Dave Hakstol, early in his second season with the club, is leaving for the head coaching position at Arizona State, the school announced Thursday. Hakstol replaced longtime Avs assistant Ray Bennett after the 2024-25 season ended with a first-round playoff loss to the Dallas Stars.

There were multiple reports Monday morning from media outlets whose primary focus is college hockey that Hakstol would be the next Sun Devils coach. The Avs confirmed that morning that Arizona State had asked for and received permission to speak with Hakstol, but he was at Colorado’s practice Monday and traveled with the team to Dallas for a game Tuesday night at American Airlines Center.

Hakstol, who has a track record of success at the college level, is taking over a troubled program. Arizona State is still reeling from an incident where Matthew Mayich, 21, collapsed and remains on life support. An attorney for the family has said it is unlikely that Mayich will recover.

The university put coach Greg Powers on leave in late September, but there have been numerous negative reports about how the program has handled the situation. One assistant on Powers’ staff, Mike Corbett, has been operating as the acting coach. Another assistant, Alex Hicks, was not with the team during its first home weekend series of the season.

Hakstol’s son, Brenden, is a student at Arizona State and plays on the school’s club hockey team.

Before spending 11 of the past 12 seasons in the NHL — first as a head coach for Philadelphia and Seattle and now as an assistant with Colorado — Hakstol was one of the premier coaches in college hockey. Hakstol, 58, spent four years as an assistant at his alma mater, North Dakota, before leading the program 2004-15. He went to seven Frozen Fours in 11 seasons with North Dakota.

His brief tenure with the Avalanche has been a mixed bag, with one obvious flaw. Hakstol was hired to coach the forwards and the power play. His work, particularly away from the puck, was lauded while helping the Avs become a much better defensive team in 2025-26.

The club’s failures on the power play are at least in part why he was hired — Bennett was in charge of a group that went 3 for 22 against the Stars in a stunning seven-game series defeat. And the situation did not improve under his watch.

Colorado had finished between fifth and eighth in the NHL in power play proficiency for five consecutive regular seasons (2021-25) before the postseason collapse against the Stars. The Avs’ power play was even No. 1 in the league from the day the club traded Mikko Rantanen to Carolina for Martin Necas and Jack Drury through the end of the 2024-25 campaign.

But it broke against the Stars, and Hakstol was not able to help fix it.

Colorado was a war machine in every aspect of hockey during the 2025-26 season except with the power play. The Avs led the league in goals scored, fewest goals allowed and penalty-killing prowess en route to the Presidents’ Trophy and a franchise-record 121 points.

That was in spite of a power play that finished 27th in the NHL, at 17.1%. The Avs also allowed a league-worst 13 shorthanded goals, and their goal differential while playing on the man advantage (plus-32) was better than only three teams.

The power play scored four times on opening night, but three of those were scored by the second unit and one with a two-man advantage. Colorado’s top unit has not scored this season in seven games and has allowed three shorthanded goals.

Fixing the power play remains at the top of Colorado’s to-do list this season, and a new assistant coach will now be spearheading that effort.

Colorado had two goals disallowed against Casey DeSmith in a 3-2 shootout loss at Ball Arena. The Avs collected three points from this back-to-back set against the rival Stars.

Scott Wedgewood made his second start of the season and finished with 20 saves.

“I liked our response in the third period,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “Every time we play these guys, it’s a close game. It’s a hard-fought game.

“We came up a little bit short, but the overall effort from our guys two nights in a row was pretty solid.”

Dallas took the lead with back-to-back goals after Colorado seemed in control for much of the contest. Old friend Mikko Rantanen made a great play to set up Miro Heiskanen for a goal at 15:03 of the second period.

Arttu Hyry scored shorthanded on a breakaway just 80 seconds in the third to put Dallas ahead 2-1. It was the third shorthanded goal the Avs allowed in seven games to start the season, after yielding an NHL-worst 13 goals while on the man advantage last season.

Dating back to the start of last season, the Avs have allowed 16 shorthanded goals — four more than any other team in the league. They’ve also yielded just 39 goals while shorthanded, which is three fewer than anyone else.

Brock Nelson tied it up midway through the third. He pounced on a rebound from Artturi Lehkonen, who had been stuck out on the ice for a shift that lasted 1:49. It was Nelson’s third goal of the season.

It took three tries, but the Avs struck first.

Captain Gabe Landeskog redirected the puck at the edge of the crease after Nazem Kadri sent it in his direction from the left circle at 4:55 of the second period. The sequence started with Sam Malinski intercepting an outlet pass and keeping the puck in the offensive zone.

Colorado put the puck behind Dallas goaltender Casey DeSmith twice in the opening period, but both goals were disallowed after reviews. Jaden Schwartz finished a beautiful tic-tac-toe play in the opening two minutes with a deke and backhanded tuck past Smith, but the Stars challenged for offsides and were successful.

Landeskog had a goal taken away midway through the first. Schwartz took a shot just seconds after Stars captain Jamie Benn left the penalty box that went off DeSmith, off Landeskog and in the net. But a league-initiated review determined the Avs captain used a kicking motion to propel the puck across the line.

“It’s a little frustrating,” Bednar said. “First one is offsides just a hair, as close as I’ve seen. I don’t love (the second call). We can agree to disagree. I don’t know. (Landeskog) is skating on the second one and puts his foot down and it hits him. I don’t see a kicking motion there.”

The Avs also hit the iron behind DeSmith twice in short order in the third period. Gavin Brindley, recalled earlier in the day and making his season debut, whipped a wrist shot past the goalie that hit both posts but caromed out. A little more than a minute later, Kadri flipped one off the left post from in tight as well.

These two teams met Tuesday night in Dallas. Martin Necas scored twice, and Nathan MacKinnon fought for the second time this season in a 3-2 Colorado victory.

FOOTNOTES: Brindley played because Zachary L’Heureux (upper body) and Nicolas Roy (lower body) were both unavailable because of injury. L’Heureux missed Tuesday night as well.

