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Colorado Avalanche

March 26, 2023

This article is about the hockey team. For the former soccer team in Denver, see Denver Avalanche.

The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The Avalanche play their home games at Ball Arena, which they share with the NBA's Denver Nuggets and Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League.

Colorado Avalanche
2022–23 Colorado Avalanche season
ConferenceWestern
DivisionCentral
Founded1972
HistoryQuebec Nordiques
1972–1979 (WHA)
1979–1995 (NHL)
Colorado Avalanche
1995–present
Home arenaBall Arena
CityDenver, Colorado
ColorsBurgundy, blue, silver, black[1][2]
       
MediaAltitude Sports and Entertainment
Altitude 950
Altitude Sports 92.5
Owner(s)Kroenke Sports & Entertainment[3]
General managerChris MacFarland
Head coachJared Bednar
CaptainGabriel Landeskog
Minor league affiliatesColorado Eagles (AHL)
Utah Grizzlies (ECHL)
Stanley Cups3 (1995–96, 2000–01, 2021–22)
Conference championships3 (1995–96, 2000–01, 2021–22)
Presidents' Trophy3 (1996–97, 2000–01, 2020–21)
Division championships11 (1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2013–14, 2020–21, 2021–22)
Official websitewww.nhl.com/avalanche

Founded in 1972 as the Quebec Nordiques, the team was one of the charter franchises of the World Hockey Association. The franchise joined the NHL in 1979 as a result of the NHL–WHA merger. Following the 1994–95 season, they were sold to the COMSAT Entertainment Group and relocated to Denver.

During their first season in Denver, the Avalanche won the Pacific Division and went on to sweep the Florida Panthers in the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals. The 1996 Avalanche became the first Denver-based team in the four major North American professional sports leagues to win a league championship. They were also the second major North American sports team to win a championship a year after relocating, joining the National Football League (NFL)'s 1937 Washington Redskins. In the 2001 Stanley Cup Finals, the Avalanche defeated the New Jersey Devils in seven games to win their second championship. In the 2022 Stanley Cup Finals, the Avalanche defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games to win their third championship. As a result, they remain the only active NHL team that has won all of its appearances in the Stanley Cup Finals.

The Avalanche have won eleven division titles since relocating to Denver (and set the league record for most consecutive division titles at nine in a row from 1995 to 2003; one in Quebec, the rest in Colorado), and qualified for the playoffs in each of their first ten seasons after relocation; this streak ended in 2007.[4]

Franchise history

Quebec Nordiques (1972–1995)

Main article: Quebec Nordiques

The Quebec Nordiques were one of the World Hockey Association's (WHA) original teams when the league began play in 1972. Though first awarded to a group in San Francisco, the team was subsequently sold and relocated to Quebec City prior to the start of the league's opening.[5] During their seven WHA seasons, the Nordiques won the Avco World Trophy once, in 1977, and lost the finals once, in 1975.[6] In 1979, the franchise entered the NHL, along with the WHA's Edmonton Oilers, Hartford Whalers, and Winnipeg Jets.[7]

 
Quebec Nordiques practicing prior to a game in the 1986–87 season. The Avalanche previously played as the Nordiques from 1972 to 1995.

After making the postseason for seven consecutive years, from 1981 to 1987, the Nordiques started to decline. From 1987–88 to 1991–92, the team finished last in their division every season, with three of those finishes landing them last in the league. This included a dreadful 12-win season in 1989–90 that is still the worst in franchise history.[8] As a result, the team earned three consecutive first overall draft picks, used to select Mats Sundin (1989), Owen Nolan (1990), and Eric Lindros (1991).[9][10] Lindros made it clear he did not wish to play for the Nordiques,[11] to the extent he did not wear the team's jersey for the press photographs, only holding it when it was presented to him.[12] On advice from his mother, he refused to sign a contract and began a holdout that lasted over a year. On June 30, 1992, he was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for five players, the rights to Swedish prospect Peter Forsberg, two first-round draft picks, and US$15 million.[13] The Eric Lindros trade turned the moribund Nordiques into a Stanley Cup contender almost overnight, and is seen in hindsight as one of the most one-sided deals in sports history.[14] In the first season after the trade, 1992–93, the Nordiques reached the playoffs for the first time in six years.[15] Two years later, they won the Northeast Division and had the second best regular season record during the lockout-shortened season.[16]

