07 Sakic and Milan Hejduk were the only remnants of the 2001-02 Stanley Cup squad. This past summer, Sakic, the Avs' captain and 13-time all-star, retired, marking the end of an era for the Colorado Avalanche.
    But instead of fading into the background of the NHL, the Avalanche currently sits atop the Northwest division. Not only that, the Avalanche is above Canadian powerhouses Calgary and Vancouver, and has the league lead in points with 20, ahead of the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins by two points.
    Surprisingly, little has changed in the Colorado franchise over the last year. While teams like the Flyers and the Chicago Blackhawks were busy making blockbuster trades, the Avs quietly signed Florida Panthers' backup goalie Craig Anderson to a two-year deal.
    Last year with Florida, Anderson posted a lackluster 15 wins in 31 games. The Avs were ready to roll with goaltender Peter Budaj in the No. 1 spot come October, but Anderson stole the job in training camp with stellar play and game readiness.
    In addition, rough-and-tumble forward Darcy Tucker, who posted only 16 points in last year's campaign with the Avs, has started the 2009-10 season with impressive offensive vigor, putting up four goals, two assists and four power-play points in 10 games. Unfortunately for Colorado, Tucker is out indefinitely after Ottawa Senators pest Jarkko Ruutu crushed him face-first into the boards last Friday.
    On the bright side, the Avalanche has been getting much more than it ever imagined from its young core early in the season. Wojtek Wolski, Colorado's first round pick in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, looks like he could be heading for a breakout season, already having picked up seven goals and five assists in 12 games. Tied with Wolski for the team lead in points is Paul Stastny, son of former Nordiques legend Peter Stastny, who has four goals and eight assists this season.
    At only 23 years of age, Stastny is quickly helping to fill the void at center left by Sakic's retirement, along with prospect Matt Duchene. Selected third overall in last year's entry draft, Duchene wasn't expected to make the team's roster this year. But given the opportunity, he has played effectively, with six points so far this season.
    Perhaps the most pleasant surprise for the Avalanche thus far has been the exceptional play of Ryan O'Reilly, whom the Avalanche picked up in the second round of last year's draft in July. O'Reilly is a force to be reckoned with in the faceoff dot and has notched 10 points on two goals and eight assists, along with a team best +10 rating on the year. Colorado coach Joe Sacco has taken notice of the rookie's responsible defensive play, entrusting O'Reilly with a spot on the Avs' penalty kill.
    As often is the case with success, this year's Avalanche squad isn't one of those teams that really dazzles you with offensive skill or spectacular goaltending, but it's a team that works hard every night and gets the job done.
No Alexander Ovechkins or Martin Brodeurs here — just an entire team of guys that wins those battles in the corner, gets the puck deep in the zone, pays the price in front of the net and scores greasy goals. Hard work and good defense wins games, and so far the Avalanche has shown that they are more than ready to put in that effort.