Cale Makar returned to the lineup after missing the game in Dallas as well. His wife, Tracy, gave birth to twin boys, Mattie and Rhett, on Wednesday morning.

Martin Necas scored twice, while Nathan MacKinnon had a pair of assists and a bloodied face after his second fight of the season in a 3-2 win Tuesday night against the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center. Mackenzie Blackwood made 24 saves in an impressive bounce-back performance.

These two teams play again Wednesday night in Denver.

“I’m really happy with the result, and I’m really happy with the final 40 minutes,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “I thought we got more competitive as the game went on.

“It was a hard-fought game for this time of year, like the most physical game we’ve played. There’ll be some things to clean for sure and look at for tomorrow.”

MacKinnon dropped the gloves with Dallas center Roope Hintz in the second period. The Avs star was already sporting a scab on his nose from taking a stick up high in Winnipeg, but a Hintz punch connected with MacKinnon’s visor and re-opened the wound.

The last time Colorado was in this building, MacKinnon and Hintz got tangled up in the corner on the day of the 2026 trade deadline. Hintz missed the rest of the season with a torn hamstring, including a first-round playoff loss to the Minnesota Wild.

It was the second fight of the season for MacKinnon, who dropped the gloves with Kings defenseman Brandt Clarke on opening night.

“I think the way we all grew up in the Maritimes, it’s pretty gritty,” MacKinnon said. “I got ran my whole life playing up (against older players), so I think it’s pretty normal.

“I might be done for the year, but I guess you never know. Getting punched is not that fun, but the guys seemed to like it so maybe I’ll do it a couple more times.”

That also was the second fight of the night, and there were some heavy collisions as well. While Colorado and Dallas has become one of the top rivalries in the NHL, their games don’t typically include this much violence.

Fedor Svechkov introduced himself to the rivalry by picking a fight with Radek Faksa late in the first period after the latter landed a big open-ice hit on Jaden Schwartz. Svechkov was assessed 17 minutes in penalties, including two for instigating and a 10-minute misconduct.

“Anytime someone’s willing to fight for the team, that takes jam,” Blackwood said. “It’s not easy to go put your body on the line and go get in a fight with another human being. That’s tough. That takes balls. It takes jam. Everybody appreciates it.”

Both teams played this game shorthanded. Wyatt Johnston was a late scratch for the Stars because of illness, but Dallas was able to replace him in the lineup.

Zachary L’Heureux was a late scratch for the Avs, but Colorado did not have anyone here to replace him with so the visitors had to play with 11 forwards and six defensemen. The Avs were already missing star defenseman Cale Makar, who did not make the trip to be with his wife as she went into labor, and forward Logan O’Connor, who is away from the team after his father died last week.

When Schwartz was serving Svechkov’s two-minute penalty and while MacKinnon was unavailable because of the fighting major and repairs to his face, the Avs had to play with nine forwards.

Artturi Lehkonen opened the scoring at 11:32 of the first period. Josh Manson’s shot went off MacKinnon’s skate and into the slot. Lehkonen was able to backhand it past Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger for his fourth of the season.

Tyler Seguin evened the score at 19:06 of the first with a centering pass that went off Lehkonen and into the Colorado net. Lehkonen was engaged in a net-front battle with old friend Mikko Rantanen while the Stars were on the power play stemming from the Svechkov-Faksa fight.

Necas scored twice in the middle period to push the Avs in front. He had an incredible sequence to help keep possession of the puck and a few seconds later blistered a one-timer from MacKinnon for his third goal of the season.

The Avs had 26 seconds of a 5-on-3 late in the second because MacKinnon drew a tripping penalty while the Avs were on the power play. He was also bleeding again, but the Avs took a timeout and MacKinnon was able to participate in the 5-on-3 and kickstarted a goal-scoring sequence that ended with Necas pouncing on the rebound of a Gabe Landeskog shot for his fourth of the campaign.

Hintz made it a 3-2 game early in the third period. Seguin collected the puck behind the Colorado net and found Hintz cutting into the left circle for a one-timer at 3:17 of the period.

Blackwood made the score hold up, three nights after allowing five goals in a 6-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

“I felt good,” Blackwood said. “Just trying to make a couple adjustments. I thought last game, I was kind of puck watching. They’d have the puck on the boards or a non-dangerous area, and I’d be so focused on that, I kind of would lose track of where the guys in the dangerous areas where.

“Tonight, I tried to play a little more passive when they were on the bad angles and stuff, and just be more aware of where the threats are.”

Joel Kiviranta is back with the Dallas Stars after a three-year run with the Avs, while Samuel Girard should face his former teammates in his old home arena for the first time since he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins ahead of last season’s trade deadline.

Returns and reunions have been a regular occurrence for Jared Bednar and the Avs. There are currently 35 players on NHL rosters who have either played for or were drafted by the Avalanche. Bednar, in his 11th season with the Avs, has coached nearly all of them.

“No. 1, I think of how fluid the league is because when you run a flat (salary) cap for as long as we did because of (COVID-19),” Bednar said. “Players get rewarded and move on. I’ll say this: Part of my job, the way I see it, you’re trying to improve these guys and help them grow their game.

“I’d love to keep all these guys that we coach, but that’s just not the reality.”

Bednar is right — a lot of his former players left Denver for bigger roles and contracts elsewhere. That number is also so high because the Avs have been so active at the trade deadline during the Nathan MacKinnon-Cale Makar era. Prospects have been traded and rental players have been added as short-term upgrades and then moved on.

What if we put together a team comprised solely of former Colorado players? Let’s call ’em the Ex-Avs.

Could a group of Ex-Avs make the playoffs in 2026-27? It would be a deep team but, outside of a certain old friend in Dallas who will hear plenty of boos Wednesday night, a little light on star power.

There are a bunch of options at center. It feels like a roster with a high floor, but also maybe a limited ceiling. A wild-card spot in the Western Conference feels plausible. Competing with Colorado and Minnesota at the top of the Central might be a stretch, but could they finish ahead of a diminished Dallas with a couple of Stars in key roles for the Ex-Avs, or an up-and-coming Utah squad? Maybe.

