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Roy ‘not nervous about Xs and Os,’ says slumping Avs need to be better individually

Patrick Roy

Patrick Roy

AP

At 1-4-2 and still without a win at home, the Colorado Avalanche have a lot riding on tonight’s game against Vancouver at the Pepsi Center.

At least that’s the impression Patrick Roy is giving, anyway. From the Denver Post:

Patrick Roy really wants this game tonight, and he really wants his players to want it even more. He talked about, essentially, players’ need to look in the mirror and ask themselves how they can be better – and to follow through on that.

At minimum, Roy expects a big-time effort from his troops, win or lose.

Roy has been harping on Colorado’s effort -- or lack thereof -- for most of this season. In fact, he went as far to say the losses aren’t about strategy or playing style, but rather about compete level and preparedness.

“I’m not nervous about the Xs and Os,” he said after today’s morning skate. “Everybody understands the system, everybody knows what we expect. But I think we need to be better individually.”

If you’re wondering which individuals need to be better...

-- Nathan MacKinnon has zero goals and is minus-5 (with a 46 percent Corsi For) through seven games.

-- Jarome Iginla is goalless with just nine shots on net.

-- Gabriel Landeskog doesn’t have an even-strength goal yet and his ice time is under 17 minutes per night.

Roy wasn’t singling any one player out heading into Friday’s action, but did stress the need for players to step up and right the ship.

“I want us to be ready individually tonight,” he explained. “I want our guys to go home this afternoon and think individually what they have to do.”