While the team experienced on-ice success, it spent most of its first 23 years struggling financially. Quebec City was by far the smallest market in the NHL.[17] and the changing financial environment in the NHL made things even more difficult. In 1995, team owner Marcel Aubut asked for a bailout from Quebec's provincial government[18] as well as a new publicly funded arena.[17] The bailout fell through, and Aubut subsequently began talks with COMSAT Entertainment Group in Denver, which already owned the Denver Nuggets.[19] In May 1995, COMSAT announced an agreement in principle to purchase the team.[20] The deal became official on July 1, 1995, and 12,000 season tickets were sold in the 37 days after the announcement of the move.[20]

COMSAT considered several names for the team, including "Extreme," "Blizzards," and "Black Bears." It also debated whether to brand the team as a Denver team or as a regional franchise representing either Colorado or the entire Rocky Mountain region. Initially, COMSAT filed copyright protection for "Black Bears",[21] but reportedly decided to name the team Rocky Mountain Extreme. When The Denver Post leaked the intended name, fan reaction was so negative that COMSAT reconsidered and chose the name Colorado Avalanche.[22] The new name was revealed on August 10, 1995.[20] With the move, the newly relocated team transferred to the Pacific Division of the Western Conference.[23]

Colorado Avalanche (1995–present)

Early success (1995–2001)

 
Patrick Roy played for the Avalanche from 1995 to 2003.

After purchasing the team, COMSAT organized its Denver sports franchises under a separate subsidiary, Ascent Entertainment Group Inc., which went public in 1995. COMSAT retained an 80% controlling interest, with the other 20% available on NASDAQ.[24] The Avalanche played their first game in the McNichols Sports Arena in Denver on October 6, 1995, winning 3–2 against the Detroit Red Wings. It marked a return of the NHL to Denver after an absence of 13 years, when the Colorado Rockies (not to be confused with the Major League Baseball team of the same name) moved to New Jersey to become the New Jersey Devils. Valeri Kamensky scored the first goal as the Avalanche, as well as the game-winning goal in the final minutes.[25] Led on the ice by captain Joe Sakic, forward Peter Forsberg, and defenseman Adam Foote and with Pierre Lacroix as the general manager and Marc Crawford as the head coach, the Avalanche became stronger when All-Star Montreal Canadiens goaltender Patrick Roy joined the team. Roy joined the Avalanche on December 6, 1995, together with ex-Montreal captain Mike Keane in a trade for Jocelyn Thibault, Martin Rucinsky, and Andrei Kovalenko.[26]

1995–96 Stanley Cup champions

The Avalanche finished the regular season with a 47–25–10 record for 104 points, won the Pacific Division, and finished second in the Western Conference. Colorado progressed to the playoffs, defeating the Vancouver Canucks, Chicago Blackhawks, and the Presidents' Trophy-winning Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference Finals, all in six games. In the Stanley Cup Finals, the Avalanche met the Florida Panthers, who were also in their first Finals. The Avalanche swept the series 4–0. In Game 4, during the third overtime and after more than 100 minutes of play with no goals, defenseman Uwe Krupp scored to claim the franchise's first Stanley Cup.[27] Joe Sakic was the playoff's scoring leader with 34 points (18 goals and 16 assists),[28] winning the Conn Smythe Trophy. The 1995–96 Cup was the first major professional championship won by a Denver team. The Avalanche are the only team in NHL history to win the Stanley Cup their first season after a relocation, and only the second team to win a championship their first season after a relocation in any of the four major North American sports leagues, following the NFL's Washington Commanders. They also became the second team from the WHA to win the Cup.[20] With the Cup win, Russians Alexei Gusarov and Valeri Kamensky, and Swede Peter Forsberg became members of the Triple Gold Club, the exclusive group of ice hockey players who have won Olympic gold, World Championship gold, and the Stanley Cup.[29]

