Sean Keeler: Friday, when you toss in the snow and the USWNT? So cool. Literally. Saturday? Electric. Sunday? TCB. As in, Take Care of Business. And, by golly, the Avs better. When it comes to the first two rounds of the playoffs, there’s more pressure on Bednar to not get upset, because a.) He’s been here longer and everyone’s opinion on the big guy — pro or con — is pretty well set in stone by now; b.) You’re the No. 1 seed; c.) Bednar’s contract is up after next season. The Kings are the kind of first-round opponent the Avs should dispense of quickly — but they’re also the kind that are going to make you absolutely work for it. The Kings are going to hit you late. Hit you early. Hit you coming off the dang bus. Ugly hockey with a hot goaltender is Plan A for any underdog, and Bednar has to prove for the next eight days or so that he can win 3-2, 2-1, 1-0 kind of slugfests. So far, so good.

Renck: Outcomes microwave expectations. The Nuggets shot poorly and still smashed the Timberwolves in Game 1. It cemented the notion that Denver is capable of reeling off 16 victories over the next two months. But it is not likely. Having to go through the Spurs and Thunder creates a path more suited for a mountain goat. This is the first reason Adelman has less at stake. The second? Injuries provided him cover all season. The Nuggets secured the No. 3 seed because of his dynamic offense and ability to help role players reach their potential. But if Denver loses to the Spurs, for instance, it will be viewed as a disappointment, not a crash out. The same cannot be said for Bednar if the Avs fail to reach the Stanley Cup Finals.

Keeler: The outside noise will be louder for whatever the Nuggets do (or don’t do) this spring. The road’s tougher. The tension’s higher. Adelman’s regular season had more twists and turns than Nikola Jokic’s over 30 now, and everybody knows we’re unlikely to see his kind of NBA greatness in Denver gold, for this long, ever again. Josh Kroenke loves all his assets equally (wink), but let’s also be real: He’s a hoopster, not a puck head. The highest-up in KSE have the last word on Nuggets business. When it comes to the Avs, they’re more likely to defer to Joe Sakic and Chris MacFarland and admit they know what they don’t know. Unlike the end of the Michael Malone Era, Bednar’s led a comparatively calm, steady ship. Sakic digs that. C-Mac digs that. So do Josh and Stan.

Renck: Bednar has shown growth this season. He seems more willing to experiment, and demonstrated common sense by sticking with Scott Wedgewood in goal. Management has always exercised patience with Bedsy. But fans will not. In the recent ESPN top 50 ranking of players in the postseason, the Avs featured three in the top 10 — MacKinnon (first), Cale Makar (fourth) and Martin Necas (10th). And Wedgewood came in at No. 34. It is impossible to have this kind of star talent and steady third-and-fourth-line grinders and not be favored. Bednar is under more pressure, but must remain aggressive. Adelman, in some ways, has nothing to lose after the first round. Bednar must see his situation as everything to gain.

Keeler: And as much as we harp on Joker’s window, the Avs have long since pushed all their chips to the middle of the table. They’re bringing nine players who are 31 years or older into the postseason grind. Gabe Landeskog is 33. Naz Kadri is 35. Brent Burns is 41. If it’s not now, is it never? Should Bedsy get bounced before the second round, Stan Kroenke might have no choice but to change horses in a race he’d prefer to leave alone.

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����ap 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.

Here’s the full schedule and how to watch each game as the Avs embark on their 2026 playoff run starting Sunday at Ball Arena.

