Drury tracked down the puck in the neutral zone and chipped it back into the Los Angeles end. His reward was a hard hit from Kings tough guy Jeff Mallott into the boards inches away from TNT analyst Brian Boucher.

Just as Drury offered a two-handed response, Logan O’Connor was flipping the puck over Anton Forsberg’s glove and into the Kings’ net for a two-goal lead 5:50 into the final period of a Game 1 victory at Ball Arena.

“Got the puck there, was just trying to put it in (the offensive zone),” Drury said. “OC’s so fast. I feel like he does that a lot, where he isn’t even in the picture and then all of a sudden, he has the puck. So it’s a great effort by him.

It was a grind-it-out Game 1 for the Avalanche, and a great start to the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs for the club’s “identity line.” O’Connor was the hero, scoring the game-winning goal. It was his first since the 2025 postseason.

In between were 12 long months.

“Super happy to get it out of the way,” O’Connor said. “Felt like our line over the course of the last couple weeks here during the season, we were continuing to build things. Just try to stick with our game plan. For us, our game translates well to playoffs. It¶¶Òõap a lot of simplicity and muck it up and just wear teams down. It was nice to get that one and finish the job off.”

O’Connor had two goals and six points for the Avs in their seven-game series loss to the Dallas Stars a year ago. He was one of the team’s best and most consistent players throughout the epic series.

Then, for the second straight year, he needed hip surgery. He missed the end of the 2023-24 season and the 2024 playoffs because of the first hip issue.

He had offseason surgery to correct the second. The timeline for him to return was early November. But then a second, still undisclosed issue popped up. Weeks went by without the answers he needed or a plan for recovery and return.

It limited him to the final 13 regular-season games, allowing a quick tuneup before the most important part of the campaign.

“I mean, he’s worked so hard,” said Avs captain Gabe Landeskog, who missed three full regular seasons with knee issues. “Obviously, he was able to come back the last month or so, but hasn’t found the score sheet. We’ve just kept telling him to save them. Save them until we really need him, and tonight we needed it, and he put it in. It was great — well deserved.”

O’Connor thought he had his first NHL goal in 358 days a little earlier in this contest. He ripped a shot past L.A. goalie Anton Forsberg, but Drury had been knocked into the netminder by Kings defenseman Drew Doughty just before the puck sizzled by him.

The goal was waved off for goalie interference, and the decision was upheld after the Avs challenged. Undeterred, that line kept working.

Eventually, they were rewarded with another goal from O’Connor, and there was no doubt it would count.

“For OC, I’m really happy for him,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “That’s a long road to get back, and Gabe had gone through (a) similar thing. Being out of the lineup is the worst thing when you’re a player, because you’re just wanting to help and you’re wanting to make an impact. Then you come back and your game’s not going to be 100%. It’s not going to be the top tier right away.

“He’s continuing to work through that to be effective, always committed, always going to work, always going to do everything he can for the team … He’s been really good, and we know he can chip in on the offensive side of things. He did tonight, and I expect he’ll continue to make an impact.”

Depth is a clear advantage for the Avalanche in this series. Colorado’s fourth line exploited that in Game 1.

Drury, O’Connor and Joel Kiviranta were the team’s best regular trio, generating 62.3% of the expected goals while on the ice together at 5-on-5, according to Money Puck.

Bednar’s trust in his “identity line” at this time of year is a staple of the best Avs teams during his tenure. It’s not surprising that while others around him have changed, O’Connor always seems to end up on that line by mid-April.

“It’s hard work and relentlessness,” Bednar said of his fourth line. “They spent the bulk of their time playing in the offensive zone and pursuing pucks. I think that’s exactly what we need from them. We saw it from them last year in the playoffs … It’s a highly-effective line that I can trust against anybody, and that’s all because of the hard work and commitment that they have.”

“A little anxious to get going, but the 1 p. m. game, you don’t really have much (time) to think about it,” Avs goaltender Scott Wedgewood said after stopping 24 of 25 Los Angeles shots in a 2-1 Stanley Cup Playoffs victory. “So just get up, prep, and go. And once we got a few shots on and settled down, the crowd was into it. First TV timeout, I was talking to (fellow goalie Mackenzie Blackwood), just kind of felt like my heart rate was a little high. But once we got going, it just felt like normal again.”

The nicest thing you could say about Wedgewood — “Wedgie” to the Ball Arena faithful who chanted his name repeatedly Sunday — was that his first-ever career NHL postseason start, at age 33, looked pretty much like one of his normal, composed regular-season outings in burgundy and blue.

For the most part, he kept the action in front of him. If not for a funny bounce in the third period, he would’ve kept every puck in front of him, too. Nineteen even-strength saves, five power-play saves, no muss, no fuss.

“We have so much trust in him and he’s super-composed,” Avs forward Logan O’Connor said Colorado’s now-official 1A net-minder. “Super-positive all the time, whatever the circumstances are. And we know if we have breakdowns, which are going to happen, he’s got our back throughout that. And just seeing his game grow, (as a) late bloomer, having the best season he’s had in his career right now at the perfect time for our team has been special to watch.”

Wedgewood, sitting to O’Connor’s left on the Avs’ makeshift stage, lit up at that one.

“Thanks, dude,” the goalie said.

It couldn’t have happened to a nicer bunch of bums. And chippy bums, at that. The Kings went into this series with a lot of bark and almost no offensive bite. Los Angeles let its elbows do most of the talking Sunday, and the message was clear: We have no chance in heck to beat you clean, so you wanna throw down some gloves and dance?

Clarke shoved O’Connor at least once. With eight minutes left in the contest, Kempe bonked Cale Makar in the back of the head, then went to the box for mixing it up with captain Gabe Landeskog, who came to Makar’s defense, shortly thereafter. At least it served the top-seeded Avs a taste of what’s to come — eight straight weeks of knuckle sandwiches.