In 1996–97, Colorado won the Pacific Division again as well as the Presidents' Trophy for finishing the regular season with the best record in the NHL, at 49–24–9 for 107 points.[30] The team was also the NHL's best scoring with an average of 3.38 goals scored per game. The Avalanche met the two lowest scorers of the Western Conference in the first two rounds of the playoffs, the Chicago Blackhawks and the Edmonton Oilers, defeating them in six and five games, respectively.[31] During a rematch of the previous year Western Conference Finals, the Avalanche lost to the Detroit Red Wings in six games.[31] Detroit went on to sweep the Stanley Cup Finals just as the Avalanche had done the year before.[31] Sandis Ozolinsh was elected for the NHL's first All-Star team at the end of the season.[32]

 
In 1997, the Avalanche matched an offer sheet on Joe Sakic, instigating salary raises throughout the NHL.

As a free agent during the summer of 1997, Joe Sakic signed a three-year, $21 million offer sheet with the New York Rangers. Under the collective agreement in place at the time between the NHL and NHL Players' Association (NHLPA), the Avalanche had one week to match the Rangers' offer or let go of Sakic. Colorado would match the offer,[33] which instigated a salary raise for NHL players.[34]

The Avalanche sent 10 players representing seven countries, as well as head coach Marc Crawford representing Canada, to the 1998 Winter Olympics ice hockey tournament in Nagano, Japan.[35] Milan Hejduk won the gold medal with Czech Republic, Alexei Gusarov and Valeri Kamensky won the silver medal with Russia, and Jari Kurri won bronze with Finland.[36]

In the following season, Colorado won the Pacific Division with a 39–26–17 record for 95 points. The team lost in the Western Conference Quarterfinals against the Edmonton Oilers in seven games, having led the series 3–1.[37] Peter Forsberg was the NHL's second-highest scorer in the regular season with 91 points (25 goals and 66 assists) and was elected for the NHL's First All-Star Team.[37] After the end of the season, head coach Marc Crawford rejected the team's offer of a two-year contract.[38] Bob Hartley was hired to the head coach position in June 1998.[39]

In 1998–99, with the addition of the Nashville Predators, the NHL realigned their divisions, moving the Avalanche to the new Northwest Division. Despite a slow 2–6–1 start, Colorado finished with a 44–28–10 record for 98 points, won the Division and finished second in the Western Conference. Between January 10 and February 7, the Avalanche had their longest ever winning streak with 12 games.[36] Following the Columbine High School massacre, Colorado postponed their first two playoff games to a later date; they would wear patches in honor of the Columbine victims on their jerseys during the playoffs. The series was altered to a 2–3–2 format as a result of the tragedy.[40] After defeating both the San Jose Sharks and the Detroit Red Wings in six games in the first two rounds, Colorado met the Presidents' Trophy-winning Dallas Stars in the Conference Finals, where they lost in seven games. Forsberg, the playoffs' leading scorer with 24 points (8 goals and 16 assists),[28] was again elected to the NHL's First All-Star team, and Chris Drury won the Calder Memorial Trophy for the best rookie of the season.[41] Both Drury and Hejduk were elected to the NHL All-Rookie Team at the end of the season.

 
The Pepsi Center opened as the Avalanche's new home arena in 1999.

It was in the 1999–2000 season that the Colorado Avalanche played their first game in the new Pepsi Center, which cost US$160 million.[42] Milan Hejduk scored the first goal of a 2–1 victory against the Boston Bruins on October 13, 1999.[43] The Avalanche finished the season with a 42–28–11–1 record for 96 points, winning the Division. Before the playoffs, the Avalanche strengthened their defense for a run towards the Stanley Cup.[citation needed] On March 6, 2000, the Boston Bruins traded future Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman Ray Bourque and forward Dave Andreychuk to Colorado for Brian Rolston, Martin Grenier, Samuel Pahlsson, and a first-round draft pick. Bourque, who had been a Bruin since 1979, requested a trade to a contender for a chance to win the Stanley Cup.[44] However, Colorado lost in the Conference Finals against the Dallas Stars in seven games after defeating the Phoenix Coyotes and Detroit Red Wings in five games.[45][46]

