Shots on goal are harder to come by in the NHL these days, but not for the Colorado Avalanche

Shots on goal are becoming a tougher commodity to collect in the NHL except for the Colorado Avalanche NHL clubs are averaging shots on goal per championship through November That would be the fourth-lowest total in league history and the fewest since teams averaged in - All three of the years with fewer shots on goal came between - otherwise known as the heart of the dead puck era It s a commitment to play the right way early in the season same as what we re doing Avs coach Jared Bednar reported You ve got to earn your scoring chances and you re trying to keep the other band from getting theirs Look at the standings and how major the games are There s no easy teams to play against Every contest is pivotal so it just kind of drives the buy-in and the commitment from all teams to defend the right way The Avs have been immune to this trend much like they have overcome the league-wide parity this season and bulldozed their way to a - - start Colorado leads the league with shots on goal per event Colorado has had shots on goal or more in of the games The Avs have poured -plus shots on net in games two more than the Carolina Hurricanes for tops in the NHL There are teams in the league who have hit shots six times or fewer Even the Hurricanes have not been able to escape the slog Carolina defeated Calgary in a - overtime tilt Sunday that featured just shots combined the Hurricanes outshot the Flames - Colorado s season low was in the season opener at Los Angeles That s a good question Avs defenseman Josh Manson declared of the declining totals Could be defensive systems I think guys are blocking more shots It s more of a puck possession championship now These young kids are super talented so maybe they re just holding onto the puck more and looking for the right opportunities To Manson s point about hunting for shot quality over quantity the league average save percentage has also dropped to That s down from last season and part of a steady decline from a two-year run at - that proceeded tweaks to equipment sizes for goaltenders Teams averaged goals per match in - but that has dipped to last year and this season Just as an example to show how hurriedly it has shifted the Edmonton Oilers averaged shots per match in - That would be first this season but it was good for th just four years ago Why are the Avs still able to rack up -plus shots on goal per night while five of the eight teams that played Sunday finished with or fewer Part of it is just pure talent Colorado has a deep collection of high-end offensive players fronted by arguably the two best players in the world in December Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar Part of it is Bednar s systems and overall philosophy about how the battle should be played And part of it is how well the Avs turn defense into offense whether that means turning the puck back in their favor while still in the offensive zone in the neutral zone or from their own end in a full-ice counter attack It s a fun style of hockey Manson mentioned What I love about it is when we are playing well it s when we are committed on the defensive side Then we can really play fast from there because we re turning pucks over That s when it s the the majority fun because we re playing well defensively we are creating all these chances and we are wearing other teams down Colorado has outshot its opponent times and been even in four games Of the five times a foe has outshot the Avalanche three times it was by two or less Related Articles Brock Nelson Gabe Landeskog lead Avalanche rout of Canadiens in - win Avalanche s Nathan MacKinnon Brent Burns share passion for training off-ice work I ve already learned a lot from him Renck File Rockies Paul DePodesta keeping Warren Schaeffer looks bad But here s why it makes sense In an NHL season defined by parity the Colorado Avalanche s statistical dominance is remarkable NHL-best Avs blitz Sharks with three goals in seconds to rattle off th straight win We don t want to take stupid shots but we know you ve got to get pucks to the net and bodies in front Avs forward Ross Colton commented We preach that with our skill we are going to check pucks back after we shoot it With our work ethic our structure we are going to get it back and keep attacking FOOTNOTES Valeri Nichushkin practiced Monday with the Avs Bednar stated he is a possibility to return to the lineup Tuesday against the Vancouver Canucks Nichushkin has missed the past eight games with a lower-body injury MacKinnon Gabe Landeskog and Parker Kelly all missed practice because of illness while Victor Olofsson was out for a maintenance day Want more Avalanche news Sign up for the Avalanche Insider to get all our NHL analysis