Thanks to one man, the average height and weight of the Colorado Avalanche blueline has gone up significantly over the last month.
When Josh Manson hurt his wrist at the end of November, 6-foot-6 Keaton Middleton got the call from the Avalanche to replace some of the nasty the defense had lost. It might not be just a recall anymore - he might be here to stay for a little while.
In Monday's 3-1 win over the Florida Panthers, Middleton was in the lineup yet again. That's become a common occurrence of late, as he's dressed in 13 of the last 14 games. Manson has returned from his injury, but the 26-year-old defenseman is still seeing the ice every night.
If that happens, the coaching staff is usually happy with what you're bringing. That's exactly the case here, as the Avalanche have been dressing Middleton over veteran Calvin de Haan of late.
"I love the intensity that he's played with since he's been here," Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said of Middleton. "He's earned trust, and he has that physical edge, net-front clearing ability that some of our other guys don't have, and we need it."
The physicality that needs to be in Middleton's game has been there. He leads the defense in hits-per-60 and has dropped the mitts once since finding his way back to the NHL. That's what he needs to do to stay in the lineup, but the reality is that the Avalanche wouldn't be playing a 240-pound monster on their blueline if he couldn't be trusted with the puck.
In order to play for this team, you have to be able to handle the puck just a little bit. That's why he hasn't stuck at the NHL level in the past, but Bednar and company believe he's massive strides in that department over the past few years.
Middleton knows that even with the improvement, he can't rest on his laurels.
"It's something I need to keep getting better at," he said. "That's something I struggled with and I'm just building that (part) of game along."
There are still limitations in his game, as evidenced by a turnover behind his own net last week that led to a goal against. At least for now, they seem willing to live with those limitations, even if it means limited minutes for the big man, who hasn't hit the 10 minute mark in ice-time in seven of his last 10 games played.
Middleton seems to be filling the role both on and off the ice left behind by Kurtis MacDermid, who was traded last season. He's a loud guy in the locker room and a personality on it. At Monday's morning skate, someone stopped in front of Devon Toews, spraying him with ice. The big man got down and wiped the ice off the pads of Toews, who got a chuckle out of the whole situation.
If he does stick around, he might not play as much down the stretch, but Middleton has certainly made a big impression on the organization over the last month.
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"I like what he's done. He's going to keep getting more opportunity here," Bednar said.
Avalanche 3, Panthers 1
What happened: The Avalanche were the better team from start to finish and held on for the win over the defending champs.
What went right: Colorado started the game red-hot, but slowed down after the Panthers got the first goal. Ross Colton wasn't having it, and really brought the energy on the first goal of the game for the Avalanche.
Colton got in on the forecheck and made life miserable for the Panthers defenders. He's the one who threw a big hit along the boards on Jesper Boqvist, forcing a bad pass that eventually led to the tying goal.
Sneaking in some good news: Valeri Nichushkin is expected to go on Colorado's upcoming road trip and play at some point.
What went wrong: Middleton may be in the lineup for his physicality, but the big mistakes are starting to appear more and more. He got caught in no-mans land on the Panthers first period goal, allowing two Florida passes right through the slot prior to the puck ending up behind Avs' goalie Mackenzie Blackwood.
Avalanche goal scorers: Devon Toews (4,5), Mikko Rantanen (24)
Panthers goal scorers: Carter Verhaeghe (10)
Between the pipes: Blackwood still has not allowed more than two goals in any of his starts with the Avalanche. He stopped 25 of 26 shots against the Panthers.
What's next: The Avalanche will hit the road for three games, starting against the Blackhawks in Chicago on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.
