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Bednar's stunning admission about his star goaltender has Avalanche fans completely stunned
Photo credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
The Colorado Avalanche owe much of their league-leading success to their goaltending duo, with both Scott Wedgewood and Mackenzie Blackwood performing at a high level. But while Blackwood believes he needs more minutes to fully regain his rhythm, head coach Jared Bednar doesn't exactly agree
Bednar said if Blackwood wants more minutes, he needs to earn them, because Wedgewood clearly isn't giving anything away.
Jared Bednar has tough love for Mackenzie Blackwood.
Ryan O'Hara of The Hockey News reported on the goaltending situation in Colorado.
With both goalies proving they can handle the job, Blackwood is pushing for more minutes, but Bednar says he'll have to take them from the other guy.
"I hate to sound cruel, but that's a Blacky problem at this point. It's not a problem for me; I have lots of confidence in Blacky and I know there's lots of minutes between here and the end of the season, but (Scott Wedgewood) is playing great, so I'm not gonna not play Wedge to play Blacky at this point, so those minutes come in practice and hard work he's been doing that and he'll get his games." -Bednar
Bednar isn't wrong, Wedgewood has been exceptional all season, while Blackwood only recently found his groove with back-to-back shutouts after a shaky stretch.
With Wedgewood's consistency, Blackwood will have to be lights-out every time he's in net to earn more starts. Still, Bednar wasn't all tough love; he made sure to credit Blackwood for his shutout streak.
"Yeah, I'm really impressed. The Nashville game was lights out. Tonight, good again. And part of it is just, like I've talked about before, knocking the rust off. We have a lot of faith in this guy. Obviously it's why we signed him. It's why he's our guy." -Bednar
At the end of the day, Blackwood is no different from any other player, perform and you earn more ice time, struggle and you don't.
His injury recovery doesn't mean Wedgewood should step aside. Wedgewood has earned the starting job, and if Blackwood wants it back, he'll have to take it from him.
| POLL | ||
NOVEMBRE 29 | 19 ANSWERS Bednar's stunning admission about his star goaltender has Avalanche fans completely stunned Will Mackenzie Blackwood become the starting goaltender by the time the Colorado Avalanche hit the postseason? | ||
| Yes | 15 | 78.9 % |
| No | 4 | 21.1 % |
| List of polls | ||
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