The Avalanche's success came amid considerable turmoil in the front office. COMSAT's diversification into sports ownership was proving a drain on the company. Cost overruns associated with the construction of Pepsi Center had shareholders up in arms. Finally, in 1997, COMSAT agreed in principle to sell Ascent to Liberty Media.[24] However, Liberty was not interested in sports ownership at the time (though it has since purchased Major League Baseball's Atlanta Braves), and made the deal contingent upon Ascent selling both the Avalanche and Nuggets.[47]

After almost two years, Ascent sold the teams to Wal-Mart heirs Bill and Nancy Laurie for $400 million. However, a group of Ascent shareholders sued, claiming the sale price was several million dollars too low. Ascent then agreed to sell the teams to Denver banking tycoon Donald Sturm for $461 million.[48]

A new wrinkle appeared when the City of Denver refused to transfer the parcel of land on which Pepsi Center stood unless Sturm promised to keep the Avalanche and Nuggets in Denver for at least 25 years. Sturm had made his bid in his own name, and the city wanted to protect taxpayers in the event Sturm either died or sold the teams. While Sturm was willing to make a long-term commitment to the city, he was not willing to be held responsible if he died or sold the teams. After negotiations fell apart, Liberty bought all of Ascent, but kept the Nuggets and Avalanche on the market.[49]

Finally, in July 2000, the teams and the Pepsi Center were bought by real estate entrepreneur Stan Kroenke, and brother-in-law to the Lauries, in a $450 million deal,[24] with Liberty retaining a 6.5% interest. As part of the deal, Kroenke placed the teams into a trust that would ensure they stay in Denver until at least 2025.[49] After the deal, Kroenke organized his sports assets under Kroenke Sports Enterprises.

2000–01 Stanley Cup champions

The 2000–01 season was the best season the team has ever had due to phenomenal play by the all-time leading scorer in Avalanche history, Joe Sakic. The Avalanche won the Division and captured their second Presidents' Trophy after having finished the regular season with 52–16–10–4 for 118 points. Sakic finished the regular season with 118 points (54 goals and 64 assists), only three behind Jaromir Jagr's 121 points. On February 4, 2001, the Avalanche hosted the 51st NHL All-Star Game. Patrick Roy, Ray Bourque, and Joe Sakic played for the North American team, who won 14–12 against the World team, which featured Milan Hejduk and Peter Forsberg. All but Hejduk were part of the starting lineups.[36] Before the playoffs, the Avalanche acquired star defenseman Rob Blake and center Steven Reinprecht from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Adam Deadmarsh, Aaron Miller, and their first-round 2001 Draft pick.[50]

 
The engraved names of the 2001 Stanley Cup champions, the Colorado Avalanche.

In the playoffs, Colorado swept their Western Conference Quarterfinals against the Vancouver Canucks. In the Western Conference Semi-finals, the Avalanche defeated the Los Angeles Kings in seven games, after having wasted a 3–1 lead. After the last game of the series, Peter Forsberg underwent surgery to remove a ruptured spleen and it was announced he would not play until the following season. The injury was a huge upset for the team—former NHL goaltender Darren Pang considered it "devastating... to the Colorado Avalanche".[51] The team would overcome Forsberg's injury; in the Western Conference Finals, Colorado defeated the St. Louis Blues 4–1 and progressed to the Stanley Cup Finals, where they faced the defending champion New Jersey Devils. The Avalanche came back from a 3–2 series deficit and won the series 4–3, marking the second year in a row that defending champions lost in the Finals, as the Devils themselves defeated the Dallas Stars in 2000. After being handed the Cup from NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, captain Joe Sakic immediately turned and gave it to Ray Bourque, capping off Bourque's 22-year career with his only championship.[52] Sakic was the playoffs' leading scorer with 26 points (13 goals and 13 assists).[28] He won the Hart Memorial Trophy, given to the NHL's most valuable player during the regular season; the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, awarded to the player that has shown the best sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with performance in play; the Lester B. Pearson Award; and shared the NHL Plus/Minus Award with Patrik Elias of the Devils. Patrick Roy won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs.[53] Shjon Podein was awarded the King Clancy Memorial Trophy for significant humanitarian contributions to his community, namely his work on charitable organizations and his own children foundation.[54] Ray Bourque and Joe Sakic were elected to the NHL's First All-Star Team. Rob Blake was elected to the Second All-Star Team.[55][56]

