And the winner is...

In honor of the Academy Awards, I have decided to give “awards” to the Most Valuable Player and the Most Improved Player. I realize there are still 17 games left, but these two players have helped the Avalanche all season long and their performances during the remainder of the season will be a determining factor in the Norwest Division.

Most Valuable Player: This is a no brainer, but in case you’ve been living under a rock all season, goalie Craig Anderson is by far the team’s MVP. All season long, “Andy” has been Sacco’s go to goalie. Even in back-to-back games, Sacco has put his faith in Anderson rather than giving Budaj a chance. Anderson already has 33 wins with 17 games remaining. The most wins for an Avalanche goalie in one season is 40 (done by Roy of course). If the Avalanche and Anderson keep playing the way they can, then I don’t see how Anderson won’t reach or surpass this 40 game mark (Don’t worry, I knocked on wood so I don’t jinx anyone). Finally, in almost every game thus far, Andy has always given the Avalanche the opportunity to win.

Most Improved Player: In honor of his first career hat trick Saturday night against the Blues, in my mind, Chris Stewart gets Most Improved Player. In 53 games last season with the Avalanche, Stewart only had 19 points. After getting off to a slow start this season, Stewart was sent to the minors for a couple games, but due to an injury on the Avalanche, Stewart was recalled after only 2 games with the Lake Erie Monsters. Since he was brought back to Colorado, Stewart hasn’t looked back. So far, Stewie has 27 assists and a team-leading 24 goals.

Thanks to Anderson’s strong goaltending and Stewart’s stellar offense, the Avalanche have surpassed all pre-season expectations. Let’s not forget, the Avalanche were picked to finish near the bottom of the Western Conference. Well, all season long the Avs have stayed in playoff contention and could possibly come away with the Northwest Division title and home ice advantage (knocked on wood again). But in reality, all I really care about is making it to the playoffs, and it would be fabulous if we could finish ahead of Detroit.

“Goaltending is a normal job, sure. How would you like it in your job if every time you made a small mistake, a red light went on over your desk and 15,000 people stood up and yelled at you.” - Jacques Plante