The captain of the Colorado Avalanche has a pingpong paddle sitting in his locker that features a picture of him taped to one side.

Merely a ploy [url=http://www.redskinscheapshops.com/cheap-authentic-derrius-guice-jersey]Authentic Derrius Guice Jersey[/url] , explained Gabriel Landeskog, the self-proclaimed table tennis champion of the dressing room.

”Seeing my face, yeah, it’s distracting for them,” he said , grinning.

It’s certainly been a lot of fun and games this season for the Avalanche – a stark contrast to a year ago when they were the worst team in the NHL. Behind a Hart Trophy candidate in Nathan Mackinnon , an even-keeled coach in Jared Bednar and a youthful, high-octane roster, the Avs have turned things around to the tune of a 45-point improvement so far. They are the first NHL team to post a 40-point gain over an 82-game season since the Pittsburgh Penguins jumped 47 from 2005-06 (58) to 2006-07 (105).

There’s also this: Take care of business with a win at San Jose on Thursday and another in regulation against St. Louis in the season finale Saturday and they will earn their first postseason berth since 2013-14.

”What our guys have done this year as a group, first year of a rebuild, a lot of new faces, I don’t know there are too many people that would’ve put us in the situation we’re in right now [url=http://www.sanfrancisco49ersteamonline.com/fred-warner-jersey]Authentic Fred Warner Jersey[/url] ,” said Bednar , whose team managed only 48 points during his first season in charge. ”Our guys have done an excellent job this year of being committed to what we’re doing and trying to turn this thing around and get to where we want to go.”

Bednar and general manager Joe Sakic calmed some pretty turbulent waters after a forgettable 2016-17 season that began with Patrick Roy surprisingly announcing he would step down before camp.

A year later, Bednar had a chance to implement more of his philosophies in camp. He got to know his players’ strengths better, too.

Still, there were some early season obstacles to navigate, including moving on from Matt Duchene when the talented forward wanted out of town. He was traded to Ottawa in early November.

Through it all, Bednar’s message was succinct: Just concentrate on hockey. The Avs won 10 straight earlier this season; they had 22 wins all of last year.

”If you believe in each other and believe in the system, you can accomplish things that other people probably don’t think we could,” said defenseman Erik Johnson, who’s currently sidelined with a fractured kneecap. ”We took it upon ourselves to be the underdog.”

Even through the lows of a 48-point season, Bednar didn’t lose the room. His players call him ”Bedsy,” a sign of respect for a coach who will hold them accountable but mostly helps them figure things out.

”Looking back [url=http://www.titansauthorizedshops.com]Titans Game Jerseys[/url] , it’s easier to realize that he could’ve been a lot harder on us, could’ve been a lot worse. He didn’t do that,” defenseman Tyson Barrie said. ”I have a lot of respect for him with what he’s done this year and how he’s handled the team and everything.”

Any other season, Bednar might even be a runaway coach of the year winner. But there’s Gerard Gallant, who has expansion Vegas headed to the postseason as Pacific Division champions.

”I tried to be as fair as I possibly can be with still doing my job to the best of my ability,” Bednar said. ”I have a lot of belief in our team.”

Colorado features the youngest active roster in the league with an average age of 25.7. With Alexander Kerfoot leading the way, 11 different rookies have combined for more than 410 games and 121 points.

Then again, Bednar has plenty of experience dealing with youth from his days in the American Hockey League. Bednar joined the Avalanche from the Columbus Blue Jackets‘ affiliate Lake Erie after leading the Monsters to the 2016 Calder Cup trophy.

”He definitely gets it,” said MacKinnon, who is among the league leaders with 94 points (38 goals, 56 assists). ”He communicates really well with the younger generation.”

Colorado has had its share of bumps and bruises along the way, with MacKinnon sitting out eight games due to a shoulder injury. And now the team is missing top goaltender Semyon Varlamov (lower body injury) for the rest of the regular season. But they have veteran Jonathan Bernier to step in.

”We got some of those injuries (last season) [url=http://www.chargersfootballauthentics.com/kyzir-white-jersey-authentic]Youth Kyzir White Jersey[/url] , and didn’t have the depth that we needed,” Bednar said. ”When things took a turn, it was hard to stay motivated as a team when you fall out of the playoff race.”

It’s not the best turnaround in franchise history: The then-Quebec Nordiques went from 52 points in 1991-92 to 104 the following season. But that was a different time.

”It’s a turnaround, but we also thought we shouldn’t have been as bad as we were last year,” Landeskog said. ”We’ve still got a lot of work left. It doesn’t really count if we don’t go to the playoffs.”

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More NHL hockey: The Jacksonville Jaguars unceremoniously dumped the longest-tenured player on their roster Tuesday, and he wasn't happy about it.

The Jaguars released veteran tight end Marcedes Lewis after 12 seasons to save $3.5 million in salary-cap space. The move came the same day Jacksonville parted ways with receiver Allen Hurns to save $7 million.

Both players are now free agents and can sign with any team that wants them.

Hurns' future had been in doubt since Dede Westbrook and Keelan Cole emerged as big-play receivers late last season. Hurns really became expendable when the Jaguars signed two receivers last week, bringing back Marqise Lee and adding Donte Moncrief in free agency.

Lewis thought his spot was safe, even after Jacksonville signed Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Niles Paul last week. The Jaguars picked up an option in Lewis' contract last month.

Lewis told The Associated Press he felt "disrespected" by the timing of the move. It came a week after free agency began.

"I wish they would have done it sooner," he said. "I think I deserved a little better than this."

The 33-year-old Lewis, a first-round draft pick in 2006, played in 170 games with Jacksonville. His 375 receptions and 4,502 yards receiving both rank third in team history. His 33 receiving touchdowns are second-most in franchise history [url=http://www.authenticsbaltimoreravens.com/cheap-orlando-brown-jr.-jersey]Orlando Brown Jr. Color Rush Jersey[/url] , trailing only Jimmy Smith (67).

He said he hopes to continue playing and would prefer to stay closer to his home and daughter in Los Angeles. Lewis has ties to former Jaguars coach and current Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator Gus Bradley, and his college position coach, Jon Embree, is tight ends coach for the San Francisco 49ers. Also, former Jaguars offensive coordinator Greg Olson now holds the same position with the Oakland Raiders.

"I've still got a few more years left in me," Lewis said. "Any team that gets me will get a guy who does everything the right way on and off the field and with 100 percent effort. That's all I did in Jacksonville. I always did what they asked me to do, which is why the way they let me go is annoying in that sense."

Hurns would have been behind Lee and Moncrief on the depth chart, and Jacksonville felt his salary was too high for a backup who has missed 11 games the last two seasons.

Hurns has 189 receptions for 2,669 yards and 21 touchdowns in four years since signing with the Jaguars as an undrafted rookie from Miami. But he caught just 74 passes for 961 yards and five scores the last two years while dealing with a sports hernia in 2016 and a high ankle sprain in 2017.

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