Remaining competitive (2001–2006)

In the 2001–02 season, Colorado finished the regular season with 99 points from a 45–28–8–1 record, winning the Northwest Division. Colorado had the league's lowest goals conceded: 169, an average of 2.06 per game. The NHL season was interrupted for the 2002 Winter Olympics, in Salt Lake City. The Avalanche had nine players representing six countries. Canada won the ice hockey tournament, with Rob Blake, Adam Foote, and Joe Sakic won gold medals. American Chris Drury took home a silver medal.[36] With the win, Blake and Sakic became members of the Triple Gold Club.[29] The Avalanche advanced through the first two rounds of the playoffs, winning 4–3 against the Los Angeles Kings and 4–3 against the San Jose Sharks. Patrick Roy had a shutout on the decisive game of each series.[57] The Avalanche made the Western Conference Finals for the fourth consecutive season (and sixth overall in the last seven seasons), meeting the Detroit Red Wings in the playoffs for the fifth time in seven years. Colorado had a 3–2 lead after five games, but lost Game 6 at home, 2–0, and Game 7 in Detroit, 7–0. As in 1997, Detroit went on to win the Stanley Cup. Peter Forsberg was the playoffs' leader scorer with 27 points (9 goals, 18 assists).[28] Roy won the William M. Jennings Trophy, given to the goaltenders of the team with fewest goals scored against. Roy and Sakic were both elected to the NHL's First All-Star Team, with Rob Blake elected to the Second All-Star Team.

The following season, 2002–03, saw the Avalanche claim the NHL record for most consecutive division titles, nine,[58] breaking the Montreal Canadiens' streak of eight titles from 1974–1982.[59] The division title came after a bad start by the team, that led to the exit of head coach Bob Hartley in December.[60] General manager Pierre Lacroix promoted assistant coach Tony Granato, who had only three months of coaching experience as an assistant, to the head coach position.[61] The team's playoff spot seemed in doubt at one point, but the Avalanche managed to finish with 105 points, ahead of the Vancouver Canucks by one. The race to the title was exciting, namely the second-to-last game of the season, as the Avalanche needed to win the game to stay in the race, and Milan Hejduk scored with ten seconds left in overtime to defeat the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.[62] The title was guaranteed in the final day of the regular season, when the Avalanche defeated the St. Louis Blues 5–2 and the Vancouver Canucks lost against the Los Angeles Kings 2–0.[63] In the Western Conference Quarterfinals, the Avalanche blew a 3–1 series lead over the Minnesota Wild, losing in overtime in Game 7.[64] Peter Forsberg won the Art Ross Trophy for the leading scorer of the regular season, which he finished with 106 points (29 goals, 77 assists). Forsberg also won the Hart Memorial Trophy for the regular season's most valuable player, and shared the NHL Plus/Minus Award with teammate Hejduk. Hejduk scored 50 goals to win the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy, awarded annually to the leading goal scorer in the NHL. Forsberg was elected to the NHL's First All-Star Team; Hejduk was elected to the Second All-Star Team.

