In the bizarre worlds of the local professional hockey and basketball teams the Avalanche lost a game Saturday, yet became the No. 1 team in the NHL, and, on the Halloween Friday night before, the Nuggets lost a game they should have won, but choked as if they were frightened by Jason Voorhees in a hockey mask.

The Avalanche have won only five of their last 10 games, and they are the worst in the league in overtime defeats with five.

So, how in the wide world and North America do the Avalanche have more points – 19 – than any of the other 31 hockey clubs?

They have dropped one game in regulation. The Nuggets have lost one in overtime and the other in the last second of the fourth quarter.

In road games on Friday night and Saturday night in Las Vegas and San Jose the Avs captured three of a possible four points. They won the first 4-2 with two goals in the third period. Then, after the short trip and a short night, the Avalanche were tied with the Sharks 1-1 after one period and 2-2 after the second and third periods. At last, at 1:48 into the overtime San Jose’s Phillippi Kurashev scored with a dazzling wrister over goalie MacKenzie Blackwood.

The Sharks got two points, the Avs one.

Blackwood was playing in his first game after undergoing off-season surgery in an undisclosed lower body location. He has spent the early section of the season rehabbing with the Colorado Eagles.

Blackwood, acquired last season by the Avs from these Sharks, made his last start May 3 in the seventh game of the playoff series with the Stars. The Avs were eliminated 4-2.

In Blackwood’s absence Scott Wedgewood has been scary good in a mask in goal (7-1-2).

Amazingly, Avs winger Martin Necas scored 41 seconds into the game against the Golden Knights. He added assists on the third and fourth goals. But, even more amazingly, Necas scored against the Sharks 30 seconds into the opening period.

Want more? On Thursday the Avalanche signed the 26-year-old Necas to an eight-season, $92 million contract ($11.5 million annually).

The Avs acquired Necas from the Hurricanes in the hurricane-like trade Jan. 24 by giving up Mikko Rantanen, who would become an unrestricted free agent. The Hurricanes then passed him on to the Stars, and he had a sensational series vs. the Avs.

Mikko is getting $500,000 a season more than Martin.

The Avs are ecstatic. Necas has nine goals and eight assists this season.

Meanwhile, after only one game of the ersatz in-season NBA tournament the Nuggets can kiss the Cup good-bye for the third straight year.

The championship contenders collapsed late in the fourth quarter in their two road games. The second was against a team without its coach – Chauncey Billups, who has been indicted, suspended, publicly condemned and banished back to his home, where he likely watched the upset Friday. His family, friends and faithful followers in Colorado have heavy hearts.

Nobody here could suspect that Park Hill’s Own, the Buffaloes’ and the Nuggets’ former spectacular star player and a recent Basketball Hall of Fame inductee would be involved in illegal gambling and cheating actions with despicable partners. And nobody knows what the outcome and ramifications will be. As someone who has been close to Chauncey for 36 years, I can only worry and wish.

The Blazers stymied the Nuggets in the first of four NBA Cup first-round games – with the Rockets, the Warriors and the Spurs ahead. The Nuggets will lose one and be scratched.

So far the Nuggets have been absurdly good and incredibly bad. Adelman and his reshuffled staff of assistants have been just as inconsistent.

The Nuggets haven’t been as fortunate as the Avs with their major acquisition – Cam Johnson. Michael Porter Jr., who was cast away, is averaging 21 points a game, while Johnson is at 8.7 (39.4 percent accuracy) starting all five games. He’s been too tentative.

The Joker his own self is trying too hard to spread the scoring. His point average has dropped to 20.4 , but he’s had four triple doubles and missed the fifth by one assist. He’s emphasizing assists (10.8, first in the league) and rebounds (14.4, second). Considering the Bizarro circumstances, the Nuggets must turn thoughts from Cup to title trophy, and the Avalanche can continue considering Cup champs.