“Absolutely, the intensity and physicality (are) going to ramp up as the rounds go on here,” O’Connor, the Mayor, a scrapper and poacher built for playoff hockey, noted after scoring his first goal since last April 26. “We know teams are going to want to try and push us out of games. We feel as though we can push back just as hard. I think that’s one great thing about our group, is the versatility within our locker room.

“You want to go (the style of a) 1-0 game, we like to think we can beat you at that. Track meet, if it happens, we’ve got that. Physicality, we have guys that are willing to step up. You know, as that happens, just try not to get frustrated with it. Teams are going to try and get under our skin, get under Cale (Makar’s) skin, whatever it may be, and I think it’s just on us to continue to respond with playing the right way, being disciplined, and continue to just stick to our game plan without getting frustrated.”

With that, Wedgewood leaned into the microphone and grinned.

“Not much more I can add,” the goalie deadpanned.

He added more than enough between the pipes. Wedgewood had to be on his tootsies early — the first 11 minutes were a snooze-fest, by and large. At the 9:06 mark of the opening stanza, the two teams had combined for as many giveaways (seven) as shots.

“I think just the atmosphere of it, you know, regular season-wise, you can get into some lulls throughout the game,” Wedgewood noted later.

“It’s always like you’re engaged, you’re going, and then once the TV timeouts or whistles go, I kind of flush it. Almost rely on (flushing) it, kind of like a golf shot. Each play, you’ve got something coming at you to dial in … And (that) just seems to kind of keep my brain from just being on all the time and getting exhausted and then also being completely out of it.”

Sunday proved more labor than love. The Kings have only two paths for pulling off an upset in this series: Either boring the Avs to death while hoping goalie Anton Forsberg can somehow steal a win; or goading multiple Colorado stars into assault and battery charges, and suspensions, along the way.

Los Angeles spent most of Sunday slowing the tempo and trying to drag a faster, better team into the mud with them. With 4:31 left in the second period, Nathan MacKinnon wristed a low line drive from the right faceoff circle that Forsberg parried but couldn’t corral. Enter Artturi Lehkonen, who swooped into the crease to clean up with Doughty still riding his back, remaining upright and curling the rebound around Forsberg’s right leg to finally light the tamp. When No. 62 cocked his head back to scream in chorus with the crowd, it felt like sweet relief as much anything else.

“They’re a tight-checking team, physical team, good team,” Avs scrapper Jack Drury said. “But we are, too.”

And until the final three minutes, Wedgewood met the moment as a No. 1 Cup goalie. With five minutes left in a scoreless first period, No. 41 turned away an Artemi Panarin wrister. With 3:11 left in a scoreless first period, The Avs veteran stoned a Trevor Moore wrister, then hung in while Doughty missed an open net.

“WED-GIE!”

“WED-GIE!”

“WED-GIE!”

Forty seconds into the second stanza, Wedgewood produced another nice save on a wrister by hard-charging Alex Laferriere. He held firm on the Kings’ first power play following the Avs’ unsuccessful replay challenge midway through the stanza.

“WED-GIE!”

“WED-GIE!”

“WED-GIE!”

As the Avs led 2-0 with 11:13 left in the third, the Colorado goalie found himself literally wedged into his left post while the Kings stabbed at his ankles. Nothing.

“WED-GIE!”

“WED-GIE!”

“WED-GIE!”

And 2.94 goals for the game. Los Angeles also whiffed on two open nets in the first 40 minutes. Luck be a Landy!

“What did you think of Scott Wedgewood’s first NHL playoff start?” Avs coach Jared Bednar was asked.

To this, the stoic Bednar raised an uncharacteristic (and bruised) eyebrow.

“Ever?”

“Yup,” the scribes murmured.

“Didn’t know that.”

“That said, what can you say about his game?”

“I thought he was fantastic,” Bednar replied. “Yeah, did everything he needed to do. Obviously, bigger stakes, more emotion, but played the exact same way that he’s been playing for us all year.”.

Ever the cad, Bednar still wouldn’t commit to saying Wedgewood when asked if 41 would be his starter for Game 2 on Tuesday night.

“Not going to answer that,” the Avs coach groused.

He doesn’t have to. The scoreboard did it for him. There’s a reason the Kings are walking kinda funny into Game 2 on Tuesday night.

Artturi Lehkonen and Logan O’Connor scored, while Scott Wedgewood made 24 saves in his first career Stanley Cup Playoffs start, and the Colorado Avalanche ground out an 2-1 victory in Game 1 of its opening-round series Sunday at Ball Arena.

The Avs, winners of the Presidents’ Trophy and the top team in the NHL since Nov. 1, did not dominate the Kings, who finished 20th in the league standings, as was the consensus expectation. The visitors played well, keeping this game from being an up-and-down affair for much of it.

Wedgewood and the Avs handled their business, albeit with some nervy moments mixed in, and collected a 1-0 lead in this best-of-seven series. Game 2 is back here Tuesday night.

“I’m really happy with how we played, too,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “I think that’s the kind of game you can expect playing the Kings. It’s a tight-checking team. What did they play, 50-something one-goal games and low-scoring games? I’m comfortable with that. I think our team’s comfortable with that.

“Managed the puck well, so our guys played the right way and got the job done tonight. Now we’ve got to go do it again.”

Lehkonen broke the stalemate with 4:31 left in the second period. It was a classic Lehkonen play.

The puck went behind the net, and Lehkonen was there to harass Kings defenseman Drew Doughty’s attempt to rim the puck out of danger. Nathan MacKinnon thwarted said attempt along the wall, then sent the puck at the net. Lehkonen was there again, ready to corral the rebound and slide it past Forsberg.

