Avalanche HC Jared Bednar issues stern message after Martin Necas’ mistake in loss to Blues

Streaks are meant to be broken, and one reached its end as the Colorado Avalanche lost 2-1 to the St. Louis Blues. After eleven consecutive victories, the Avs lost at home for the first time since January 22, when the visiting Winnipeg Jets defeated them in overtime. Following the tough loss, head coach Jared Bednar voiced a clear message for the locker room, emphasizing Martin Necas‘ costly turnover that led to the decisive goal.

The Avalanche’s four-game winning streak was snapped at the hands of the Blues, who extended their own streak, racking up nine straight triumphs. The Blues are the hottest team in the NHL currently, and they proved their worth by taking down the Avs in The Mile High City.

Martin Necas has been on a dream run after arriving in Colorado, boasting 25 points (10 goals and 15 assists) in 25 games played with the Avalanche. However, even his magical form suffered a setback during the defeat to the Blues. Midway through the final period, Necas ran into trouble in the neutral zone and turned the puck over, leading to the Blues’ game-winning goal.

After the game, head coach Bednard made something clear to his players about their performance, addressing Necas’ mistake, which proved the difference in the tight, contested NHL matchup.

Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar addresses the media after beating the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2 in overtime in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final at Amalie Arena on Wednesday, June 22, 2022 in Tampa.

“At the end, [Necas] messes up in the neutral zone, then in the D-zone,” Bednar said postgame, via DNVR Avalanche on X. “I do think there are some things that we can clear up there.”

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Undisciplined

The Avalanche committed four penalties, against the Blues’ lone undiscplinary action. Granting such opportunities to St. Louis proved costly, as the Avs failed to generate momentum through large stretches of the game. Moreover, Bednar was largely displeased with his team’s penalty killing, issuing a stern message postgame.

“Didn’t like the penalties we took in the third period when you’re trying to come back,” Bednar added. “We made a couple big mistakes, the penalty kill was mistaken in their first goal. Late on in the third period we gave up a couple of pretty good looks from the slot. We were kind of caught in between and no one was talking.”

Not themselves

It wasn’t a good game for the Avs’ standards, and defenseman Devon Toews didn’t sugarcoat his thoughts following the deflating loss, that put Colorado further back from the Dallas Stars in their race for second place in the Central Division.

Martin Necas #88 of the Colorado Avalanche skates against the New York Islanders at UBS Arena on January 28, 2025 in Elmont, New York.

“We’re a team that generates momentum with how we play, and when we’re slow, we’re just giving it to other teams,” Toews said, per NHL.com. “Tonight, when we were slow and when we were turning pucks over, we just gave them free momentum. Then you have to go and expend energy playing defense, and we want to play offense. And we have opportunities there, in the third, to score a couple and just couldn’t get the job done on that side.”

The Avalanche will stay in Denver, as they gear up for their matchup with the Calgary Flames on March 31, vying to start a new winning streak on home ice.