Patrick Roy retired after that season, and the team signed star wingers Paul Kariya from the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, and Teemu Selanne from the San Jose Sharks.[65][66] Both struggled during their first season with the team—Kariya spent most of the 2003–04 season injured and Selanne scored only 32 points (16 goals and 16 assists) in 78 games.[67] There were doubts if goaltender David Aebischer could perform at the top level the team was used to while having Roy.[68] Having "nine elite players",[69] "the most talented top six forwards on one team since the days of the Edmonton Oilers"[70] was not good enough as the franchise failed to win the Northwest Division title, ending the NHL record streak. The 40–22–13–7 record was good enough for 100 points, one less than the Northwest Division champion Vancouver Canucks. This ended a streak of nine consecutive division titles dating to the team's last year in Quebec.[4]

During a game against Vancouver on March 8, 2004, Canucks player Todd Bertuzzi punched Colorado's Steve Moore from behind, leaving Moore unconscious. It was said to be retaliation for a hit Moore had delivered to Canucks captain Markus Naslund the month before.[71] Moore sustained three fractured neck vertebrae, among other injuries caused by the hit and subsequent pile up, ending his career.[72] Bertuzzi was away from professional hockey for 17 months as a result of suspensions.[73] In Denver, after the Moore hit, it became tradition for the home fans to boo Todd Bertuzzi every time he gained possession of the puck, whenever his team faced the Avalanche at Pepsi Center.{{

In the 2004 playoffs, Colorado won the Western Conference Quarterfinals against the Dallas Stars in five games, but lost in the Semi-finals against the Sharks in six games. Joe Sakic was, once again, elected to the 2004 All-star team, winning the NHL/Sheraton Road Performer Award, and became the first Avalanche player ever to be chosen as game MVP, when he scored a hat-trick.[36] In July 2004, Joel Quenneville was hired for the position of head coach, replacing Tony Granato, who became his assistant.[61]

The 2004–05 NHL season was canceled because of an unresolved lockout. During the lockout, many Avalanche players played in European leagues.[74] David Aebischer returned home with Alex Tanguay to play for Swiss club HC Lugano; Milan Hejduk and Peter Forsberg returned to their former teams in their native countries, HC Pardubice and Modo Hockey. Nine other players from the roster played in Europe during the lockout.[74]

After the 2004–05 lockout and implementation of a salary cap, the Avalanche were forced to release some of their top players. Peter Forsberg and Adam Foote were lost in free agency to save room in the cap for Joe Sakic and Rob Blake.[75] Although the salary cap was a blow to one of the highest spenders of the league,[76] the team finished the 2005–06 regular season with a 43–30–9 record for 95 points, good enough to finish second in the Division, seven behind the Calgary Flames and tied with the Edmonton Oilers. The season paused in February for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. The Avalanche sent a league-leading 11 players from eight countries.[35] Finnish Antti Laaksonen earned the silver medal, while Ossi Vaananen ended up not playing because of an injury; Czech Milan Hejduk won a bronze medal.[36] In the Conference Quarterfinals, Colorado defeated Dallas Stars team that had the second-best record in the Conference, in five games. The team lost the Semi-finals, swept for the first time ever Anaheim Ducks.

The next day, Pierre Lacroix resigned after service as GM since 1994 and François Giguère was hired as his replacement.[77][78] Lacroix remained president of the franchise until spring 2013, when the team owner's son, Josh Kroenke, took over as team president and governor. Pierre Lacroix remained an advisor to the team until his death in 2020 from COVID-19.[79][80]

New beginnings (2006–2009)

By the beginning of the 2006–07 season, Joe Sakic and Milan Hejduk were the only two remaining members from the 2000–01 Stanley Cup-winning squad, with Sakic being the only one from the team's days in Quebec, though Hejduk was drafted by the Nordiques. Paul Stastny, son of Nordiques legend Peter Stastny, also provided a link to the franchise's past. Before the previous season's playoffs, in a move reminiscent of Patrick Roy's trade, the Avalanche traded Aebischer to the Montreal Canadiens for the Vezina Trophy-winning Jose Theodore.[81] However, the move would not turn out to be as successful when Theodore posted a 13–15–1 record in 2006–07, with an .891 save percentage, and 3.26 goals against average (GAA). His US$6 million salary became a heavy burden for the Avalanche in the salary cap era.[82] That same season saw an 11-year sell-out streak of 487 home games ended on October 16, 2006, in a home game against the Chicago Blackhawks, that saw the Pepsi Center under capacity by 326 seats.[83] The sell-out streak was an all-time NHL record for the longest consecutive attendance sell-outs at home games with 487; and began on November 9, 1995, on the Avalanche's eighth regular season home game during the 1995–96 season at the McNichols Sports Arena.[84] The record has since been broken by the Pittsburgh Penguins, who saw their own streak end in October of 2021 at 633 games.[85]

