from Terry Frei of the Denver Post,

As the Avalanche practiced Wednesday morning at Family Sports Center, only the New York Islanders, with 18, had fewer points than Colorado’s 19. And later, when the Isles knocked off the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-3 in Brooklyn, it left Colorado and the Arizona Coyotes tied for the lowest total in the NHL.

That’s how damaging an 0-2-1 start to a five-game homestand that continues against Columbus on Thursday has been for the Avalanche. The latest stumble was a 5-3 loss to Nashville on Tuesday, and the struggles again raise the question of whether the Avalanche’s much-cited faith and commitment to its “core” — generally conceded to be six players — has been misguided, and whether that core should be broken up.

Defenseman Erik Johnson, one of the six, acknowledged the core group needs to kick its game up a notch.

“It doesn’t matter how many points you have or how much you’re playing, it’s the record that indicates how you’re playing,” Johnson said. “Clearly, the record is not good enough. … Nobody can look in the mirror and say we’re playing good enough because our record doesn’t indicate it. As a group of individuals who feels a lot of responsibility for the team, I think you go out and do your best every game and you realize there are consequences no matter what.

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