Avs vs. Kings playoff schedule

Game 1: 1 p.m. Sunday, April 19, Los Angeles at Colorado, ALT, TNT, truTV, HBO MAX (Final: Avs 2, Kings 1)
Game 2: 8 p.m. Tuesday, April 21, Los Angeles at Colorado, ALT, ESPN (Final: Avs 2, Kings 1)��
Game 3: 8 p.m. Thursday, April 23, Colorado at Los Angeles, ALT, TNT, truTV, HBO MAX (Final: Avs 4, Kings 2)
Game 4: 2:30 p.m. Sunday, April 26, Colorado at Los Angeles, ALT, TNT, truTV, HBO MAX
*Game 5: TBD Wednesday, April 29,  Los Angeles at Colorado
*Game 6: TBD Friday, May 1, Colorado at Los Angeles
*Game 7: TBD Sunday, May 3, Los Angeles at Colorado
*If necessary

Sam Malinski scored in regulation for the NHL-best Avalanche, who have won three of four overall and seven straight road games.

Connor McDavid scored his 48th goal for the playoff-bound Oilers, who have lost four of five. Edmonton fell two points behind first-place Vegas in the Pacific Division.

McDavid leads the league with 134 points and needs one more to become the seventh player in league history to reach 135 at least twice. The others are Wayne Gretzky (12 times), Mario Lemieux (five), Bobby Orr, Phil Esposito, Marcel Dionne and Steve Yzerman.

Scott Wedgewood made 30 saves for Colorado, and Edmonton’s Connor Ingram also stopped 30 shots.

In the shootout, McDavid and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored in the first two rounds for Edmonton, and Valerie Nichushkin and Martin Necas replied for Colorado. Wedgewood then stopped a wrist shot by Jack Roslovic, opening the door for MacKinnon’s game-winner.

The Avs were missing Nazem Kadri (finger), Cale Makar (upper body) and Josh Manson (upper body) as they prepare for the playoffs.

The Oilers remained without forwards Leon Draisaitl and Zach Hyman, although both resumed skating with the team on Monday.

Necas was held scoreless and still needs one point to reach 100 for the first time. Only four Avalanche players have ever hit the century mark — Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg, MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen.

Up next

Avalanche: At the Calgary Flames on Tuesday.

Oilers: Host the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday.

___

AP NHL:

Much of Jared Bednar’s to-do list over Colorado’s final four regular-season games involves injury management ahead of the postseason.

He just probably didn’t think he would end up on the list.

The Avalanche coach left the home bench early in the third period of Saturday night����ap 3-2 overtime loss to the Golden Knights after getting hit in the right cheek with a puck lifted off the ice by Las Vegas winger Keegan Kolesar.

Bednar doubled over after getting hit in the right side of his head as top-line forwards Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog, Artturi Lehkonen and others all turned to check on him.

After a few moments, Bednar was helped down the tunnel by training staff with a towel pressed over his right temple and head.

Bednar did not return to the bench area for the final 16 minutes, 39 seconds of regulation or overtime.

The Avs fell in overtime, 3-2, when the Golden Knights’ Jack Eichel drilled a wrist shot past Avs goalie Mackenzie Blackwood.

Bednar is “fully alert and fully conscious,” a team spokesperson said after the game, but was set to be transported to a local hospital for a CT scan and further evaluation.

“Obviously I hope he’s OK,” captain Gabe Landeskog said. “That was a scary situation.”

Vegas locks up playoff berth against No. 1 seed

Two nights after securing the President����ap Trophy and rendering their final four regular-season games academic, the Avalanche took the ice Saturday night as the hockey undercard in the state.

Moments before the puck dropped at Ball Arena, the crowd went wild as the jumbotron showed the DU Pioneers finish off a 2-1 national championship win over Wisconsin out in Las Vegas.

Unlike the Pios, who searched for offense much of the night before finding a late flurry, the Avs generated scoring chances early and a first-period lead when Devon Toews hammered home a power play goal 9 minutes, 17 seconds in.

Bedar said Thursday he and the staff would consider how to handle playing time and minutes down the stretch after clinching the Western Conference’s No. 1 seed and every other advantage out there to be had.

For this night, he settled on letting his guys play and at least one inched toward a career milestone. The Golden Knights, meanwhile, had plenty to play for and locked up a playoff spot with the win.