The Avalanche missed the playoffs for the 2006–07 season, missing it for the first time since 1993–94, when they were still in Quebec. The team had a 15–2–2 run in the last 19 games of the season to keep their playoffs hopes alive until the penultimate day of the season. A 4–2 loss against the Nashville Predators on April 7, with former player Peter Forsberg assisting the game-winning goal scored by another former player, Paul Kariya, eliminated Colorado from the playoff race.[86] As consolation, the team won the last game of the season against the Calgary Flames the following day and finished fourth in the Northwest Division and ninth in the Western Conference with a 44–31–7 record for 95 points, one less than eighth-seeded Calgary. Nonetheless, the result was greater than expected by hockey pundits; Sports Illustrated previewed before the start of the season that the Avalanche would finish 13th in the Western Conference.[87] During that last game of the season, Joe Sakic scored a goal and two assists and became the second-oldest player in NHL history to reach 100 points, behind only Gordie Howe, who had 103 points at age 40 in the 1968–69 season.[88] During the season, Paul Stastny set an NHL record for longest point streak by a rookie, with 20 games,[89] three more than the previous record, held by Teemu Selanne[90] and Karlis Skrastins set a new NHL record for the longest game streak by a defenseman, with 495 games.[91] Until the Avalanche's 2006–07 season, no team in the history of the NHL had ever made it to 95 points without earning a spot in the playoffs.[92] In the Eastern Conference, three teams progressed to the playoffs with fewer than 95 points: the New York Rangers (94), the Tampa Bay Lightning (93) and the New York Islanders (92).

 
The Avalanche signed Ryan Smyth prior to the 2007–08 season.

For the 2007–08 season, the Avalanche signed two free agents: defenseman Scott Hannan and left winger Ryan Smyth. These acquisitions filled the team's needs and were expected to help make an impact in the playoffs.[93] On February 25, 2008, unrestricted free agent Peter Forsberg signed with the Avalanche for the remainder of the 2007–08 season.[94] A day later, at the trade deadline, they re-acquired defenseman Adam Foote from the Columbus Blue Jackets as well as Ruslan Salei from the Florida Panthers.[95] In the Western Conference Quarter-finals, Colorado defeated the Minnesota Wild in six games.[96] In the Western Conference Semi-finals, however, the Avalanche were swept[97] by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings.[98]

On May 9, 2008, the Avalanche announced that Joel Quenneville would not return to coach the team next season. Two weeks later, Tony Granato was named head coach of the Avalanche for the second time.[99]

The 2008–09 season was the worst season the Avalanche had since moving to Denver.[100] Posting a record of 32–45–5, finishing 15th in the Western Conference (28th overall), and recording the fewest points since their days in Quebec during the 1979–80 season.[101] The Avalanche missed the postseason for the second time in three seasons. It would be the first time in Avalanche history the team's top scorer would score less than 70 points on the season, as Milan Hejduk and Ryan Smyth would register only 59 points each.[101][102] On April 13, 2009, just one day after the end of the season, the Avalanche relieved Francois Giguere of his general manager duties.[103] Colorado would go on to receive the highest draft pick in Avalanche history, third overall.[104] That pick turned out to be Brampton Battalion star Matt Duchene.[104]

Decline (2009–2016)

 
Members of the Avalanche celebrate a win against the Vancouver Canucks, clinching the eighth and final Western Conference seed for the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs.