“Getting the first one is always big,” Avs forward Jack Drury said. “(Lehkonen), I always tell him he’s a net-front savant. He’s so good in front of the net. He won a battle and put it in.”

That wasn’t the first time the puck was behind Forsberg. Colorado thought it had the opener earlier in the middle period. O’Connor ripped a shot from the right circle past the Los Angeles netminder, but it was immediately waived for goalie interference on Drury.

The Avs challenged the call because it was contact with Doughty that sent Drury off-balance into Forsberg, but the no-goal ruling was upheld and the home side assessed a penalty for the failed challenge.

Per the NHL, the review confirmed a ruling in accordance with Rule 69.1 which states, in part, “Goals should be disallowed only if: (1) an attacking player, either by his positioning or contact, impairs the goalkeeper’s ability to move freely within in his crease or defend his goal.”

It’s been a thorny season, to say the least, for the Avs with league rulings on goalie interference, so maybe it was fitting for the first puck in the net this postseason to be a controversial one.

“I saw Jack Drury driving the front of the net, and I saw Doughty make contact,” Bednar said. “Disguised it pretty well, but backs into him, knocks him off his edges into the goalie and we shot in the net. To me, I’d like to see it count. They saw it different, not losing any sleep over it. Kill the penalty and move on.”

There were a lot of tense moments in the opening 35 minutes before Lehkonen’s goal. Colorado dominated the puck for the first 5-6 minutes of this game, but not nearly as much as expected after that.

The Kings had two great chances to steal the opening goal, but both Doughty and Artemi Panarin missed an open net with chances when Wedgewood was down or out of position to make a stop. Colorado also had three chances with the power play, but came up empty.

O’Connor did get his first goal of the 2025-26 season early in the third to give the home side a cushion. Drury sent the puck towards the Kings end as he was heading towards the bench, and after a couple of bounces on the Ball Arena ice, O’Connor was able to track it down behind an unsuspecting Kings defense and then roof an in-tight shot past Forsberg.

It was O’Connor’s first goal since Game 4 of the opening-round series against Dallas last year. He had two assists in 13 regular-season contests this year after missing much of the campaign with offseason hip surgery and then a second undisclosed issue that popped up during his recovery.

His goal was part of an excellent afternoon for Colorado’s fourth line, which included O’Connor, Drury and Joel Kiviranta — not Ross Colton, who had practiced with that group Saturday but became the odd-man out for Game 1.

Panarin ended Wedgewood’s shutout bid with 2:22 remaining in third period. He scored through some traffic with the Kings on the power play and with the goalie pulled.

Joel Armia took a high-sticking penalty with 1:48 remaining to short-circuit any hope of a late Los Angeles comeback.

Wedgewood, 33, became the eighth-oldest goalie in league history to make his first NHL playoff start. He finished the regular season with the league’s best save percentage (.921) and goals against average (2.02) and it was hard to argue with his coach’s decision after this opening act.

“Yeah, just a really consistent presence back there for us,” Avs defenseman Cale Makar said. “He made the saves when we needed him to. Wish we could have helped them out on the one there, but just tough. I thought he played great and helped us out a lot.”

Avalanche vs. Kings matchups: Who has the edge?

Kings: 35-27-20, 90 points; 2.68 goals per game (29th), 2.90 goals against per game (8th)

Avalanche: 55-16-11, 121 points; 3.63 goals per game (1st), 2.40 goals against per game (1st)

Offense

The Avs just missed being the only NHL club to score 300 goals this year, but their 298 was still seven more than Carolina in second and 78 more than the Kings. Colorado hasn’t had its full allotment of forwards together very often since the additions of Nazem Kadri and Nicolas Roy before the trade deadline, but everyone is expected to be ready for Game 1.

It’s the best forward group in the league if everyone is healthy. Nathan MacKinnon led the league in goals and should be a Hart Trophy finalist for the third straight year. Martin Necas collected 100 points for the first time in his career. Brock Nelson fired home 33 goals and formed a dominant two-way tandem with Valeri Nichushkin.

Kadri will likely center the third line and Jack Drury the fourth, but Ross Colton could end up on any of the bottom three lines. Parker Kelly’s 21 goals would be tied for third on the Kings. He could play on the fourth line for the Avs.

The Kings did make a big splash for Artemi Panarin and then added Scott Laughton just before the deadline. Panarin and Adrian Kempe with Azne Kopitar between them is a very nice top line.

Byfield has been hot lately and is a strong No. 2 center. Colorado’s depth should be a massive advantage. Kevin Fiala and Andrei Kuzmenko would make this group look a lot more formidable, but both are injured any may not play in this series.

Advantage: Avalanche

Defense

Cale Makar missed some games with a minor injury, then returned and looked quite ready for the postseason. Will coach Jared Bednar start him with Devon Toews, or will he split them up? Brett Kulak has faced the Kings each of the past four postseasons with Edmonton. He could play with Makar and allow Toews to continue to skate with Sam Malinski, one of the breakout performers of the season.

Josh Manson missed the end of the regular season, but is expected to be ready for Sunday, and to be paired again with Brent Burns. The Avs led the NHL in offense from defensemen for the sixth consecutive season.

Drew Doughty and Mikey Anderson lead the Los Angeles blue line. Doughty is 36 and played the fewest minutes per game of his career. Brandt Clarke is an offensive specialist who the Avs are going to try to pin at his end of the ice. The Kings added both Brian Dumoulin and Cody Ceci this offseason to play in games like this. Colorado’s top forwards will be delighted to see them on the ice.

Advantage: Avalanche

Special teams

The power play has been Colorado’s weak link all season, but it’s been less of one since the Olympic break. The Avs finished 27th with the man advantage … but the Kings finished 28th. And Colorado was 16th at 21.4% with the extra man after the break.