Martin Necas tallied point No. 99 on the season when he assisted on Toews’ opening goal. He needs one more to crest 100 points for the first time in his career.

Vegas leveled the game on a Mark Stone power play goal later in the first period and took a 2-1 lead early in the second before Colorado defenseman Nick Blankenburg scored his first goal in an Avs sweater since being acquired at the trade deadline last month.

With most of its regulars skating but two key pieces still out — Cale Makar missed his sixth straight game due to an upper body injury and Nazem Kadri a second straight due to a finger issue — Colorado generated more scoring chances through the first two periods than Las Vegas.

Among the best: Logan O’Connor skating in alone shorthanded on Golden Knights goalie Carter Hart but getting stopped at the doorstep.

It’ll still go down as a good Saturday for O’Connor, a former Denver University alum whose college team won its 11th title and whose campus went wild just south of Ball Arena.

Landeskog said there were periods where his team “dominated” but also periods where “they were in our zone. I liked our d-zone coverage at that point. Kept them, for the most part, to the outside. I liked our start, first period, quite a bit. They got kind of a fluky bounce, nice play by Stone to tap that one down to himself and put it in. There was good and there was not-so-good. There’s definitely things we can improve on, but overall a competitive game.”

Blackwood started in the net for Colorado and, after the back-to-back goals across the first intermission, settled into a rhythm. He made a series of high-quality stops in the third period and finished with 26 saves on 29 Vegas shots.

After Bendar left the bench, assistant Dave Hakstol took over most duties while fellow assistant Nolan Pratt communicated heavily with Colorado’s defensemen.

It provided quite a wrinkle in what otherwise shaped up to be a straightforward final week of the regular season.

“Certainly it’s a little unnerving,” Pratt said. “It’s scary when pucks are flying in there. It happens all the time and it was unfortunate tonight. It takes a second to recalibrate and get back to it.”

Now three games remain before the playoffs. Vegas is a possible, albeit unlikely, first-round opponent for Colorado, which knows its destiny even as a glut of teams jockey for position down ballot.

Bednar had said he hopes Makar will be back on the ice for at least some regular-season minutes, though at this point it remains to be seen whether that will happen during an early week road swing through Edmonton and Calgary or perhaps Thursday back in Denver for the regular-season finale against Seattle.

In addition to Bednar catching an errant puck, defenseman Josh Manson left the game with an upper body injury, the team announced during the third period, and did not return.

Pratt did not have an update on Manson, saying he’s still being evaluated.

The Avs beat the Flames 3-1 on Thursday at Ball Arena, securing the Presidents’ Trophy and home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs. MacKenzie Blackwood stopped 29 shots before finally yielding a goal late, while Gabe Landeskog, Martin Necas and Nathan MacKinnon all lit the lamp in a game that was not as close as the score indicated.

This is the fourth time that Colorado has claimed the honor for the most points in the NHL’s regular season, joining the 1997, 2001 and 2021 teams. Only one of those teams, the ’01 squad, ended up winning the Stanley Cup.

Of the 37 previous teams to win the Presidents’ Trophy since its inception in 1986, eight have gone on to win the Stanley Cup, with the most recent being the 2013 Blackhawks. So the work for the championship-or-bust Avs — who clinched the Central Division title and the top spot in the Western Conference with a win in St. Louis on Tuesday — is far from over.

“It’s not the trophy we’re looking for,” an even-keeled Necas said from a Colorado locker room short on any sort of celebration, “but it’s a good start.”

On Thursday, it wasn’t near the shellacking that Colorado put on Calgary in the teams’ last meeting two weeks ago, when the Avs scored five times in the opening period to cruise to a 9-2 win. But once again, the Avs were in command for most of the night.

Colorado dominated the possession and chances early, recording the game’s first eight shots on goal. The Avs finally broke through in the waning minutes of the period, taking advantage of a power play with a goal by Landeskog with just over a minute left.

