Summer beckons for Avalanche

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DENVER -- The light pole banners here outside the Pepsi Center urge the Colorado Avalanche, "Play On!" What was meant as a command is now a wish.Backs against the wall, or backs against the boards as it were, is not the ideal place to play hockey. But it does bring clarity to the mission."We know the hole we're in," said Avs center Paul Stastny, adding depth to the problem following Tuesday night's 4-3 loss to Detroit in Game 3 of their Western Conference semifinal series.This is not a hole as much as it is a crater, sheer-sided and slippery. This is how it is: Only two teams in Stanley Cup history have ever come back from 0-3, and the last time the Avs had a chance to do so, they surrendered Game 4 with one foot out the door."A tough loss, obviously," said Joe Sakic. "They deserve to be up 3-0. They've out skated us and outworked us. We played better but it is not enough. We still lost the game."The Avs did as they claimed they needed to, score first to get some momentum, to churn up some home enthusiasm.But no sooner had Cody McLeod redirected a shot past Chris Osgood for the Avs than the Red Wings tied and took the lead on goals by Pavel Datsyuk and Johan Franzen, neither of whom should have had so much space to shoot.The Avs never led again, though two power-play goals by Andrew Brunette and a furious third period kept the issue in doubt, what may be the last, best moments of an otherwise unremarkable playoff against the old enemy from Detroit.The Red Wings seemed to gather around the Avs' net as if Jose Theodore was giving away free samples, which he was in a way. But this time, after four goals allowed, he was permitted to remain in the game.It does no good now to replace Theodore with Peter Budaj because it would be like closing the body after the autopsy.Before Tuesday night's game, the chore was daunting, to win four of five from the best team in hockey. Now it is four in a row. And now it is nearly impossible, a mind-set that had settled onto the Avs even before the game."Oh, we think we're able to beat 'em," said defenseman Kurt Sauer after the morning skate. "We only have two more chances."Sauer was talking about winning one game, not a series. And one win may be the only solace for the Avs, to know they have played the Wings half as well as the Nashville Predators did.For the Avs to blame injuries or health as they might is of no use because the games are played with those who can play them. And if the flu that caught Theodore early, or if at all, and the recurring ailments of Peter Forsberg, seem so much bad luck, what is also true is that even at full strength, the Avs would need extraordinary good fortune to beat a team that is, man for man, vastly superior."It's still a rivalry," insisted Detroit winger Darren McCarty. "It's still a competition. We've got a lot of respect for those guys. They've got a lot of talent."Nice of him to say, but compared to the Red Wings, the Avs' top talent is a bit beyond the sell date, and Detroit's is just coming ripe. Henrik Zetterberg, 27, is a star ready to shine for a long time, as is center Datsyuk, 29. Franzen, 30, has become the star of the series.And, however slight the consolation, it took the best of the Red Wings to whip the Avs, all the goals by those three.The Avs are supposed to be a young team, or were headed that way before getting Forsberg back and Adam Foote and Ruslan Salei.In fact, even including 46-year-old Chris Chelios, of those players who have been on the ice in the playoffs so far, the average age of Detroit is 29.8 compared with 29.1 for the Avs. Take Chelios out and they are exactly the same.What was needed was the astonishing Theodore of the first round against the Wild, and the extra consideration that Forsberg would naturally cause. And the fallacy of Forsberg in the first place is this: The Avs were trying to get better by adding one Swede and the Red Wings already had eight.The added losses of Wojtek Wolski and Scott Hannan and, for Game 3, Ryan Smyth, and then -- after the first period -- also Stastny, it was as if the vital Avs were outpatients and the Wings were as forceful as the team that had half the starters in the West All-Star Game (compared to one Av sub, Stastny) should be."We don't want to worry about health," said Avs coach Joel Quenneville.Oh, there is much more to worry about now. Like whether to pack for the summer on the way to Game 4 or after.(Contact Bernie Lincicome of the Rocky Mountain News at lincicomeb(at)rockymountainnews.com.)