Here’s what the lineup looks like for the Ex-Avs:

First line

Matt Duchene – Ryan O’Reilly – Mikko Rantanen: The marquee players from three of the biggest trades in franchise history unite on the top line. O’Reilly is the best draft pick after the first round since the Avs moved to Denver. He’ll likely be a really good No. 2 center for someone else by March, but right now he’s a low-end No. 1 center on a Nashville Predators team in transition.

Duchene is hurt right now, but he’s still produced 127 points in 139 games over the previous two seasons. He could slot in as the No. 2 center, but there are lots of guys who can play in the middle on this team. Rantanen remains a world-class player, and he’d be the offensive leader for this group.

Second line

Evan Rodrigues – Charlie Coyle – Valeri Nichushkin : The Ex-Avs might be a little light on the second line, though a healthy, in-form Nichushkin could drive this trio to respectability. Rodrigues didn’t have a great season in Florida last year, but the Panthers were also missing several critical players.

Coyle is an ideal No. 3 center on a playoff team, but he played up in the lineup with the Blue Jackets last year and finished with 20 goals and 58 points. There are several options for his spot, and it’s possible that Calum Ritchie will be the obvious choice as soon as the end of this season.

Third line

Ross Colton – Casey Mittelstadt – Calum Ritchie: Mittelstadt continues to be what he was with Colorado — a talented player who looks like a No. 2 center some nights but ultimately slots as a solid 3C here. Ritchie had a pretty solid rookie season in a depth role for the Islanders last year. He seems like a good bet to be a solid middle-six forward, but whether or not he can become a No. 2 center remains to be seen.

Colton would probably shuffle between the second, third and fourth lines on this team depending on injuries and his often streaky play. So, what he was for three years in Denver, basically.

Fourth line

Alex Newhook – Jack Drury – J.T. Compher: This could be a solid third line. It could also be one of the most productive fourth lines.

All three of these guys can play center, but Drury’s defensive prowess makes him the natural choice. There are some teams that can’t afford to deploy a fourth line that costs nearly $13 million in cap space, but that’s advantage for the Ex-Avs.

Extra forwards

Alex Kerfoot – A.J. Greer: There’s a handful of intriguing options here. If the Ex-Avs were able to slip some of these guys through waivers and stash them with the AHL club, that would help. Other guys who could fit here include Yakov Trenin, Victor Olofsson, Joel Kiviranta, Brandon Duhaime. Heck, Ben Meyers just had a three-point night for Seattle.

We’ll go with Kerfoot for his versatility and Greer after his breakout 17-goal campaign for the very injured Panthers last year.

First defense pair

Bowen Byram – Sean Walker: It’s been a tough start in Chicago for Byram, who will likely be the third-highest-paid defenseman in the league next year behind Makar and the yet-unsigned Quinn Hughes. Pairing him with Walker, who essentially replaced him for the end of the 2023-24 in Denver and then won the Stanley Cup in a top-3 role last year with the Hurricanes, could offer him more help than he’s getting in the Windy City.

Second defense pair

Samuel Girard – Nikita Zadorov: This could be a very solid offense-defense combination for the Ex-Avs. Girard and Byram are finally away from Makar and Devon Toews … but they’d be competing to quarterback PP1 on this team. Depending on the lineup, the Ex-Avs are a little light on physicality and snarl up front, but Zadorov will provide plenty.

Third defense pair

Ryan Lindgren – Drew Helleson: Helleson hasn’t played yet because of an injury and Lindgren is out for a while after being injured against Vegas. When healthy, these guys can form a solid third pairing. Six of the seven guys in this defense corps were either added or sent away just ahead of a trade deadline.

Extra defenseman

Justin Barron: There are four options here, and it’s a “put four names in a hat” situation. Any of Barron, Jack Ahcan, Ian Cole or Conor Timmins could be a decent No. 7 option. Timmins is injured, so the Ex-Avs could stash him on IR for now.

Starting goaltender

Darcy Kuemper: Kuemper had a rough opening night in Denver, but he was a Vezina Trophy finalist two years ago and still helped the Kings to a playoff berth last season.

Backup goaltender

Justus Annunen: Another interesting decision — this could be one of four different guys. Semyon Varlamov is back after a long recovery from injury. Philip Grubauer and Calvin Pickard are also options. We’re going with Annunen, who had a great stretch run last year and could be in line for a bigger role with the Predators if another member of the alumni group, Nashville general manager Chris MacFarland, kickstarts a full-scale rebuild and trades Juuse Saros.

When Nichushkin was available and in form, he was one of the best two-way forwards in the NHL, a massively valuable player on a team-friendly contract. On a team with Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, Mikko Rantanen or Martin Necas, Devon Toews and Artturi Lehkonen, the best version of Nichushkin was the secret sauce. No one else had a secondary star who could dominate games in all phases like Nichushkin.

How does any team replace that, let alone a franchise that needed to send him away for salary cap flexibility?

“I don’t know that you do,” Avs goalie Mackenzie Blackwood said. “I think there’s guys that will fill roles and take positions, but I don’t think you necessarily get a new Valeri Nichushkin. I think you just kind of fill gaps and make adjustments for what you do or you don’t have. We’ll all miss him. He’s a great friend, great player and I wish him well.”

Availability was a well-known issue for Nichushkin, including at the most critical times during the 2023 and 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs. He was absolutely one of the biggest reasons why Colorado won a championship in 2022, and one of the biggest reasons why the Avs’ seasons ended earlier than expected in 2023 and 2024.

Here’s another wrinkle: While Nichushkin was an elite, two-way force from 2022-25, he had his worst season last year since before the Avs’ championship. The underlying numbers were still great at 5-on-5, and he was a key part of the club’s No. 1-ranked penalty kill, but his traditional stats tumbled — both in the regular season and the playoffs. He finished with 17 goals and 49 points in 72 regular-season games, then two goals and four points in 12 playoff contests.