On Wednesday, Landeskog was nominated by the Colorado chapter of the PHWA which is presented annually to the player who “best exemplifies perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey.” Fresh off that honor, Landeskog took a tic-tac-toe pass from Necas and MacKinnon, with the latter finding Landeskog wide open on the weak side of the net for an easy-money 1-0 lead.

Landeskog echoed Necas’ sentiment, noting that winning the Presidents’ Trophy can only mean so much for a group that has had tunnel vision on raising the Stanley Cup. The Avs’ captain added that he believes this year’s team is “more experienced than that (2021 Presidents’ Cup team), and hungrier than that one.

“It obviously means we’ve had a great regular season and we’re the top team after 82 games, but at the end of the day going into the playoffs, it doesn’t really mean much,” Landeskog said. “Everybody is going to start fresh, 0-0, and you get a chance to prove yourself again.

“It fuels us knowing that we’ve won a lot of hockey games in a lot of different ways, because I think that’s important to remember.”

In the second, Colorado added to its lead with a slick goal by Necas. Off assists from MacKinnon and Brent Burns with about five minutes left in the period, Necas skated his way through the heart of the Calgary defense, splitting a pair of Flames defenders before beating a sprawling Dustin Wolf on the top right shelf.

The play left Wolf facedown on the ice in disbelief for a few moments and gave Colorado a 2-0 lead.

With his assist to Necas, MacKinnon moved into third all-time on the franchise’s single-season point list, passing Peter Stastny’s 124. MacKinnon holds the team’s all-time record, with 140 points in 2023-24, and the Hall of Famer Stastny is second with 139 with Quebec in 1981-82.

“(MacKinnon) has been dominant for us from the very first game, and I expect that to continue (in the playoffs),” Landeskog said.

In the third, the Avs defense cinched down and allowed Calgary very few legitimate chances to get on the board. The Flames finally scored with just under three minutes to go, as Tyson Gross found the net in a six-on-five scenario with Wolf pulled.

With Wolf still on the bench, Gross scored again with 1:29 left, but the goal was wiped off when the Flames were ruled offside after a challenge from the Avalanche. MacKinnon then scored his NHL-best 52nd goal of the season on an empty net with 54 seconds left, setting a new career high.

Colorado has four regular-season games remaining, including two at home against Vegas on Saturday and Seattle on April 16. Avs head coach Jared Bednar said he and his staff will formulate a plan to get Colorado rested and ready for the start of the playoffs.

Bednar says he’d like to see Cale Makar, who has been sidelined for a couple weeks with an upper-body injury, return to action before the playoffs. Meanwhile Nazem Kadri, who is dealing with a finger injury, is “a day-to-day process.”

As for MacKinnon, Bednar says the Avs’ catalyst will be in the lineup if MacKinnon wants to play, and the same thing for Necas.

“We’ve got some guys that have been out of the lineup that I think we need to continue to play, regardless of their stature on our team and how many minutes they’ve played,” Bednar said. “We’ve got some guys that probably could use a break. We’ve got some guys chasing milestones (and awards).

“(In the next couple days), we’ll try to come up with a plan for the last four games, and the last three games for sure, on who we want to rest, how we’re going to do that, and who we can call up (from the AHL’s Colorado Eagles).”

The Avs had just checked off two of their three most-important goals for the regular season in one fell swoop. Colorado clinched the Central Division title and the top spot in the Western Conference with a 3-1 victory against the St. Louis Blues.

It was eight years to the day that Gabe Landeskog and Nathan MacKinnon helped the Avs return to the playoffs by defeating these Blues at Ball Arena in a Game 82, winner-take-all showdown for a golden ticket to the NHL’s postseason tournament. This was a very different postgame atmosphere.

It felt like another Tuesday night in a season full of them. Landeskog even feigned ignorance about what they had just accomplished.

