Every fan and every reporter is beating a dead horse at this point with the Colorado Avalanche and the power play. As we head into the Olympic Break, it sits last in the NHL. The Avs have played 55 games so far this season and have 27 more to go. Something will have to change, and it will have to change fast in order to make a difference for the playoffs. Colorado had used the failure of the power play and their first-round exit last season to fire assistant coach Ray Bennett. They hired Dave Hakstol, and he has fared much worse. What can the Avs do to fix the faltering power play unit at this point?

The numbers

So far this season, Colorado has only 27 power-play goals in 179 opportunities. It converts to just 15.1 percent of their chances. To top that off, Colorado leads the league with nine shorthanded goals. They are shooting a measly five percent while on the man advantage, sitting again at worst in the league. To put this into perspective, the Edmonton Oilers, who are first in the league with their 31.1 percent overall power play, are shooting at over 12 percent. They have also allowed only three shorthanded goals.

The problem

The Avalanche depend too much on Nathan MacKinnon and Brock Nelson (as any team would). But the lack of Mikko Rantanen on the right side makes the power play very predictable. Essentially, this has taken Cale Makar out of the fold at the top of the slot and on the blue line. Shots only come from MacKinnon on the left or Nelson in the high-danger zone. Opposing teams have adjusted to MacKinnon on the left and Nelson in the front, and it has become easy for them to stop. Martin Necas can handle the puck under pressure, but he cannot pass it to teammates from the right side like Rantanen did.

The solution

With the injury to Necas, Valeri Nichushkin has taken over the right side of the first unit. He provides more of a power forward type of player who barrels his way to the net. When Gabriel Landeskog is healthy again, he can do almost the same as Nichushkin. Landeskog could provide more movement along the wall, and Nichushkin is a threat to run through traffic. Both players also have a reputation for setting screens in front of the goaltender for deflections. Either way, drastic changes need to come the Avs’ way. And they need to come fast. If they want to have any hope of advancing past the first round of the playoffs, the power play will win those games.

Stats provided by MoneyPuck.com