Given his age — he’ll be 32 years old in early March — and injury history beyond the off-ice issues, maybe the guy who produced per-82-game pace of 35 goals and 71 points from 2022-25 wasn’t coming back for the Avs in 2026-27.

Still, the version of him from last season, which included elite advanced stats playing next to Brock Nelson on the second line, would be very valuable.

“Val’s a bit of a unicorn as an NHL player,” Avs captain Gabe Landeskog said. “I think we all know that. We’ve seen his skill set, seen what he brings to the table.

“(He) became a heck of an NHL player and somebody at the pinnacle of it, was one of the best players for our team in the in the finals. Then … obviously ups and downs, things off the ice that we can’t really relate to what he was dealing with. Nobody really can, right? But I think the organization did a great job of standing by his side, and Val did a really good job of doing the best he possibly could to right his ship, I guess you could call it.”

At his peak, Nichushkin was critical for the Avs in all three phases of the game. How will they attempt to replace him? It might be someone different in each phase.

Even strength

Both Nelson and Nichushkin were considered Selke Trophy candidates last season, in part because they were a terrifying tandem at 5-on-5. The Avs produced 60.33% of the expected goals at 5-on-5 when Nichushkin was on the ice, which was second among forwards with 500-plus minutes of ice time. Nelson was eighth, at 59.0%.

Six days after the Avs sent Nichushkin to Columbus for draft picks, they signed Jaden Schwartz to a three-year, $9.75 million contract. Schwartz, 34, is older and smaller, but two years ago he had 26 goals and 49 points for Seattle.

“It never really crossed my mind,” Schwartz said of replacing Nichushkin. “It’s part of professional sports. There’s going to be turnover. There’s a salary cap. They lost a couple other forwards as well. I’m just focused on this group and myself, and helping out as much as I can.”

Schwartz had 11 goals and 26 points in 50 games last year, including eight goals and 22 points at even strength. Schwartz’s possession metrics were very early in his career, particularly around the time he won the Stanley Cup with the St. Louis Blues in 2019. He’s also had several strong playoff performances, including Seattle’s one foray into the tournament in 20233 (five goals, 10 points in 14 games).

How much of any of that will translate with the Avs? That’s to be determined.

He’s been skating with Nelson and prospect T.J. Hughes in camp.

“Schwartz and Nichushkin are different players, but Schwartz, when he’s healthy, he’s a heck of a player,” Bednar said. “Can we find some chemistry on the second line, third line? Where’s he playing in our top nine? We’re going to use exhibition games. I’ve got some lines and some tentative rosters already laid out for our games.”

There are other ways for the Avs to replace some of Nichushkin’s even-strength production. Nazem Kadri could end up on Nelson’s line. Artturi Lehkonen could score a little more than he did last year. Just having Kadri and Nicolas Roy in the top nine for a full season will help in the aggregate, but whether this group can be as dangerous in a playoff series without Nichushkin will be a question in April.

Penalty kill

It’s possible that Nichushkin will be missed even more on the penalty kill. He was a key part of Colorado’s top-ranked PK last season. Despite his availability issues, the only forward who has logged more total time on the kill over the past four seasons than Nichushkin is Logan O’Connor.

It’s also not just Nichushkin. The Avs also have to replace Jack Drury and Joel Kiviranta.

“Val was a great penalty killer,” Bednar said. “I think we’ve got lots of penalty killers and guys who can play that role. You lose a guy like Drury, too. There’s another big penalty killer. But we have some other guys that have played. (Zachary) L’Heureux penalty killed for Nashville. There’s a few guys I think we can up their role in the penalty kill.”

O’Connor missed a big chunk of last season, so having him back healthy at the start of this year will definitely help. O’Connor, Nelson and Parker Kelly will feature heavily when the Avs are down a man.

L’Heureux took on a big role with Nashville’s kill late last season after the Predators traded Michael McCarron and Cole Smith before the deadline. Artturi Lehkonen, particularly if he’s not on the top power-play unit, is one of the guys who has been a PK regular in the past and could fit as the fifth forward on the depth chart. Nicolas Roy was also depth guy on the PK for Vegas in past years as well.

Power play

One reason for Nichushkin’s drop-off in overall production: His time on the power play evaporated last year. He averaged 2:22 per game with the extra man before Jan. 1 and 1:34 per game after the new year. But it dropped to 1:02 per contest after Kadri arrived.

He had one goal and four points on the power play last season, and just a single assist after Jan. 1. The Avs haven’t done any special teams work during the first three days of camp, but that’s coming this week.

The power play was the biggest issue for most of last season. Will Schwartz factor in at all? Will the Avs start out with MacKinnon, Makar, Kadri, Necas and Landeskog on PP1? Even having the likes of Nichushkin and Lehkonen on PP2 last year didn’t help it become more productive, either.

Trade deadline

There’s one final potential piece of the replacing Nichushkin puzzle — a guy who isn’t on the roster right now. President/general manager Joe Sakic said in July the plan is to try and accumulate cap space throughout the season to have more available at the deadline.

That likely means not carrying the maximum 23 players during the season. It could mean keeping only 21 — 12 forwards, seven defensemen and two goalies.

The number will still fluctuate because of injuries and call-ups, but if the Avs began the season with the 12 forwards who are currently on one-way NHL contracts, they would be projected to have about $6.05 million in cap space at the deadline, .

Even if we assume that number could be a little lower by late February, that would give Sakic and Co. the ability to add an impact forward. Even then, there might be certain parts of Nichushkin’s overall value that will be tough for the Avs to replace.

“Val is a great guy and a good teammate,” Landeskog said. “Somebody that we’ll miss for sure and wish him nothing but the best.”

The Cup has been awarded four times since the Avs prevailed, and every year it has been someone else celebrating. Jared Bednar has been a very successful, process-driven coach, but the lack of a second championship and another surprising playoff defeat last year led to plenty of offseason reflection.

And upon further review, Bednar is ready to make some tweaks.