Meanwhile, the Avs’ penalty kill has been consistently elite all season. Colorado finished first in the league on the PK. Los Angeles has the worst penalty kill in the playoffs — 30th overall this season, and last since the Olympic break at 67.9%. The Kings can be dangerous shorthanded, and that’s been an issue for the Avs at times this season.

Advantage: Avalanche

Goaltending

The Avs won the William Jennings Trophy for allowing the fewest goals this season. Scott Wedgewood led the NHL in goals against average (2.02) and save percentage (.921). Mackenzie Blackwood started the year 13-1-1, but has scuffled at times in the second half of the season. Both just missed out on representing Canada at the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Kings goalie Darcy Kuemper was on that Canada team after a strong start to the season. He may not be in net Sunday against his former team, though. Anton Forsberg has taken control of the position, winning five straight starts down the stretch to help L.A. qualify for the playoffs before dropping the finale to Calgary. Forsberg has a .914 save percentage since the Olympic break, while Kuemper has an .867.

We could see all four goalies in this series.

Advantage: Avalanche

Avalanche vs. Kings: 5 storylines to watch

1. Who is in net? The biggest unknown for the Avs is how the goalie situation is going to work. Scott Wedgewood has been the better goalie for a long stretch now, but Mackenzie Blackwood is still the long-term No. 1 goalie for this organization. Jared Bednar has said he will continue to play both guys.

2. Befuddle Byfield? The Kings top line is very good. Quinton Byfield has 11 goals in the past 15 games and centers the club’s go-to shutdown line. This could be a coming out party for him nationally if he comports himself well against MacKinnon and Co. If the Avs can keep him in check and make the Kings a one-line team, that should make this a short series.

3. Corral Clarke? 23-year-old Brandt Clarke is the type of offensive defenseman who can change games. The Kings also try to shelter him with a lot of offensive zone starts. Similar to Byfield, containing Clarke is a path to shutting down the Kings’ offense.

4. Power up? The Kings have some of the worst special teams in the league, in both phases. They’ve also had issues on specials teams during the playoffs the past few years. Colorado’s power play had a great March, but PP1 was in the garage for most of April because of injuries to Cale Makar and Nazem Kadri. This could, even should, be a chance for the Avs to find some success on the power play. And going close to perfect on the PK in the series isn’t out of the question.

5. One trip? These Kings have had a weird year. The coach got fired. They won 35 games. Everyone has counted them out. But … they’ve been better with Artemi Panarin and since Anton Forsberg got hot. They will play all of the motivational cards — nobody believes in us, we have nothing to lose, let’s win one series for Azne Kopitar before he retires. The Avs need to take control of this series early, not let up and make one trip to sunny Southern California, not two.

Avalanche vs. Kings series predictions

Corey Masisak, beat writer:  Once upon a time at another publication, I picked the Kings to win the Stanley Cup in five games. My boss asked how I could pick them in such a short series and my response was “because I can’t pick them in three.” This is that type of series, as long as the Avalanche take care of business early and don’t let the Kings start to believe. The Kings will try to slow game down, drag the Avs down into the mud and make it as coin-flip in nature as possible. They’re going to hope Anton Forsberg stays hot. They have a few standout players, but the Avs are much deeper. It would take a lot of things going wrong for this to be a long series, and catastrophic-type stuff for the Kings to win. Kings won that Cup Final in five games, by the way. And it was over in three. Avs in five.

Sean Keeler, sports columnist:  What better way to start a 2022 nostalgia tour than by waving hello (and good-bye) to old friend Darcy Kuemper in the first round? Chances are the former Avs net-minder won’t play much, unless MacKinnon, Necas & Company batter Anton Forsberg, the Kings’ likely No. 1 goaltender, early. And they could. The Avalanche swept all three meetings this season by an average score of 4.3-1.7 and haven’t posted fewer than four goals in any tussle against the Kings since December 2023. L.A.’s only chance is to muck it up, slow it down, and try to make things as ugly as possible — the Kings feature the lowest-scoring offense of any postseason team at 2.68 goals per game. Context: The Avs averaged 2.36 goals by the end of the second period. Get ‘er done, get ‘er done quick, and rest up for the bare knuckle brawl that’s looming in the next round. Avs in five.

Troy Renck, sports columnist:  The President¶¶Òõap Trophy is a curse. But not in the first round. Not against the Kings. This is an ideal matchup for the Avs to work up a sweat before taking on the Dallas Stars. The Kings failed to manage a point against Colorado this season, outscored 13-5. The Kings received the interim coach boost – 11-6-6 – but they simply can’t score enough to avoid getting swept. Who is going to stop Nathan MacKinnon? Or Marty Necas? Or Cale Makar? No one, that’s who. Avs in four.

Lori Punko, deputy sports editor: The President’s Trophy winning Avs against the 20th best team in the NHL? It should — and most likely will — be a cakewalk for the Avs. Facing the Kings is a gift for MacKinnon & Company, but they need to take care of business and not look past this series to the winner of the Wild-Stars battle. Colorado got healthy at the right time, and if they dominate like they should, the Avs will be the better rested team going into the second round. Avs in five.

Kyle Newman, sportswriter:  Colorado makes an opening round statement: After winning the Presidents’ Trophy, they are in these playoffs to be the first winner of the trophy since the 2013 Blackhawks to also raise the Stanley Cup. Getting Cale Makar back from an upper-body injury that sidelined him for a few weeks down the stretch of the regular season is a boost to a roster already loaded with enough firepower to easily dismantle the Kings. The Avs will take care of business at home for a 2-0 lead in the series, then win a couple on the road to clinch the series by next Sunday in Los Angeles. The Kings put together a nice five-game win streak towards the end of the season, but their porous defense will be no match for the Avs’ top line of Nathan MacKinnon, Artturi Lehkonen and Martin Necas. Expect a lot of Colorado scoring blitzes in this series, as seen in the season opener when the Avs scored three second-period goals in a 4-1 win. Avs in four.

