The Drive

For the first hour of The Drive with Zach Bye and Phillip Lindsay, the guys take a good hard look at last night's playoff-eliminating loss and hold the Avs accountable.  Zach lists off some of the players that had zero goals and dives into more aspects of the loss.  The guys then take a look at some of the other worst losses in Denver sports history and decide how high this one gets ranked.     

In hour 4 of The Drive, Zach and Phil take a deep dive into the Avalanche as they look to fight off elimination in Game 4 tonight. Have the Avs mirrored the Nuggets in getting out-executed against a lesser team? How do the guys feel about Jared Bednar making a change at goal tender and putting in MacKenzie Blackwood to make his first start of the series? Have the Avs shown that playoff collapses are their identity, and the Stanley Cup run in 2022 was the aberration? Are the Avalanche front-runners that wither when times get tough? If the Avalanche lose tonight and get swept, will tonight be Bednar's final game as the Avs head coach? We wrap up the show with the guys sharing their predictions for tonight's game and comparing this series to the 2004 Boston Red Sox. 

In hour 3 of The Drive, Zach and Phil react to Jamal Murray being named to an All-NBA team for the first time in his career. Zach explains why this achievement is bittersweet and why he is open to trading Jamal Murray this offseason while his stock is at an all-time high. How did we get to the point where the Avalanche are on the brink of elimination tonight in Game 4? Have the Avs shown they are front-runners, and when times get tough, they aren't built for it? Zach shares the history of teams to come back from down 3-0 in a series, and the guys debate if the Avs have it in them to get it done. Have the Avs outplayed the Golden Knights despite being in a 3-0 hole in the series? We pivot to the Broncos, and Phil fills us in on what the Broncos will be doing at OTA's next week. How will the absence of Bo Nix impact the work they can do? We hear from Justin Simmons and a story between him and Sean Payton on Payton not wanting Simmons to wear sleeves, Simmons refusing, and eventually getting let go from the Broncos. 

In hour 2 of The Drive, Zach and Phil take a deep dive into the Avalanche as they look to fight off elimination in Game 4 tonight. Have the Avs mirrored the Nuggets in getting out-executed against a lesser team? Do the guys agree with Jared Bednar's decision to bench Scott Wedgewood and go with MacKenzie Blackwood? If the Avalanche lose tonight and get swept, will tonight be Bednar's final game as the Avs head coach? Have the Avs shown they are front-runners, and when times get tough, they aren't built for it? We go one-by-one and point out all the Avs players underachieving in this series. Today's "Three Count" includes the Knicks railroading their way to the NBA Finals and pushing their winning streak to 11 straight, if the Knicks have a chance against whoever wins the Western Conference, and a crazy stat with the most recent 4 teams to represent the East in the NBA Finals. We react to the reports that Nashville could be waiting to hire the Avs' Chris MacFarland as their next GM. Could the Avs lose their general manager to another organization over finances? 

Hour 1 of The Drive kicks off with Zach and Phil cross-talking with Dover and Cecil. The guys discuss the current state of the Colorado Avalanche as they go into Game 4, down 3-0. Is Cale Makar's absence in the first two games an excuse for the hole they've got themselves into? Zach and Phil compare the Avalanche to the Nuggets as teams to be favorites in every game and lose a playoff series. Zach shares the history of teams to come back from down 3-0 in a series, and the guys debate if the Avs have it in them to get it done. How have the Avs outplayed the Golden Knights according to the stats, but lost every game by 2 goals? How much faith do the guys have in the Avs to extend the series and send the series to a Game 5 in Denver? We pivot to the Broncos, and Phil fills us in on what the Broncos will be doing at OTA's next week. How will the absence of Bo Nix impact the work they can do? 

In hour 4 of The Memorial Day edition of The Drive, John Davis and Chad Andrus continue to dive into the Nuggets and Avalanche playoff disappointments this year. Are the Nuggets in a position to overhaul their roster to compete in the modern NBA? Is Denver still a destination for players around the NBA with Jokic as the fulcrum? Has Joe Sakic's playstyle from his NHL days led this Avalanche team to being too fast and skilled and not putting enough of an emphasis on toughness and defense? Is there any hope the Avalanche can mount a comeback from down 3-0 in the Western Conference Final? What do we need to see in Game 4 from the Avs to start believing? Are the Avalanche the "better" team in the series or just the more talented team? We wrap up the show comparing this Avs team to other teams in sports history with a high-flying offense that couldn't get it done in the playoffs. 

In hour 3 of The Memorial Day edition of The Drive, John Davis and Chad Andrus debate if the Avalanche have a chance at digging themselves out of a 3-0 hole in the Western Conference Final. Will the Avs defense be able to kick it in gear and give their offense a chance in games moving forward? Will/should Jared Bednar make another change at goaltender and give MacKenzie Blackwood a chance? Has goaltending been a main issue for the Avs and a reason they find themselves in a 3-0 hole? Is Blackwood a better option, or could he provide a spark off the bench? What has to go right for the Avalanche in Game 4 to push the series back to Denver? Are both the Nuggets and Avalanche not built to succeed in the playoffs? Do both teams need to overhaul their play style? 

In hour 2 of The Memorial Day edition of The Drive, John Davis and Chad Andrus debate which injury in Denver sports was the most impactful in derailing their team's championship hopes between Bo Nix, Cale Makar, and Aaron Gordon. Would the Nuggets have had a chance at winning a championship if Aaron Gordon were healthy? Would Bo Nix have led the Broncos to a Super Bowl if he hadn't missed the AFC Championship? Was Cale Makar the difference in the Avs being down 0-3 or being competitive in the series? How much did the coaches on each team help or hurt after each team sustained injuries? Today's "Three Count" features recapping the Spurs and Thunder as they go into game 5 in a 2-2 series stalemate, Princeton taking home the NCAA Men's Lacrosse championship, and previewing the Knicks and Cavaliers as New York looks to sweep the Eastern Conference Finals. Is trading Jamal Murray the best course of action for the Nuggets to become more flexible with the roster and also add youth and athleticism? 

Today's Memorial Day edition of The Drive kicks off with John Davis and Chad Andrus cross-talking with Dan Jacobs. The guys discuss the collapse of the Colorado Avalanche as they fall behind 3-0 in the Western Conference Final. Are both the Nuggets and Avalanche not built to succeed in the playoffs? Do both teams play too soft? John and Chad debate how much Jared Bednar is to blame for the position the Avalanche are in. Are there no excuses for Bednar with how great of a roster the Avs have? Has Bednar's message gone stale in the locker room? We react to Jamal Murray finally being named to an All-NBA team. Should the Nuggets trade Murray while his value is still high? How have other teams routinely been able to slow down the Avalanche's high-powered offense in the playoffs? 

In hour 4 of The Drive, Zach and Phil take a deep dive into the Avalanche as they get set for Game 2 of the Western Conference Final tonight. We react to the news of Cale Makar being ruled out for the game, and debate who needs to step up for the Avs the most in Makar's absence. Zach shares the history on what a win or loss means for the Avs tonight. Will Jared Bednar's adjustments to the top 3 lines get the Avs' offense going? DenverSports.com's Will Petersen joins the show live from Ball Arena to discuss how the Avs can get to Carter Hart, his reaction to Cale Makar being ruled out of Game 2, and if MacKenzie Blackwood would take over in net if the Avs lose tonight. Will we see a desperate version of the Avalanche tonight? We wrap up the show with the guys sharing bold predictions for the game and their predictions for the result of the game.