“I do have intentions of changing my approach a little bit this year because I’ve been with some of these guys for 10 years,” Bednar said Wednesday at Colorado’s media day ahead of the 2026-27 season. “You’re always kind of sort of evolving as a coach.”

Bednar and the Avs have been chasing a second championship to cement their legacy as one of the best teams of this era since the minute they captured the first one … which also ended Tampa Bay’s two-year run at the top of the sport.

The past two playoff exits have been particularly painful. Mikko Rantanen and the Dallas Stars knocked them out with a crazy Game 7 comeback in 2025. The Avs rebounded from that to win the Presidents’ Trophy and roll through the first half of the tournament this past season.

But a four-game sweep by the Vegas Golden Knights left far more questions than answers. What can the Avs do to rebound from it? And what will it take to get back to the top of the mountain?

There’s also a big question specific to Bednar. He’s entering the final year of his contract and, as of Wednesday, there is no extension in place.

“No (update),” Bednar said. ” I’ve talked to Joe (Sakic), and we’re not there yet, so it’s just kind of going business as usual.”

He’s one of five NHL head coaches entering training camp without a contract past this season. None of the others have achieved nearly the same level of success with their current teams.

Bednar is the second-longest tenured coach in the league, behind Tampa Bay’s Jon Cooper. He refuted the idea that his contract situation added any pressure.

“I try to operate like I’m trying to prove myself every day,” Bednar said. “I don’t care if I’m considered one of the top coaches in the league or not. The only thing that I want to make sure is that our players feel like I’m the right coach for this team. That’s it. And management and ownership, obviously. I came into this job trying to prove myself and be the best coach I can be for this team, and I’m still trying to do that on a daily basis.”

Still, the typically loquacious Bednar shifted his response to the question about pressure midstream. He said he initiated the idea to tweak some things about how he approaches coaching this team.

It’s a very similar group to the one that racked up a franchise-record 121 points, led the NHL in both goals scored and fewest goals allowed. There are 17 regulars back from that team, including the top six defensemen and both goaltenders.

“I think there’s a certain amount of trust I have with our team to understand some of the things that I’ve been stressing over the last few years — the analytical side of it, the preparation of our opponent, things that I feel are important and I think they think are important, but I want to try and dial some of that back,” Bednar said. “Spend a little bit more time on our team, individuals on our team, to try and help us improve.”

It’s also clear that Bednar has the full support of the core players. Sakic said as much at the end of last season when he confirmed Bednar would return for an 11th season with the club.

Several of the team’s key figures — Landeskog, Nathan MacKinnon, Devon Toews and Josh Manson — all backed Bednar on Wednesday given his contract situation and despite four straight playoff exits.

“I brought a list,” MacKinnon said in jest when asked if he’d like Bednar to make any changes to how he coaches the Avs. “No, I think with (Bednar) it¶¶Òõap definitely a collaboration. I think we’ll meet as a leadership group, six or seven of us, and talk and chat.

“At the end of the day, it¶¶Òõap on the players to play better. We have a great system. We have great people around. I think (Bednar) has done an amazing job of coaching. He has, it¶¶Òõap one Cup, but it¶¶Òõap still a Cup, and we’ve had a lot of success in other areas as well. I think he’s done a great job.”

Bednar has always been considered a player-friendly coach, particularly for the guys at the top of the roster. That hasn’t always been the case for younger players, though.

In recent years, it’s been a struggle for younger players to earn Bednar’s trust, which has been a mandate before expanded playing time is available to them. Sam Malinski had a breakthrough. Younger, defense-first forwards have done so at times as well.

But the Avs need to develop an offensive-minded young forward or two, and don’t have access to elite talent like they did when MacKinnon, Rantanen and Co. were building towards the 2022 title.

Will Bednar give players like Gavin Brindley and T.J. Hughes more runway to sink or swim at the NHL level? Will his contract status affect how the Avs approach this regular season, particularly if there’s a dip in results at some point?

“It’s a high priority,” Bednar said of developing the younger players. “Just because you’re looking at the age of our team … I’m anxious to see them play and see how they sort of fit into our group. It¶¶Òõap still a tough roster to make, but if those guys are able to get with us and stay with us, we’ve got to put extra work into them. I look at guys like (Zachary) L’Heureux, (Fedor) Svechkov, right out the gate, we’ve got to spend some more time with them.

“Just kind of takes you back to where I was when I first took over with guys like Mikko and (MacKinnon) and some of our young guys and coaching through the American League. It’s part of why I want to change my approach a little bit, spend some more time with individuals, lines, ‘D’ partners. Not just myself, but our whole staff, and trying to improve a little bit that way. Get guys more consistent in their game, give them the attention that they may want, may not, but that they need to try and help our team improve.”

Cale Makar and the Colorado Avalanche delivered the latest shockwave on Friday afternoon. The Avs and their franchise defenseman agreed to the largest contract in NHL history, an eight-year, $163.2 million pact that makes Makar the league’s first $20 million man and keeps him under contract with Colorado through 2035.

“First reaction … wow!” former NHL coach Bruce Boudreau said. “It wasn’t long ago that $163 million to a hockey player would never be thought of. That¶¶Òõap NBA territory, so good for him.”

Makar is widely considered the NHL’s premier defenseman. He has won the Norris Trophy twice, while being named a finalist six times in his first seven seasons. He also won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year and the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the playoffs in 2022, when the Avalanche won the Stanley Cup.

“A unicorn deserves to break the bank,” TSN analyst Jon Goyens said. “He helps you win every night, helps you win Cup(s) and helps you sell tickets and merchandise.”

The path to a spot in the Hockey Hall of Fame is clear, and with good health, Makar will be a first-ballot lock far before this new contract is complete.

“Cale’s career to date is on par with many of the best defensemen to ever play in the history of the NHL,” ESPN analyst Kevin Weekes said. “He’s as great a person as he is a player — transformational. Love that the Avs recognized that from Day 1, and this new contract reflects that amazing partnership between him, the organization and the fans.”