“The Lumberyard” has been so effective this season that Wedgewood actually had a bigger cushion than he realized.

Wedgewood and Mackenzie Blackwood will win the William Jennings Trophy for the 2025-26 season, which is awarded to the team which allows the fewest goals in the season. Goaltenders must play 25-plus games to be part of the award, so the Colorado Avalanche tandem will both have their names on the trophy, which has been awarded since 1982.

“No, honestly it’s super cool,” Wedgewood said. “I mean, getting your name on NHL trophy, regardless of whatever it is, it’s obviously a dream to win something. And to do it with him, with our friendship and story and this team, obviously it’s really cool.”

Colorado entered the final night of the season with 197 goals allowed — 25 fewer than the second-best, the Dallas Stars. The NHL uses the official standings, which include a “goal” awarded for shootout wins and losses. So, officially, the Avs allowed 203 goals in the first 81 games, which was still 23 fewer than the Stars’ official total.

It is only the second time Colorado has won the Jennings Trophy. Patrick Roy was awarded the trophy in 2001-02.

“I like it a lot,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “It was one of our goals at the start of the year. We’ve always been a dangerous offensive team, and we’ve been proud of that over the years. Then improving on the defensive side of it, so we become a stingier and harder team to play against, is like goal No. 1. So that one means a lot, and it’s good for those guys. They’ve both been exceptional for us all year. The team has defended really well and consistently in front of them. I like that award as much as any other one.”

Previously teammates in the New Jersey Devils organization, the Avalanche traded for both goalies in a 10-day span last season. It was the first time in NHL history that a club had traded away both of its opening-night goaltenders before Christmas.

Dubbed “The Lumberyard,” the duo changed the course of Colorado’s goaltending situation immediately last year and have played a huge part in helping the club win the Presidents’ Trophy this season. On the day the Avs traded for Wedgewood, Colorado had the worst save percentage in the NHL.

Since that day, the Avs are sixth overall and will finish first this season.

“It’s really cool,” Avs forward Jack Drury said. “They’ve both played so well all year. It’s really deserving. I think as a tandem, they’ve been really good too. I think having two good goalies is a real privilege, and I think we’re very lucky.”

Wedgewood, 33, has been one of the great stories in the NHL this season. He started 11 of the first 12 games because of a Blackwood injury, and is going to finish the year as the league leader in GAA and save percentage among qualified goalies.

Blackwood, 29, started his season on fire, going 13-1-1 before the calendar flipped to 2026. Both goalies were in strong consideration for Canada’s Olympic team. Blackwood ended up being the first alternate if any of the three picked had sustained an injury just before the tournament.

He has struggled at times since Jan. 1, and it seems likely that Wedgewood will start Game 1 of the club’s opening-round playoff series. But Bednar has made it clear that both will play.

“We’ve got a great team and we control a lot of the play, but we’ve still got to do our job,” Wedgewood said. “It’s not like you just stand out there and you get participation trophies. So to be a big part of it, not just play the bare minimum or anything, I’m proud of it for myself and proud of him. We’ve worked at it all year. We’ve improved our games. We battled each other. One of the things you cherish from this sport for a long time is just winning something and being at the top of the league.”

FOOTNOTES: Bednar will return to the bench Thursday night after missing the past two games because of injuries sustained when a puck hit him in the face Saturday night against Vegas. Several regulars will sit out the season finale. Nazem Kadri (finger) and Josh Manson (undisclosed) have missed games beyond this one with injuries, but Bednar said he expects everyone on the active roster to be available for Game 1, which the NHL announced is Sunday at Ball Arena, time to be determined.

The Colorado Avalanche, smarting from four straight losses at home, were locked in from the opening shift Monday night and obliterated the rebuilding Calgary Flames, 9-2, at Ball Arena.

Nazem Kadri had a pair of goals against his former club. Superstar Cale Makar had three assists before not playing in the third period because of an upper-body injury. Nathan MacKinnon, Martin Necas, Parker Kelly and Jack Drury all had three-point nights as well and Colorado dominated this contest in all facets.

“I want to win. It’s as simple as that,” Kadri said about blowing out his former team. “I don’t care where I’m at. I want to win. That’s no disrespect … when the puck hits the ice, I want to make an impact on winning.”

Scott Wedgewood made 27 saves, including a few spectacular ones just for good measure, after the outcome was long decided. The power play was ruthless. The depth guys were relentless. It was a performance reminiscent of the Avs’ bulldozing run to the top of the league earlier this season.

With the win, Colorado’s magic number to win the Central Division and the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference is down to eight points, either gained by the Avs in their final nine contests or lost by the Dallas Stars in their last eight games.

Makar took a heavy hit from Flames forward Adam Klapka in the second period, and the television broadcast showed him speaking with one of Colorado’s athletic trainers on the bench and wincing in pain after that shift. Still, Makar took two more shifts before the end of the period, including one that ended with an assist on MacKinnon’s goal, before he didn’t play in the third.

Avs coach Jared Bednar did not have an update on Makar after the game.

The Avs have had some dominant performances this season, but the first 20 minutes on Monday will go on the short list of best periods of the season. It was a shooting gallery in the Calgary end.

Colorado finished the opening period with 42 shot attempts, 26 shots on goal (tied for second-most in franchise history) and 12 high-danger scoring chances, per Natural Stat Trick. The Avs also had a 5-0 lead.

“We wanted to have a good start,” Bednar said. “In the last eight home losses, we’ve only scored first twice. Getting on the board early and jumping on teams has always been a hallmark of our successful home record. We addressed it … and I thought our guys did an excellent job.”