“We’re not all the way there yet,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “The goal for us started with winning the division and the conference (but) we still need another win to get first overall. We’d be crazy not to chase that at this point. It’s important, if you get to where you want to go, you might as well try and get your home ice, especially after a season like this.

“It feels great. I mean, we’re not throwing parades or that kind of stuff yet so, but we’re happy with where we’re at. We should celebrate it a little bit, because it’s a big goal of ours to start the year and we’ve accomplished part of it.”

For a group that has been in Stanley Cup or bust mode for at least the past six seasons, the Avs have kept the focus on what got them here — the process that led to a historic 31-2-7 start, and allows them to lock in and dominate a desperate team with far more motivation to show up and play well on a Tuesday night like this one.

How they played against the Blues was more important than celebrating a season-long accomplishment.

“Our focus has been trying to get our game to a point where we feel really about it defensively and offensively,” Landeskog said. “I really liked our game (Tuesday) night. I thought all four lines checked really hard. We created a lot of scoring chances. In the third period, I though we gave up a little bit too much, but they’re desperate. They’re playing for their lives at that point.”

The Avs are only 20-14-3 since that historic march to 69 points in 40 games. There have been lots of injuries. When two of their top-eight skaters (Cale Makar, Devon Toews, Nathan MacKinnon, Martin Necas, Artturi Lehkonen, Brock Nelson, Valeri Nichushkin and Landeskog) are missing, the Avs are 9-10-3.

When one or none is missing, the Avs are 11-4-0 since the white-hot start. That version of the Avalanche is still in there. Colorado showed it Saturday afternoon in Dallas, and again Tuesday night in St. Louis.

It was the third game in four nights against a red-hot team trying to make a miracle save of its season. The Avs came out and suffocated St. Louis for the first two periods.

“I don’t have to see it for 60 minutes for every game the rest of the way,” Bednar said. “But we need to see it enough to secure our goals and making sure everyone is confident in the way we play and the trust you have in your teammates that you can do it the right way. That’s another big step for us (Tuesday) night.”

Bednar made it clear there is still one more to go. The Avs need some combination of two points gained or two lost by the Carolina Hurricanes to wrap up the Presidents’ Trophy and home-ice advantage through the Stanley Cup Final.

Beyond that, the Avs’ main goals through the final five games will be to get everyone as healthy as possible, and hopefully see a couple of strong outings from Mackenzie Blackwood, who has scuffled recently. There wasn’t a celebratory vibe in the cramped visitors locker room at Enterprise Center, but the Avs know one thing they’ve earned — fewer nights in small, unfamiliar rooms like this one once the Stanley Cup Playoffs begin.

“There’s no do or die for it, but if you have the opportunity, you’re going to take it,” goalie Scott Wedgewood said after another strong start. “Home ice is super important. It’s an advantage. You spend more days at home in between rounds.

“Hopefully that will pay dividends for us.”

The Avs suffocated the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday night, dominating at the defensive end and on the shot clock en route to a 3-1 win at the Enterprise Center. The victory clinches the Central Division title and secures the top seed in the Western Conference during the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

It is the 13th division title since the franchise moved to Denver. It also came eight years to the day since Jared Bednar and this core of Avs players defeated these Blues in Game No. 82 to secure their first playoff berth together at the end of the 2017-18 campaign.

“We set our goals at the start of the year, and we wanted to be on top,” Avs captain Gabe Landeskog said. “That’s a big step. We know it doesn’t mean anything come playoff time, other than we get an extra game at home every series.

“I think the most important thing for us is the way we played tonight. We’re working on our process, working on our game here. It’s going to be difficult playing some desperate teams, but we are tightening things up and making sure we are ready to start fresh when the playoffs start.”

Securing a division title has been a top priority for this club since Day One of training camp, particularly after last season ended with a crushing Game 7 loss in North Texas. Winning the Central means the Dallas Stars, who have been the second-best team in the NHL for much of this season, will have to play the Minnesota Wild, who spent part of this year as the third-best team and remain in the top-seven in the opening round.

