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Mile High Sticking •

Revisiting the Cody McLeod/Jerome Iginla Fight from 2017

The 2016-17 Colorado Avalanche team did not have a good year. In fact, statistically, that Avs team had the sixteenth-worst season in NHL history. They finished the year with 48 points after going 22-56-4. Only the 2023-24 San Jose Sharks (with a record of 19-54-9, "good" enough for 47 points) have had a worse season in the salary cap era. It was a campaign littered with misfortune and misadventure; accordingly, there have been plenty of breakdowns, deep-dives, and — with the meteoric rise the A...
Mile High Sticking •

My Old Avs: a lineup comprised of the oldest players to ever play for the Colorado Avalanche

A few notes and stipulations before proceeding:1. The age of the player represents the oldest age the player was when they last played for the Avalanche. So, for example, while Joe Sakic technically retired at age 40, he last played at age 39, so he will be listed at 39.2. No Nordiques players are incorporated on this list, so no 39-year-old Guy Lafleur, sorry.3. The oldest players will appear on the top lines; in the event of players having the same age, it will default to skill level and impac...
Mile High Sticking •

Martin Nečas out, Morgan Geekie in: a proposed offer sheet and sign-and-trade

Next season, the Colorado Avalanche will have a bit of a different look to them. The Avs enter the 2025-26 season with a little less than $9 million in available cap space after trading both Charlie Coyle and Miles Wood to the Columbus Blue Jackets, and there are still some areas — most notably on the right wing — that need some work. In order to re-sign some notable free agents (Jonathan Drouin and Joel Kiviranta chief among them) or bring in new talent from elsewhere in the league, it's likely...
Mile High Sticking •

Five free agent right wingers the Colorado Avalanche can realistically afford — and what they would cost

Seemingly, after years of failed experiments and thorough disappointments, the Colorado Avalanche may have finally found their second-line center in Brock Nelson. With the solidification of that pivotal roster spot, the third and fourth-line center positions are also comfortably filled with Charlie Coyle and Jack Drury, respectively. Now, with the Avs' goaltending woes of recent years finally addressed, and with the team having one of the best defensive cores in the entire NHL, there's one, rema...
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Five under-the-radar, buy-low, free agent forwards the Colorado Avalanche should pursue this offseason

Every season, dozens of periphery players and developing prospects break into the spotlight of the NHL, and it's up to the scouting department of each team to determine which players to gamble on and which players to overlook. For each team's front office, the latter is chagrined, and the former is celebrated: just look at Kiefer Sherwood's career year last season with the Vancouver Canucks. While the salary cap is going up, players' salaries are rising commensurately. To fill a roster, teams wi...
Mile High Sticking •

Revisiting Matt Duchene's Infamous Non-Call Offside That Forever Changed Replay Reviews in the NHL

It's February 18, 2013. The Nashville Predators are in Denver, facing off against the Colorado Avalanche, in a Monday matinee game at the Pepsi Center. It's a chilly, partially-cloudy day in the Mile High City — 41 degrees at the time of puck-drop — and 15,099 fans are in attendance, eager to see the Avs at home for just the seventh time that season; as a result of the 2012-13 NHL lockout, which ended on January 6, 2013, the season is still ramping up. As the fans take their seats, they don't ye...
Mile High Sticking •

How Matt Duchene and Mikko Rantanen trades set up 2025 Round 1 matchup between Colorado and Dallas

In the last fifteen years, there have been many notable players to don the burgundy and blue. Among these are two names Avs fans will recognize and remember, either fondly or forlornly: Matt Duchene and Mikko Rantanen. While their efforts and their successes as members of the Colorado Avalanche are indisputable, there is still much discourse surrounding their respective trades and how those trades came to shape the Avs' roster. With all trades, there are mixed-feelings and adjustments to be made...
Mile High Sticking •

The Colorado Avalanche Quarter-Century Team: Draft Bust Edition

In honor of the NHL announcing the Colorado Avalanche's Quarter-Century First and Second teams, here's a full lineup dedicated to a specific kind of Avalanche player from the last 25 years: those who were drafted by the Avs but never made an impact on the teamA few notes and stipulations before proceeding:1. This list will include players who were drafted by the Avalanche but either never developed or underperformed2. No picks from the last five NHL Entry Drafts. Some players take longer to deve...
Mile High Sticking •

How the Colorado Avalanche Can Avoid the Aging Hometown Superstar Dilemma in 6-8 Years

The Pittsburgh Penguins came to Denver to play the Colorado Avalanche on March 4, 2025, and the game played out anecdotally, as the Avs beat the Pens 4-1, encapsulating the trajectory of the respective franchises. The Penguins are the oldest team in the league, and they've fully hitched themselves to the three players who have been cornerstones for the keystone state's most successful hockey team. Sidney Crosby (37) is a long past his moniker of "Sid the Kid," and his perennial teammates, Kris L...
Mile High Sticking •

Revisiting Kiefer Sherwood's Tenure with the Colorado Avalanche

The Colorado Avalanche, more so than any other team, have utilized depth players, minor-league-callups, and roster-reimagining to formulate a lineup, hoping to contend for the Stanley Cup again in 2024-25. As of March 4, 2025, the Avs have used 37 skaters and six goalies; this is far more than any other team, and it's not too far from league-record levels, especially in the salary cap era. Injuries and the Avs' inability to find a reliable second-line center have necessitated much of the changes...
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The Real Reasons Why the Colorado Avalanche Wanted Jack Drury

Jack Drury is an interesting player, and what he brings to the Colorado Avalanche is important, even if it doesn't pass the "eye test." He recently came over to Colorado alongside Martin Nečas in the deal that sent Mikko Rantanen to the Carolina Hurricanes, and he is filling a role immediately. In eight games, the third-line center has two goals, and, on paper, his impact seems marginal. His offensive metrics aren't particularly noteworthy, but Drury thrives as an "analytic darling" who speciali...
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The Colorado Avalanche's Unprecedented Roster Usage: A Statistical Analysis

On Thursday, January 16, the Colorado Avalanche took on the Edmonton Oilers on ESPN's Hockey Night matchup. Early into the broadcast, play-by-play broadcaster John Buccigross joked with color analyst Ray Ferraro that the Avs this season are holding "open auditions" for roster spots, and there's some truth to that comment. So far this season, the Avs have dressed 40 different players. Out of context, that may not seem like a lot, so here's a look at the number of players dressed, as of January 18...
Mile High Sticking •

2024-25 Norris Trophy Odds: Cale Makar Most Deserving, Despite Career Years for Quinn Hughes and Zach Werenski

It's hard to believe that Colorado Avalanche star Cale Makar hasn't yet hit his ceiling, given the accolades he's earned and the records he's broken across just five and a half seasons in the NHL, but this current season is setting a new bar for the right-shot defenseman. Despite breakout and breakthrough years for a number of the league's best rearguards, Makar is the current, odds-on favorite to win the Norris Trophy this year.