Jack Drury got the party started just 2:31 into the first. He finished a shift full of offensive pressure by banking the puck off Calgary starter Dustin Wolf and in from below the goal line. It was his 10th goal of the year, and it’s the first double-digit season of his career.

Colorado’s power play has improved this month, and the first period became the pièce de résistance. Calgary took a pair of penalties 40 seconds apart, and Kadri scored twice in 66 seconds.

Martin Necas set him up 23 seconds into the 5-on-3 to make it a 2-0 lead, then Kadri pounced on the rebound of a Brock Nelson shot to push the lead to three goals just 7:37 into this contest.

Kadri’s goals were Nos. 13 and 14 on the power play this month. Nathan MacKinnon added No. 15 late in the second period. The Avs had not scored more than eight goals with the man advantage in any other month this season.

Colorado reached the Olympic break with the NHL’s worst power-play percentage at 15.1%. The Avs are 15-for-48 this month, which is 31.3%. That is third in the league since March 1.

“It’s buy in. It’s execution,” Bednar said. “There’s a list of probably eight or 10 things there that if you make them 5% better, it affects your power play in a big way.”

The second line scored a highlight-reel goal to make it 4-0 before the halfway point of the period. Nelson’s long outlet pass started it, then captain Gabe Landeskog finished it with his 11th goal of the season after a slick pass from Valeri Nichushkin.

That was all for Wolf, who allowed four goals on 16 shots in just 9:19 of action. The fourth line kept rolling with another tally late in the period. Parker Kelly tipped a Makar shot past former University of Denver goalie Devin Cooley at 15:50 of the third.

Kelly now has 18 goals this season. His previous career high was eight, which he scored each of the past two seasons. Kelly has already signed a four-year, $6.8 million contract extension that starts next season, but 18 goals (and 31 points) with a $825,000 cap hit have made him one of the bargains of the 2025-26 campaign across the NHL.

“I think we’re all just really connected,” Kelly said of his line. “(Joel Kiviranta) and Jack make my life so easy out there. They definitely make me a better player.”

Colorado’s offensive assault slowed down in the second period, but MacKinnon scored on the power play with 35 seconds remaining.

It picked back up in the third. MacKinnon set up Necas for a one-timer at 6:24 of the third to make it 7-1. Sam Malinski scored on a rush less than two minutes later on a play set up by Kelly and Drury.

The puck came to him, just to the right of what appeared to be a wide-open net. The game was already won, but the third line for the Colorado Avalanche earned a goal on this night. Deserved at least one, if not more.

But just as Drury’s shot cut through the air en route to his ninth goal of the season, Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Arvid Soderblom saved his most spectacular work in a night full of excellence for last.

He snatched Drury’s shot with a desperation lunge to his left.

“I’m sure Jack’s going to have some nightmares about that one,” linemate Parker Kelly said. “I told him we don’t want to score to make it 5-1. We want our next goal to be to go up 3-2.

“I’m sure we’re all a little frustrated. You feel like you’re working so hard to get the puck back. You’re working hard to forecheck hard. You’re doing well in the d-zone. It¶¶Òõap everything but getting on the score sheet. You’ve got to keep going with it. At the end of the day, you’re playing good hockey, so it¶¶Òõap not the end of the world.”

The Avs overwhelmed the Blackhawks at United Center. The final score was 4-1, though Soderblom prevented it from being twice that many.

Colorado’s third line had one of the most dominant nights any trio has had in an NHL game this season. Drury, Kelly and Joel Kiviranta set up residency in the offensive zone Friday night.

They peppered Soderblom with scoring chances. They bullied a young Chicago team into turnovers, rarely spending much time at their own end of the ice.

“I feel like it was right from the start, from the opening draw,” Avs center Brock Nelson said. “They get it in there, and they’re kind of banging around, and they get a couple good looks. Working low to high, causing havoc on the forecheck, getting pucks back.

“I think that¶¶Òõap the recipe for all the lines at times. They may be the best at it more often than not. All three of those guys work extremely hard. I thought they were really good down low, getting pucks back and grinding it out, finding chances in space to get good looks.”

A cursory glance at a traditional box score wouldn’t reveal the way the Avs’ third line ran the show Monday night. They combined for no points. They weren’t on the ice for a goal.

The underlying numbers were staggering. When Kelly was on the ice at 5-on-5, the Avalanche had 30 shot attempts in 12:28. The Blackhawks had four.

It was 26-4 for Drury, in 25 fewer seconds. It was 22-4 for Kiviranta is just 10:28. All three players had an expected goals for percentage (xGF%) of at least 89.03%.

The league leader in xGF% at 5-on-5 this season is Ottawa’s Jordan Spence, at 61.75%.

“I think that’s just great details by us,” Kelly said. “We’re really pushing to try to finally get one and break through this little seal that’s on the net right now for us, but at the end of the day, just got to look at the process. Since Jack, Kivi and I have been put together, it’s been some pretty good hockey. Definitely a lot of chemistry there. I feel like we’re doing really well at doing what makes our line successful.

“We’re pretty much doing everything but scoring right now.”

Kiviranta leads the Avs, who have played at least 100 minutes at 5-on-5 in xGF% since the Olympic break, at 66.52%. Drury is second, and Kelly is sixth, and they’re all better than 59%.

They’ve been together as a trio recently, thanks in part to all the injuries among the forward groups.

“It’s a relatively simple game there,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “They’ve been really disciplined with the puck. If they have a chance to attack off the rush, they do it. If they don’t, they’re making good decisions and putting it in behind the other team, going after it and they’re extremely hard working. It’s a connected group of forwards.

“They never stop skating, working and competing, and that’s hard to play against. They’re creating a bunch of scoring chances. They’re relied defensively, on the penalty kill. All these guys play on it. So I just think they’re doing a heck of a job setting the tone for us.”