Colorado’s first-round opponent remains to be determined, but the club that began the day in the second wild-card spot, the Los Angeles Kings, was in 20th place in the NHL standings — 17 points behind the Wild. The victory also moves the Avalanche to within one point earned or one point lost by the Carolina Hurricanes to clinch the Presidents’ Trophy and home-ice advantage throughout the postseason.

The Avs have been the standard-setter for the NHL this entire season. Colorado has been alone in first place in the NHL standings since Dec. 1, and had one of the best starts to a season in league history when the Avs went 31-2-7 in their first 40 contests.

That version of the Avs hasn’t shown up quite as consistently in the second half, at times in part because of injuries, but it did Tuesday night on the banks of the Mississippi River.

“We’ve been a little up and down here recently,” Bednar said. “Didn’t like our game against (Vancouver), loved it against Dallas. Didn’t love our game defensively the other night against the Blues, but tonight I really liked it. We are proving that we can do it when we set our minds to it, which is really important.”

Valeri Nichushkin, returning from a one-game injury absence, scored twice for the Avs. Scott Wedgewood had another night with long stretches of light work, but made 18 saves and is now 12-5-2 in 2006. Colorado is 9-9-0 since Jan. 1 when Wedgewood is not the goalie of record.

Colorado had arguably its most dominant period of the season to begin this contest. The Avs opened a 2-0 lead that could have been much worse. They outshot the Blues 17-2, and the shot attempts were 33-7. Per Natural Stat Trick, Colorado generated more than 96% of the expected goals in the opening 20 minutes.

“Those games as a goaltender, they’re still going to throw pucks at you, and everything still feels dangerous,” Wedgewood said. “But if you’re not facing the odd-man opportunities we gave up against Vancouver and the other night (against St. Louis), it’s a lot easier to not have to make desperation saves and keep things in front of you.”

Nichushkin had the first one, a tip-in of a Devon Toews shot at 16:11. Martin Necas had the second with 28 seconds left in the period.

It was Necas’ 37th goal of the year. Nathan MacKinnon had a great chance to score earlier in the shift before setting Necas up with an assist for point No. 123. That is the fourth-most in franchise history, behind his 140 two years ago and two seasons from Peter Stastny (124 in 1982-83 and 139 in 1981-82).

Nichushkin added his second of the night and 17th of the season 1:40 into the middle period while shorthanded. Brock Nelson set him up, cutting to the net, and Nichushkin put his stick between his legs for a highlight-reel goal.

“I liked his last handful of games,” Bednar said. “He’s looking like the old Val again. … It was a little bit of a continuation of what he’s been doing. He could have had three or four tonight. I really liked the way he played.”

FOOTNOTES: Nazem Kadri left this game in the second period with an upper-body injury. He blocked a shot with his hand in his final shift. … While Nichushkin and Nicolas Roy returned to the lineup, Cale Makar did not play. Bednar said he will likely miss a few more games, but is still expected to return before the playoffs begin.

Think back to before the Olympic break. The Avs struggles reached a nadir when they went 0-for-17 with the extra man leading into the break, dropping Colorado to dead last in proficiency at 15.1%.

What was an obvious refrain? They need to shoot the puck more.

Well, the Avalanche had the second-most shots on goal in the NHL on the power play from the start of the season until the Olympic break. .

Part of the reason for that is Colorado earns a lot of power plays because of its style of play, so often the percentage-based stats and the accumulation numbers don’t quite line up. It was also, in part, because the Avs had so many power plays that lasted the full two minutes, which gave them more opportunities to put shots on goal.

The biggest issue wasn’t the quantity, but the quality of those shots, with a little bit of bad luck and other minor variables mixed in.

So what changed, and when? There have been several factors that led to a big improvement in March, when the Avs went 15 of 48 on the power play — the third-best rate in the NHL at at 31.3%.