Four different players have held the title “most expensive player in the NHL” since the Carolina Hurricanes lifted the Cup to complete the 2025-26 season. It was Kirill Kaprizov, with his $17 million cap hit, when the season ended.

But the Anaheim Ducks matched a 5-year, $90 million offer sheet for Leo Carlsson from the Philadelphia Flyers in early July. Carlsson, at $18 million, will have the highest cap hit in the league this coming season.

Three weeks later, Macklin Celebrini signed a five-year $94 deal that kicks in next season. His $18.8 million cap hit was set to pace the league, but Makar has already eclipsed him, and Minnesota’s Quinn Hughes could as well.

“Love it for him,” MSG Network analyst Cory Schneider said. “(Makar) is worth every penny and the financial landscape of the NHL world has evolved overnight, so this is the cost of doing business to keep the best player in the world — 1B to Connor McDavid as 1A. Love seeing NHL players signing deals worth $160 million overall too. It’s good for the game.”

Makar and Hughes were in the same situation when the offseason began. They are considered the two best defensemen in the league, and both are entering the final year of their current contracts.

The big difference is that Makar was drafted by the Avalanche and has already forged a legacy in Denver. Hughes was a huge trade addition early last season for the Wild. Minnesota is under immense pressure to convince Hughes to stay, but also doesn’t have the long-term equity with the player.

“I was born 10 years too soon!” said Bryce Salvador, a former NHL captain and defenseman for the New Jersey Devils, who now works for MSG Network. “It’s great to see the league is healthy, and provided the revenue continues to grow, players are going to continue to make more money — as they should.”

In the short term, the Avs have to be elated that Makar is signed and for the maximum eight years. It was hard to imagine Makar’s situation ever reaching a point like Mikko Rantanen’s did, but that memory is still plenty fresh.

There’s at least a handful of players in this league worth $20 million, but there might not be two handfuls. And the Avs have two of them. Keeping Makar with Nathan MacKinnon remains the bedrock of everything. The rest can be figured out.

“Not really surprised,” NHL Network analyst E.J. Hardek said. “I figured it was kind of whatever (Makar) wanted to sign for. Probably pressure as the bar-setter for him to get to a high number. But, he’s a special and very impactful player, so he deserves it.”

Makar’s deal is only $400,000 per year below the maximum he could have signed for — $20.8 million, which is 20 percent of the salary cap ceiling in 2026-27. But he won’t cost nearly 20 percent of the cap in any of the deal.

The cap ceiling is expected to rise to $113.5 million in 2027-28, when Markar’s deal begins. He’ll cost just a shade below 18 percent of the cap in the first year, and then less if the ceiling continues to rise like it has the past few years.

Makar, Celebrini and Carlsson have ushered in a new era of star-level spending. Hughes will soon join them.

It’s clear that Makar being on the roster is valuable at any number. How valuable, by dollars and cents, could depend on how many other defensemen join him and Hughes near the top of the financial food chain.

Zach Werenski, the 2026 Norris Trophy winner, is eligible for a similar megadeal next summer. So is Winnipeg’s No. 1 guy, Josh Morrissey. Miro Heiskanen, Evan Bouchard and Adam Fox are all two years out, along with Calder Trophy winner Matthew Schaefer.

But a lot of the best young defensemen in the league — Lane Hutson, Jackson Lacombe, Moritz Seider, Brock Faber, Noah Dobson, Thomas Harley and Rasmus Dahlin among them — are already locked into long-term contracts and won’t be joining the $ 15-million-plus club until at least halfway through Makar’s new deal.

Think of it like Nikola Jokic. He was absolutely worth $55 million to the Denver Nuggets this past season as one of the best players in the world. But he was even more valuable because 25 players in the league made at least $45 million.

“There are a lot of layers to it,” MSG analyst and 20-year NHL defenseman Ken Danyeko said. “The landscape has changed, as we know. I still think teams have to be careful and not get careless. I know easier said then done. I go by recent history and the balance on teams’ salaries that win Cups — I think that means something.

“Having said that, if there’s a guy you can pay this much, I would think it would be Makar. Best d-man in the league. But for me, that doesn’t mean you pay an above-average d-man $13 to $14 million because Makar set the bar. You have to still draw the line if you are going to have team success.”

The Avs will be on one of the national networks 16 times in the United States after Disney and TNT announced their broadcast schedules Wednesday for the upcoming campaign. That total is ninth in the league and second in the Western Conference behind Minnesota’s 17 appearances. Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins are the co-leaders with 20 national games, along with the Boston Bruins.

Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and the Avalanche set a franchise record with 121 points this past season en route to the Presidents’ Trophy before a stunning four-game sweep by the Vegas Golden Knights in the Western Conference Final.

Colorado’s season opener, Sept. 30 at Ball Arena against the Los Angeles Kings, will be one of seven Avalanche games on TNT this season. Another is the 2027 NHL Winter Classic, which will be on New Year’s Eve at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City against the Utah Mammoth.

The Avs’ first appearance on ESPN will be Oct. 13 at Dallas against Mikko Rantanen, Matt Duchene and the rival Stars. That night is part of the NHL Frozen Frenzy when all 32 clubs will play with games starting at 15-minute intervals to stagger them throughout the night.

Colorado’s lone appearance on ABC will be April 10, when Quinn Hughes and the Minnesota Wild come to Denver for the final game of the regular season.