Kelly, Drury and Logan O’Connor were together at the end of last season as Colorado’s fourth line. Bednar gave them the “identity line” seal of approval. He’s a coach who loves finding a trio of trusted forwards who play exactly the way he wants a defense-first unit to do so.

O’Connor hasn’t played all season after offseason hip surgery, and then a second issue that has popped up during his recovery. He’s been skating for weeks now and could make his season debut at some point on this road trip.

Once everyone is healthy, it sure looks like Drury will center the fourth line and Kelly will be next to him. The last forward spot might come down to Kiviranta or O’Connor, depending on how he looks once he shakes the rust off.

Regardless, the Avs’ “identity line” was great in the Dallas series last year, and they look ready to roll in the postseason this Spring.

“I think the four of us call all do that,” Kelly said. “Doesn’t matter who it is, what night it is. Next man up mentality. I think we’ve done a good job of building trust with our line. I feel like maybe we could play against any line in the league. I think when “OC” is back and healthy, it¶¶Òõap going to be a four-man line for sure.”

That means Jared Bednar is going to spend the final weeks of the regular season tinkering and experimenting. The Avs traded for Nazem Kadri and Nicolas Roy, but key forwards Gabe Landeskog and Artturi Lehkonen are both week-to-week with injuries.

Both Kadri and Roy were added to fortify what is now the best collection of centers in the NHL, but that doesn’t mean either, or both, is always going to line up in the middle of the ice. Case in point, Kadri’s return to the Avs lineup came on the wing, next to Nathan MacKinnon and Martin Necas in a 3-2 shootout win Sunday against the Minnesota Wild.

“No Gabe. That’s it,” Bednar said of Kadri playing on the wing. “I want him to play with our top-end guys, and in order to do that for me, he’s got to play on the wing right now.

“I started him and put him with MacK and Marty (to) see how it looked. And I liked the way it looked. I thought they were dangerous right from the get-go at the start of the game, and created a lot of dangerous scoring chances, so thought I’d leave them together.”

Kadri and MacKinnon teamed up for Colorado’s first goal. Roy, who split time during the afternoon between center and wing, scored the game-tying goal in the third period.

Toss in Logan O’Connor, who hasn’t played all season after offseason hip surgery and another undisclosed injury that popped up during his rehab process, and Colorado is missing three forwards who could be in the top nine come playoff time.

Kadri took line rushes during warmups with Valeri Nichushkin and Brock Nelson, but Bednar wanted to start the fan favorite in his return and just stuck with it.

“I haven’t played wing in years, actually,” Kadri said. “When I found out about that, I knew I had to be a little bit sharp (Sunday). I don’t mind playing it. … Playing with those guys, they make it easy on me. We were able to have some chemistry, make some great plays.”

The permutations for Bednar are plentiful. The lead in the Central Division and the Western Conference is getting closer to insurmountable. Colorado leads Dallas by seven points and Minnesota by 10, with 20 games to play and contests in hand on both clubs.

That means the environment is primed for experimentation. When everyone is healthy — or if the Avs are fortunate enough to get everyone healthy together — the forward group should be downright terrifying.

Will the Avs roll out MacKinnon, Nelson, Kadri and Roy at center? Could Kadri or Roy play on the wing, with Jack Drury slotting in as the No. 4 center?

Necas, Lehkonen, Nichushkin and Landeskog have been the club’s top four wings when they’re available all season, but could Ross Colton, Kadri or Roy end up on the second line with one of the big four on the third unit to further balance out the group and make it even tougher on opposing coaches trying to pick and choose matchups?

“I think it gives us flexibility,” Bednar said. “Like, if someone is having a bad night, it’s our coaching staff’s job to recognize that and move somebody around. We want to be dangerous throughout our lineup.

“If we want to go with MacK, Nelly, Naz down the middle, they can play with good wingers that can help create offense and score and still check other teams’ top lines. I think we’re going to have some really good options as we get into it and we’ll just keep experimenting a little bit here through the regular season.”

Kadri has been here before, knows the system and many of his teammates and therefore should have a pretty easy transition. It’s a different situation for Roy.

He was a versatile player for years with the Vegas Golden Knights. That’s clearly the way Bednar wants to deploy him. The coach noted Roy’s time spent as a bottom-six center but also in more offensive roles on the wing with the Golden Knights.

“For myself, I’m just going to try and be the same player as I always have (been),” Roy said. “Not the most flashy out there, but I try to be a little bit of everything, do everything right. I’m really excited.”

The Toronto Maple Leafs had a different plan for Roy. He was used in an extreme defensive role in Toronto, starting more shifts in the defensive zone than he has at any point in his career.

It may take him a little time to re-adjust to different expectations while learning the nuances and tendencies of both the system and his teammates.

“I think he’s trying to figure it out,” Bednar said. “Systematic stuff, playing safe, being responsible. I think that’s kind of his mentality, and it’s my job to help drive a little more offense out of him, get him skating and being impactful on both sides of the puck.”

Just a few hours before the Avs came back from two goals down to defeat the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center, Colorado made the biggest move of trade deadline day and brought a Stanley Cup champion home. The Avs traded for Nazem Kadri, who had to leave after winning the championship in 2022 but is back to help his old pals try to win another.

“It’s very exciting,” Avs captain Gabe Landeskog said after the 5-4 shootout win. “He’s a world-class player. He had 35 goals last year and continues to produce. He’s a gamer. We know that from the past. I love the guy, so it’s super exciting to bring him back into our room.”

Colorado had a successful lead-in to deadline day. Avalanche management had already checked three items off the wishlist:

• Brett Kulak added size, improved defensive solidity to the back end
• Nicolas Roy as the new No. 3 center
• Nick Blankenburg as the new No. 7 defenseman

The Avs were already happy with their newfound center depth. Then, they added Kadri at the buzzer.

