JANUARY 24, 2010 -- The most surprising team in the NHL seems to also be the most ignored. The Colorado Avalanche started the season by winning 10 of 14 games in October. The Avs did cool off considerably in November when they won only 5 of 14. The young team then won 8 of 14 in December and most recently have won four straight, beating Buffalo, Calgary, New Jersey, and Edmonton, while outscoring them 16-6. The character of the team will get the acid test in the several weeks, as veteran sniper Milan Hejduk, and hard-nosed defenseman Adam Foote will both miss extended time due to injury.

The Avs are currently in first place in a tough Northwest division, with Calgary, Vancouver, and Minnesota in hot pursuit. Remember too, this was to be a rebuilding year for this team and Rookie Head coach Joe Sacco.

Goaltender Craig Anderson has been more than a pleasant surprise in net, and is presently sporting a sparkling .921 save percentage with 4 shutouts despite having faced more shots than any goaltender in the league.

Right wing Chris Stewart has chipped in 16 goals since being called up from Lake Erie on October 22nd, 2009. Rookie Center Matt Duchene seems to be channeling Joe Sakic as he continues his impressive play and has 15 goals and 18 assists. Wojtek Wolski and Paul Stastny are both solid pieces of a roster featuring 6 players with at least 10 goals. The defense is anchored by veterans Adam Foote, Scott Hannan and Kyle Quincey. Talented veteran D John-Michael Liles, who will make $4.12 million this season needs to start earning it, lest he morph into an overpaid blueline enigma like Wade Redden.

The man behind the bench is trying to become the Western Conference version of Dan Bylsma as he is enjoying great success in his first season. Joe Sacco is a blue collar guy from the word go as is Bylsma, and both are Mighty Ducks of Anaheim alums. Sacco spent 13 seasons as a player in the NHL, and amassed 94 goals and 119 assists in 738 games. He paid his dues, played hard every night and most of what he did wasn't reflected on the stats sheet.

He is the perfect fit for a young talented team needing to learn to play with discipline and purpose night in and night out.

Kudos to the Avs front office for giving Sacco a chance, instead of making the "safe" decision to go with a mediocre retread coach as too many franchises seem to do these days.

A recent incident was reflective of the strong character of the team.

During the Avs' 3-1 win over New Jersey on January 16th, Colorado defenseman Ryan Wilson checked Patrik Elias along the boards. It was a clean hit, of which even New Jersey coach Jacques Lemaire would later say that Elias was "a little careless".

The end result was Elias down on the ice for about five minutes before being carried out on a stretcher. There was no penalty on the play, but a little over 3 minutes later, Wilson did have to drop the gloves and fight Devils' defenseman Mark Fraser. Wilson noted he knew it was a clean hit, but that he also knew there would be some form of retaliation during the game.

He also stated it was "Better to get it out of the way early instead of waiting for someone to take a run at me." Wilson understands and accepts the unwritten rules associated with a hard check on the opposing team's star player, and it was all dealt with in a span of less than five minutes. No controversy, no distractions, and both teams just move on.

This Avalanche team is not yet solid in all facets of the game. They still need to control the neutral zone with more regularity and play with a little more discipline overall. The talent is definitely there. By season's end, they very well could be ready to contend with San Jose and Chicago for true Western Conference supremacy.

Anyone waiting for the Avs to fall back to Earth will be sorely disappointed. The transition from the Sakic/Patrick Roy era is complete. This team is now ready to create some history of it's own, and also poised and hungry enough to break some hearts in the postseason.

The new look Avs are here to stay. It is time for the rest of the league to take notice.

It may not be this year, but my Crystal Ball reveals visions of a trip to the Stanley Cup final in the not too distant future.

Contact Charles: Charles@officialinsidesports.com

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