“The change was long before the break,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “The detail within the change was consistent, kind of before the break.”

Getting more quality shots

So what’s different since the break? Nazem Kadri is here, and that’s part of it. But a much bigger part is … the guys on PP1 are just executing better. They’re completing more passes, making better decisions and finding more high-quality looks.

“I have to lean like … the details, the execution, the hunger, the mindset, attitude, buy-in – to me, that’s on the players’ side of it,” Bednar said. “So 70/30 execution side of it, and all those things I just mentioned over like a change in plan since the break.”

Aesthetically, the Avs power play clearly looked better in the few games after the Olympic break. The fresh start after some time apart clearly helped. It looked more consistently dangerous, like a power play featuring a top-3 collection of talent in the NHL naturally should.

The goals started to come shortly after. Kadri’s arrival has given the club a defined first unit when everyone is healthy — Cale Makar, Nathan MacKinnon, Martin Necas, Brock Nelson and Kadri. There’s no obvious net-front guy, like Gabe Landeskog or Valeri Nichushkin, but Kadri has become something of a poacher for the Avs on the opposite side of the ice from MacKinnon and Necas.

Mikko Rantanen brought the hammer from the right circle and scored some insane redirect goals near the side of the net. Kadri’s involvement has been more varied, but in him and Nelson, the Avs have found a balance of lefties to complement the MacKinnon-Necas duo.

Here is a look under the hood at the Avs’ power play and where it ranked in some key metrics, before and after the Olympic break (through March 31):

All stats are from or

The number of shots is about the same, but the quality is up across the board. Colorado’s expected numbers being so high is a big change — even in past seasons when the Avs’ power play was among the top 5-10 in the league, their expected numbers often lagged behind.

The reason? MacKinnon, Makar, and Rantanen, plus a net-front guy or two, can outshoot expected models with raw finishing talent.

If we look at the per-60-minute numbers, that weeds out Colorado’s ability to rack up volume solely from having so many power plays. It’s a better indicator of sustainable success.

The per-60 numbers are slightly lower than the volume numbers, but they still represent a dramatic improvement. That is much closer to the sweet spot the Avs are trying to find.

They have guys like MacKinnon, Makar and now Necas who can turn a so-so scoring chance into a goal with a nasty shot. But finding better looks more consistently has made everyone more dangerous.

How does that look at the individual level? The differences in both who is shooting and how much are noticeable.

Here’s before the Olympic break, both at the team level (on ice shot attempts per 60 minutes) and individual (shots on goal per 60 minutes):

As a reference, the Florida Panthers are the best team in the league over the course of the full season at 115 shot attempts per 60 minutes on the power play. The Vancouver Canucks are 10th at 106.72.

Now, here’s after the Olympic break, for the guys who have settled in on PP1:

Obviously, the shot attempt numbers are outstanding. MacKinnon’s is a little less because he stays out with PP2 a lot, and most teams’ second unit won’t put up the same numbers as the top group.

Kadri has been a big help, likely as much for his work with puck retrievals and his passing as upgrades over Victor Olofsson, who was out there because he can really shoot it (it just didn’t go in very often for him in Denver).

One of the biggest adjustments, though, is Necas. He’s putting way more shots on net. That has helped in a couple of ways. For one, he can really, really shoot it, which leads to more goals. A more spread-out approach is also helping to open up space for everyone.

It will be interesting to see whether more opposing teams try to pressure Necas and take him away, or whether the track record of MacKinnon and Makar keeps PKers from giving them more space.

“I think we have the talent there to be a top power play in the league,” Bednar said. “And it’s not a short stretch anymore, either. So they’ve been doing good things and getting rewarded for it. Every goal we get and every discussion we have, we expect it to sort of keep growing.

“And there’s a lot of good conversations between those guys on like, hey, did you see this. Let’s try that. And then it’s just kind of starting to click and come together for us.”