Here’s a look at when the Avalanche will be on national television this season:

• Wednesday, Sept. 30: vs. Los Angeles, TNT
• Tuesday, Oct. 13: at Dallas, ESPN
• Wednesday, Oct. 14: vs. Dallas, TNT
• Thursday, Nov. 5: vs. Nashville, ESPN+
• Tuesday, Dec. 1: at Nashville, TNT
• Tuesday, Dec. 8: at Philadelphia, ESPN+
• Thursday, Dec. 31: at Utah, TNT*
• Tuesday, Jan. 12: at Pittsburgh, ESPN+
• Tuesday, Feb. 9: at Carolina, ESPN+
• Wednesday, Feb. 17: at Edmonton, TNT
• Sunday, Feb. 28: at Chicago, ESPN
• Monday, March 15: vs. Edmonton, ESPN
• Wednesday, March 17: vs. Minnesota, TNT
• Tuesday, March 23: vs. Utah, ESPN+
• Sunday, April 4: at Minnesota, TNT
• Saturday, April 10: vs. Minnesota, ABC

* 2027 NHL Winter Classic at Rice-Eccles Stadium

Colorado will have back-to-back games just 10 times after the NHL released its schedule for next season on Thursday. Three of them are among the first 10 games and six are before Thanksgiving. The first 84-game slate since before the franchise moved to Denver from Quebec City gets a little less congested after that and includes a nearly week-long holiday break.

The Avs are the reigning Presidents’ Trophy winners, but will be trying to move past a shocking postseason exit for the second straight year after being swept by the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2026 Western Conference Final.

Here’s a look at some of the highlights from Colorado’s 2026-27 schedule:

Sept. 30 vs. Los Angeles — The Avs will welcome the Kings to Ball Arena to start the season. There will be a banner raising, if not the one fans were expecting after such a dominant 2025-26 season. Colorado swept Los Angeles in the opening round of the 2026 playoffs.

Oct. 10 vs. Toronto — Avs fans will get an early look at Gavin McKenna, the No. 1 selection in the 2026 NHL draft, when the Maple Leafs come to Denver.

Oct. 13 at Dallas, Oct. 14 vs. Dallas — Colorado will play four games against each of its seven Central Division neighbors. Half of the matchups with Mikko Rantanen and the Stars are a midweek back-to-back in Games No. 6 of 7 of the season. These two rivals also have back-to-back games on Jan. 22 and Jan. 24, with the latter at Ball Arena.

Oct. 16 vs. Pittsburgh — We’re running low on Nathan MacKinnon-Sidney Crosby matchups. The two friends will also see each other on Jan. 12 in Pittsburgh. This probably isn’t Crosby’s last trip to Denver, but it could be. Landon DuPount, the expected No. 1 pick in the 2027 NHL draft, will also be in town this weekend. Michigan plays the University of Denver at Magness Arena on Oct. 16 and 17.

Oct. 25 at Nashville, Nov. 5 vs. Nashville — A couple of early-season matchups with the Predators, who now include many more people with Avalanche ties. Chris MacFarland left to become Nashville’s president and general manager in June, and he traded for both Jack Drury and Ross Colton.

Nov. 27 at Minnesota — A Friday matinee the day after Thanksgiving, this will be the Avs’ only meeting with the Wild until March. Colorado and Minnesota will play three times in the final 13 contests of the season. The Avs handled Quinn Hughes and the Wild in five games during the second round of the 2026 playoffs.

Dec. 1-8 at Boston, Detroit, N.Y. Rangers, N.Y. Islanders, St. Louis — This is the longest road trip of the Avs’ season, and also the silliest one geographically. Boston to New York City is one of the shortest flights of the season, or a train ride. Instead, the Avs will go to Detroit in between. And then have a Long Island-St. Louis back-to-back that will be one of the longest in club history, though the game against the Islanders is in the afternoon, at least.

Dec. 12 vs. Washington — This is almost certainly the last time the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer, Alex Ovechkin, will be in Denver. It should be quite the farewell tour for Ovechkin this season, and the Capitals loaded up this summer to try and make it a memorable one. This game also kicks off the first of two five-game homestands.

Dec. 18 vs. Carolina — The fourth game of that homestand will feature the 2026 Stanley Cup champion Hurricanes and their lone trip to Denver.

Dec. 31 at Utah — The marquee game on the NHL’s calendar — the 2027 Winter Classic at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City. The Avs have to play a home game on Dec. 29, but should get to practice at the football stadium the next day before the outdoor game on New Year’s Eve.

Jan. 2 at Vegas, Jan. 4 vs. Vegas — Going straight from the outdoor game to back-to-back tilts with the club that ended their dream season could be interesting. The Golden Knights will have a new coach and like the Avs had to do some salary cap gymnastics this summer, but they should be one of the top teams in the Western Conference again.

Feb. 15 vs. Columbus — The Avalanche will play Valeri Nichushkin and the Blue Jackets on Nov. 3, but this will be the first game back in Denver for him after being traded in June. Expect the memories of the 2022 championship run to be front and center that night, both in the tribute video and with Ball Arena’s reception.

March 5 at San Jose — This is the second of a three-game road trip, but it is also the day of the NHL’s trade deadline. For the second straight year, the Avs will play on that day.

March 9-17 vs. Philadelphia, N.Y. Rangers, Chicago, Edmonton, Minnesota — The second of two five-game homestands, this one is part of seven home games in an eight-game stretch. If the Avs need to make a late push, this might be the time to do it.

April 10 vs. Minnesota — The Avs will hope that Game No. 82 doesn’t have any postseason implications, but this would be a doozy of a season finale if it does. Colorado also finishes with six of its final nine games on the road, including a three-game trek to Minnesota, Vancouver and Calgary just before the finale.

Joe Sakic said superstar Cale Makar isn’t going anywhere, but his next contract will have a huge impact on how the Avs attempt to construct a Stanley Cup-contending roster into the next decade. Artturi Lehkonen has been a critical supporting star for the Avs since arriving at the trade deadline ahead of the club’s 2022 Stanley Cup run.

Both players have one year left on their current deals. The cap ceiling is expected to be $113 million for 2027-28, the first year of their new deals. That is $29.5 million more, or about 35% more than it was when Nathan MacKinnon started his eight-year, $100.8 million contract in 2023-24.

The negotiations for each deal will be entirely different. Makar is one of the best players in the world in the prime of his career. MacKinnon famously said Makar should get $20 million per season the day after Mikko Rantanen was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes.

Lehkonen is an extremely valuable player and a beloved teammate, but he’ll also be 32 when his next contract begins. It’s hard to fathom a number too big for the Avs with Makar, but it will be different with Lehkonen.

