FORSBERG

Occasional setbacks -- like their Game 7 conference final meltdown -- don't bother the Avs. They got to the playoffs without center Peter Forsberg, after all, and now he's raring to go. His return will open things up for center Joe Sakic, who slumped to 79 points. Forwards Chris Drury, Milan Hejduk, Alex Tanguay and Steven Reinprecht round out a talented top six. Rob Blake and Adam Foote are toughest 1-2 defensive combo. Goalie Patrick Roy erases mistakes.

	The Big Question
	Q: With Forsberg back, where is the weakness? Depth on defense. Peter Forsberg, Joe Sakic, Chris Drury, Milan Hejduk and Alex Tanguay (even though he's coming off an off-year) are still offensive guys. The Avs can roll some good talent out there that all teams would give their eyeteeth for. Their top defenseman are fine, but it's the depth from No. 5 through No. 7 that could be lacking. You need that seventh guy. Even though he's not going to dress every day, you need a reliable guy to fill in, because someone is always hurt on defense on every team. Rob Blake, Adam Foote and Greg de Vries can only play so much, so depth is the area they'll need to address. -- Brian Engblom
	Good: Peter Forsberg is a likely first-round fantasy pick after last season's playoff performance, but don't forget how his return impacts a player like Chris Drury. Colorado ranked fourth in power-play efficiency but just 15th in power-play opportunities, the result of a defense-first approach that killed Drury's numbers. Bad: Losing Darius Kasparaitis makes the Avalanche more popular, but it's not good for their defensive fantasy value. Adam Foote continues to improve on the offensive end, but he can't stay healthy, missing 115 games the last four season. Playing even more minutes to cover for inexperienced teammates won't help him stay in the lineup. -- Eric Karabell
	Top Prospect
	Phil Sauve, G The son of former NHL goalie Bob Sauve probably does not have much to prove at the AHL level. He had a solid rookie season, then a great second season for the Hershey Bears.
	Minors Outlook
	Hershey Bears Coach Mike Foligno orchestrated a remarkable midseason turnaround last year and has a solid core of players back from that team. The Bears will be moving into the new Giant Center and would like nothing more than to inaugurate it with another Calder Cup. -- Bill Ballou

Forwards The thought of Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg, Milan Hejduk, Alex Tanguay, Chris Drury and Steve Reinprecht flying unmolested through the neutral zone is enough to give any defenseman -- or goalie or coach - nightmares. The Avalanche have speed to burn and enough finishers to make sure each trip into the offensive zone isn't a total waste. A veteran set of grinders in Stephane Yelle, Mike Keane and Eric Messier keeps opponents on their toes when the third and fourth lines are out. And just when you think they've traded away all their depth - a la the Blues - along comes Radim Vrbata and Vaclav Nedorost. Western Conference Position Ranking: T1st Defensemen Considering Darius Kasparaitis was in town for only 11 regular-season games last year, the league's leading defense will hardly miss him. Rob Blake is still one of the top-five offensive defensemen, Adam Foote is arguably the best stay-at-home type and Greg deVries is coming off his best season ever. After that trio, there is an obvious drop off down to serviceable. Western Conference Position Ranking: 4th Goalie Without Dominik Hasek, Patrick Roy regains his status as the best goalie in the Western Conference. And while he turns 37 before the start of the season, he's coming off the best two seasons of his Hall of Fame career. David Aebischer is also able to stand out from the team defense - he coupled a 1.88 GAA with a .931 save percentage last season. Western Conference Position Ranking: 1st

Rankings: 1st Overall
Forwards | Defensemen | Goalies

RECORD: 45-28-8-1, 99 points Rank: T4th overall T2nd West 1st Northwest Playoffs: Lost to DET in West finals Home: 24-12-4-1 Road: 21-16-4-0 2001-02 results 2001-02 statistics 2002-03 schedule 2002-03 roster OFFENSE DEFENSE GOALS FOR/AVG. Overall: 212/2.59 (18th) Home: 109/2.66 (18th) Road: 103/2.51 (15th) POWER PLAY Overall: 18.0/62-344 (5th) Home: 16.8/28-167 (14th) Road: 19.2/34-177 (3rd) GOALS AGAINST/AVG. Overall: 169/2.06 (1st) Home: 80/1.95 (2nd) Road: 89/2.17 (1st) PENALTY KILL Overall: 87.0/41-315 (2nd) Home: 86.5/20-148 (12th) Road: 87.4/21-167 (3rd) STATS LEADERS GOALS Joe Sakic (26) Chris Drury (21) Milan Hejduk (21) ASSISTS Sakic (53) Rob Blake (40) Alex Tanguay (35) POINTS Sakic (79) Blake (56) Tanguay (47) PENALTY MINUTES Scott Parker (154) Rick Berry (60)* PLUS/MINUS Greg de Vries (+19) Blake (+18) GAA (MIN. 20 GP) David Aebischer (1.88) Patrick Roy (1.94) SAVE PERCENTAGE Aebischer (.931) Roy (.925) * - no longer with team