from Pierre LeBrun of TSN,

These are desperate times already for the Colorado Avalanche, who have labored out of the gates in the incredibly competitive Central Division.

At 2-5-1, the Avs are already six points behind the sixth-place Winnipeg Jets in the Holy Mama Central.

You never want to overdramatize things just eight games into a season, but the reality is the Avs cannot fall too much deeper. It has to turn now -- starting with games Thursday night at the Tampa Bay Lightning and Friday night at the Carolina Hurricanes.

"I think we're all disappointed with the start, we were hoping for more, expecting more," Avs general manager Joe Sakic said over the phone from Tampa on Wednesday. "Also it's not time to sulk, it's time to find a way to get some wins together and get going. There's quite a few guys squeezing their sticks a little bit, trying to find a way to get going. Sometimes it's easier said than done, but I'm confident we've got a lot of guys that will start getting going and getting the puck in the net."

Confidence is shaken on a team that missed the playoffs last season after a breakout, Central Division-winning season in 2013-14. Mind you, their 39-31-12 record last season, good for 90 points, wasn't terrible, but in the Central Division? Last place.

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