Now, Parker Kelly is the No. 6 option at center, while having a career-year playing mostly on the wing. He was the club’s No. 3 option at center for a big chunk of last season, before Jack Drury arrived ahead of Roy and Kadri.

“It adds a guy we know really well.” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “We’ve won with him before. It’s exciting. The guy’s got a lot of friends still on the team. He’s excited to come back. I’m excited to have him back. It’s another impact, dynamic player that you can put in your roster.

“We’ll see how it all sorts out eventually.”

Kadri was the No. 2 center behind Nathan MacKinnon when the Avs steamrolled through the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Now, the Avs have Brock Nelson, who already has 30 goals in 61 games, in that spot. Kadri could be the No. 3 guy, with Roy shifting to the wing.

Or that could be reversed. One of them could have the chance to fill in on one of the top two lines while Artturi Lehkonen is out with an injury.

“Super happy,” MacKinnon said. “Obviously, we’re pumped to have Naz back. It’s exciting for the fans, for this organization, all of us in this room. I think we needed a little bit more game-breaking, a little scoring punch we might have missed last year in the playoffs.”

“Obviously, it’s a lot of pressure on us. We’ve got to perform. Once again, our management’s going all in. We definitely appreciate (management) putting us in a good spot.”

The Avalanche was already atop the NHL standings. It’s been that way for closing in on four months. Colorado was already the betting favorite to win the Stanley Cup.

Then the Avs won deadline day.

“You want to put yourself in a position where your management can go out and try to improve the team this time of year. That’s all you’re looking for,” Lankdeskog said. “We’ve got full faith in (general manager Chris MacFarland) and our staff to put the best team we possibly can on the ice. That’s something they’ve done. It gives us quite a bit of power through the middle and flexibility.”

It was an interesting scene Friday night in downtown Dallas. The two best teams in the NHL were on the ice for warmups, but both clubs were missing their most recent additions ahead of the deadline, plus a key Finn (Lehkonen for Colorado, Mikko Rantanen for Dallas).

Meanwhile, Kadri was speaking to the media via Zoom, excited about the homecoming. The Avs are hopeful that Kadri will be in Denver by Sunday morning, and it’s plausible that he could be in the lineup at Ball Arena against the Minnesota Wild.

“Knowing that I’m coming back to Colorado is just a dream come true,” Kadri said. “The situation they’ve put themselves in, and just me being able to tag along and add, I cannot wait.

“It’s surreal. It feels like deja vu all over again, and nostalgic, to say the least.”

The Avs traded a 2027 first-round pick and a 2026 fifth-rounder on Thursday to the Toronto Maple Leafs for Nicolas Roy, a 6-foot-4 center who has five goals and 20 points in 59 games this season.

“Nic Roy is a really, really good third-line center,” TSN analyst Craig Button said. “Like really good. He is a right-shot center who kills penalties. Nic is hard to play against, really hard to play against.”

Roy, 29, went to Toronto last offseason from the Vegas Golden Knights in the deal that sent Mitch Marner to Vegas. He won the Stanley Cup with the Golden Knights in 2023. Roy had between 13 and 15 goals and between 31 and 41 points each of the previous four seasons with Vegas.

The third center position has been a need for the Avalanche this season, after Charlie Coyle was traded to Columbus in June. Jack Drury, Ross Colton and Parker Kelly have all spent time there over the past two seasons, but coach Jared Bednar prefers Colton and Kelly on the wing and Drury as the No. 4 center.

Roy has one more year left on his contract with a $3 million cap hit. Drury, who has eight goals and 21 points this season, is a restricted free agent this offseason.

Always a defense-first center, Roy’s usage has tilted even more in that direction with the Maple Leafs. He has started the fewest percentage of shifts in the offensive zone of his career, and his o-zone faceoff percentage is also the lowest.

Assuming there isn’t another move by the deadline tomorrow afternoon, the Avs will enter the playoffs with Nathan MacKinnon, Brock Nelson, Roy and Drury down the middle.

“Put Nate aside. Big, strong Brock Nelson on the second line. Big, strong center now in your third-line spot,” Button said. “Now you’re imposing yourself. Where does an opponent have any chance to take what I would call a breather? That’s how you build your team to go for two months and compete for a Stanley Cup.”

This is the fourth straight season Colorado has shaken up the center depth chart just before the deadline. The Avs added Lars Eller in 2023, who was centering the second line by the end of the playoffs. They traded away Ryan Johansen and welcomed Casey Mittelstadt and Yakov Trenin in 2024.

A year ago, the Avs made a blockbuster move for Nelson, then less than 24 hours sent Mittelstadt to Boston in a package for Coyle. Colorado now has all four of its center under team control through at least next season, though the Avs still need a new contract for Drury.

“I think Chris (MacFarland) is shrewd,” Button said. “He’s so sharp with everything he does. He acknowledges, ‘Hey look, this isn’t working, so let’s move forward.’ He did that with Casey Mittelstadt, with Charlie Coyle.

“He’s so good at dealing with reality.”

The first-round pick going to Toronto is top-10 protected. If it somehow fell in the top 10 next year, it would become an unprotected 2028 first-round pick. Colorado has three picks in the fifth round this year — the Leafs will receive the lowest of those three once the draft order is set.

Colorado has been mentioned as a possible landing spot for a bevy of centers leading up to the deadline, including ex-Avs players like Nazem Kadri, Ryan O’Reilly and Coyle.

“$3 million and for next year, too?” Button said of Roy. “Now you’re not locking into three years at $7 million. Naz is great. I’m not trying to knock Naz at all, but the calculation has to be … you have him at 35 years of age for three years at $7 million left on his contract.

“Nic has this year and next year at $3 million? That’s a pretty sweet deal to me.”