What might their contracts look like? The salary cap ceiling is surging to previously unforeseen levels, making it more difficult to project new deals. Sakic said last week that talks on extensions that don’t kick in until next year will start in mid-July. Maybe some deals signed by current free agents will provide more data on what contracts will look like moving forward.

Let’s try to find some comparable deals, and then adjust for the rising cap. Get ready to hear a lot about the percentage of the cap in the coming days/weeks/months to justify some cap hits that look … a little different than what we’re used to.

Cale Makar

Just kidding — there are no comparables for Makar.

Well, not as of Tuesday, anyway. Makar is one of the two best defensemen in the world. The other guy, Quinn Hughes, is also entering the final year of his contract. They’re on the same timeline. Who signs first, and will it impact the other?

The other issue — no elite defenseman has signed a contract as a pending UFA in a long time. It’s a weird quirk. The nine highest-paid forwards in the NHL right now all signed deals as pending unrestricted free agents.

Only three of the 10 highest-paid defensemen did. The other seven signed their deals as pending restricted free agents. That is a slightly different negotiation. If Makar had been an unrestricted free agent when he signed his last deal, he’d have gotten more than $54 million over six years.

Erik Karlsson and Drew Doughty both signed contracts of $11 million or more that began with the 2019-20 season. No other defenseman signed for that much per season until Rasmus Dahlin signed the same pact as Doughty — 8 years, $88 million. He was a pending restricted free agent, and that deal began two years ago.

Karlsson is the most expensive defenseman at $11.5 million. Makar and Hughes will reset the top of the defense market, and then reigning Norris Trophy winner Zach Werenski will be the next megadeal for a pending unrestricted free agent next year. Calder Trophy winner Matthew Schaefer will also be ready for a new deal next summer, and it is expected he’ll blow past what Makar got coming off his entry-level contract.

Here are the top-five contracts signed by defensemen who were pending unrestricted free agents in the league right now:

The percentage of the cap in year one of those deals matters. P.K. Subban also signed a deal that was worth a touch more than 13% of the cap when he was coming off a Norris Trophy win in 2014.

Both Makar and Hughes can make the case that they are among the top five to seven players in the sport, regardless of position. If Bobby Orr or Ray Bourque were 26 or 27 years old and a year from free agency, they’d be getting paid like a top five to seven player in the league.

So here are the top five contracts in the league right now:

Back to the cap percentage idea. If the Avs sign Makar to a deal worth $17 million per season, that would actually be slightly less (15.04%) than MacKinnon’s contract in 2023-24 (15.09%).

What MacKinnon said 18 months ago isn’t wrong. Makar is worth $20 million per year. The best players in the world are all worth that much, but superstars have consistently taken less to help their teams have more cap space to build around them. Kirill Kaprizov pushed the bar higher, but Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel didn’t go with him.

Even if Makar and Hughes didn’t want to take a higher percentage than what Karlsson got eight years prior, 14.11% of a $113 million cap is still $15.944 million per season.

The other big question, of course, is the term of the contract. The new collective bargaining agreement will limit the maximum contract length in future summers to seven years. Makar and Hughes (and Lehkonen) have until Sept. 15 to ink an eight-year pact if they’d like.

Kaprizov and Eichel did eight-year deals, but McDavid signed for just two, and Auston Matthews only inked a four-year pact. Whether Makar and Hughes decide to go short and cash in again, or go long for what will likely be their last huge deal, it’s going to cost Colorado (and Minnesota, assuming Hughes does sign) an enormous sum of money.

An eight-year, $120 million contract would be a significant victory for either franchise, and either might have to settle for something similar to Kaprizov’s deal.

Artturi Lehkonen

Lehkonen has been an immensely valuable player when available who has been on an incredibly team-friendly contract for years.

But, like the recently departed Valeri Nichushkin, the phrase “when available” also plays into this, and could even more so in the future.

Here’s something that sums up the past few years for the Avs: Since 2015-16, there have been 33 wings who meet this criteria — 200-plus games played, 70-plus goals scored and 150-plus points during their age 27-30 seasons. For Lehkonen and Nichushkin, that four-year window is 2022-23 through this past season.

Nichushkin has the fewest games played of the bunch (222) and Lehkonen has the third-fewest (248). Both have been highly productive when available. Both have missed 25% or more of the regular-season games. Nichushkin missed games in three of the past four postseasons, while Lehkonen missed two games in the second round this year and looked compromised during the Western Conference Final.

Lehkonen’s full value isn’t captured by 85 goals and 178 points over the past four seasons. He’s an excellent two-year player, penalty killer and someone who produces more on a per-game basis during the playoffs than the regular season.

Finding comparable players for him isn’t easy. Are the guys who have similar total production? The players with similar per-game numbers?

Here are some wings that might fit:

The guys who have the most similar career production ahead of the new contract are Arvidsson, Tarasenko, Teravainen and Smith. Arvidsson and Tarasenko were already dealing with injuries and decline, and their contracts reflected that. It’s also worth noting that both of those guys had nice bounce-back seasons last year, at ages 32 and 34, respectively.

Rust has aged the best. Palat and Smith have aged the worst. Toffoli is a weird case because he had played for six teams by the time his current deal was signed. But he had two of his best seasons at ages 30-31 and then signed with San Jose, where he scored 49 goals in two years.

There are seven players on this list. Lehkonen is more valuable than some, for sure. He hasn’t had quite the career, from a pure production standpoint, as Rust or Toffoli, at least.

The average cap percentage for those seven contracts is 6.15%. That amount in 2027-28 would be about $6.95 million. Lehkonen, when he’s healthy, has played like a $7 million player or more.

Given the cap surge, is he a $7 million player right now? And what about in the future?

The term for Lehkonen’s next deal could be just as important as the average annual value. It’s a tricky one on both fronts.

There’s no denying his present value, and losing Nichushkin only amplifies it. But there is potential for variance in the future with any deal that starts at age 32, and there might even be more than usual with Lehkonen because of his playing style and injury history.