Colorado Avalanche up 3 games to none. Game 7 should be thrilling.

For Colorado sports fans there is no greater agitation than having your team on top by a huge margin.  The Broncos, the Avs, the Nuggets and our minor league baseball team, the Colorado Rockies, all despise the comfort and boredom of handily beating the opponent.  Maybe it's good sportsmanship but our teams feel it only fair to let the other team back in the game.  Last night while we watched one of the best hockey games of the year, Av fans rejoiced in the bliss of being one game away from advancing in the playoffs.  These fans know not their team.  Perhaps the Avs have been paid off by the networks to make their games more dramatic, but the further they're ahead, the more likely they'll wander.  Practicing their triple axles and skating along daydreaming of their mother's chicken gorky goulash, my team will awake to a must-win game 7. 

Now you might think this pessimistic, but I grew up with the Denver Broncos.  When we were down by twenty we could comfort ourselves that there was still a chance we might win.  John Elway would lead the team on a fourth-quarter comeback.   When the Broncos were playing from behind it was more exciting.   Elway, sacked into early dementia, would summon whatever courage had not been beaten out of him and put on a show.  We never lost.  We always very nearly won.  And we could always blame it on the kicker.  (At the time it was the barefoot wonder Rich Karlis who my father nicknamed Rich Kotex.  But honestly the rules never were in his favor.  A team really should garner more points for hitting the upright.  Now that takes skill.  Especailly WHEN YOU DESTROY A CHILDHOOD BY DOING IT WEEK AFTER WEEK AFTER WEEK!)

But when we were ahead all we could do was lose.  I'm scarred, perhaps more than most, because the first Bronco game I remember was against the New York Jets.  It was 1977.  At halftime we were up 28-3.  The Broncos lost 31-28.  (Notice my acquired defense mechanism:  when we're up then I am 'we' with the team.  When they lose than they, not we, are the losers.)     Another example of the Broncos ineptitude--the first three Superbowls aside--came on a cold winter's day in the late '80's.  We were beating the hated Raiders 24-3.  My father called from the bar and asked if I wanted to put fifty bucks on the 'Donkeys'.  See, he'd been a fan for so long he knew that by being ahead twenty points they had a better chance of losing.  If they were down by thirty he would have never bet against them. 

Being a rookie I took the bet.  Monday Night Football, the Broncos up big on national TV--how could I lose?  Well, I did.  And so did they.  The Raiders came back and beat Denver 30-27.  

I won't even go into John Elway setting the record for the quickest score in Superbowl history.   After that the Redskins scored 42 unanswered points and I had tears streaming through orange and blue facepaint.  

Tomorrow the Avalanche only need to win one more game to take out the Dallas Stars.  If the situation were reversed I'd be much more comfortable.  But for now all I can do is hope is that we get behind early in game 7.  

Comments

[bd_eyes]

I'm still scratching my head in bewilderment as to how a team ranked #2 can be down 3-0 to a team ranked #7. I suppose the Stars are to Dallas what the Nuggets are to Denver?! But a sportscaster from Dallas did predict that the Stars would win 4 games in a row and advance to the 2nd round. He just didn't say which 4 games! I guess we'll see you at game 7.