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Avalanche's Johnson: 'We're the worst team in 20 years'

Michael Martin / National Hockey League / Getty

When former head coach Patrick Roy bolted on the Colorado Avalanche just weeks before the 2016-17 season, many wondered how they'd adjust.

To sum it up 72 games into the season: not well.

Colorado's dead last in the NHL, an astounding 20 points behind 29th-place Arizona. The Avalanche rank 30th in goals per game (1.94), goals allowed per game (3.29), and goal differential (-98).

So, what happened?

"If I had an answer, I'd give it to you," defenseman Erik Johnson told Terry Frei of the Denver Post. "It's tough to put into words the way this season has gone."

The Avalanche have amounted a paltry 43 points this season so far. To put that into perspective, last year's 30th-place club, the Toronto Maple Leafs, finished with 69, a bar not even possible for Colorado to reach. Furthermore, the 2014-15 Buffalo Sabres, who basically admitted to tanking in the Connor McDavid sweepstakes, still reached 54 points.

"I think up and down the organization, everything needs to be assessed, and I'm sure it will," Johnson said. "We're the worst team in 20 years and that falls on us first and foremost, the top players on this team."

The Avalanche are in fact on pace for the lowest point total (48) since the Atlanta Thrashers finished their debut season with 39 points in 1999-00.

Johnson added: "There obviously needs to be changes somewhere and I'm sure (general manager) Joe (Sakic) will do that because he's not oblivious to what's gone on here."

Sakic is expected to orchestrate some changes this summer, especially after neglecting to deal Matt Duchene and Gabriel Landeskog - two valuable pieces heavily rumored to have been on the trade block.

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