In the 2009 off-season, the Avalanche named Greg Sherman the new general manager and Joe Sacco the new head coach.[105][106] The following month, top scorer Ryan Smyth was traded to the Los Angeles Kings and Joe Sakic, the only team captain the Avalanche had ever known, retired after 21 seasons in the NHL.[107] The Avalanche named Adam Foote as his replacement.[108] Sakic's jersey retirement ceremony took place on October 1, 2009, before the season opener at home against the San Jose Sharks where the Avalanche won 5–2.[109] The Avalanche started the season off strong until the Olympic break. Three Avalanche team members played in Vancouver: Paul Stastny for the United States, Ruslan Salei for Belarus and Peter Budaj for Slovakia.[110] Following the Winter Olympics, the Avalanche struggled but eventually clinched a playoff spot with 95 points on the season, a 26-point improvement from the previous year's effort, and good enough for eighth place in the Western Conference.[111] The Avalanche fell in the Western Conference Quarterfinals to the top-seeded San Jose Sharks in six games.[112]

Stan Kroenke purchased full ownership in the NFL's St. Louis Rams in 2010. Since the NFL does not allow its owners to hold majority control of major-league teams in other NFL cities, Kroenke turned over day-to-day control of the Nuggets and Avalanche to his son, Josh, toward the end of 2010. Kroenke had to sell his controlling interest in both teams by 2014.[113][114]

In 2010, the Avalanche made it to the playoffs but lost in the quarterfinals 4–2 against San Jose.[115] Joe Sacco finished third in Jack Adams Trophy voting that season. The Avalanche failed to qualify for the playoffs in 2011.[116] In the 2010–11 season, the Avalanche saw their worst season yet since moving to Denver. They only had 68 points in the standings and had winless streaks after the All-Star break.[117][118] They finished 29th in the 30-team NHL, besting only their division mates, the Edmonton Oilers.[117] Matt Duchene set a franchise record as the youngest scoring leader in Quebec/Colorado history with 67 points, sharing the club goals-leader title with David Jones.[119] Former Avalanche player Peter Forsberg attempted a comeback in the NHL with Colorado mid-season. However, after two games, no points and compiling a plus-minus rating of −4, Forsberg announced his retirement from professional hockey.[120][121] Captain Adam Foote also retired after the final game of the season.[122]

 
Gabriel Landeskog during his rookie season. Landeskog was selected second overall in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft.

In the off-season, Colorado had two first-round picks. Present at the draft, former Avalanche great Joe Sakic served his first duties as new alternate governor and adviser of hockey operations of the club. With their first pick, second overall, they selected Gabriel Landeskog, the young captain of the Ontario Hockey League's Kitchener Rangers.[123][124] Second, they selected defenseman Duncan Siemens 11th overall, a pick acquired from the St. Louis Blues in the controversial trade that sent power-forward Chris Stewart, long time top prospect Kevin Shattenkirk and a second-round pick to the Blues in exchange for their first-round pick, veteran Jay McClement and 2006 former first overall pick, Erik Johnson. A complete overhaul at the goal-tending position sent Peter Budaj to the Montreal Canadiens and Brian Elliott to St. Louis, Elliott having been acquired from the Ottawa Senators for Craig Anderson during the team's downward spiral the season previous. Goaltender Semyon Varlamov was dealt to Colorado from the Washington Capitals in exchange for a first and second pick, while veteran netminder and former Conn Smythe Trophy winner Jean-Sébastien Giguère was signed as a free agent in hopes to mentor the young Varlamov. Duncan Siemens was sent back to his major junior team, the Saskatoon Blades in camp, while Gabriel Landeskog made the opening night roster against the Red Wings on October 8, 2011, at Pepsi Center. Adam Deadmarsh was promoted from video/developmental coach to offensive assistant coach after Steve Konowalchuk accepted a job as head coach in the minor league.

Peter Forsberg's number 21 became the fourth jersey number retired by the Avalanche on opening night, a contest Colorado would lose to Detroit 3–0. Colorado redeemed themselves in game two of the season on October 10, 2011, against the 2011 Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins. Varlamov negated all 30 shots registered by Boston and posted the fifth shutout of his career and first win as an Avalanche in the regular season. Milan Hejduk scored the game-winning goal and first goal of the season for the club in a 1–0 victory over the defending champions. In April 2012, the Avalanche were eliminated from playoff contention and finished 11th place in the Western Conference. Despite a 20-point improvement from last season's efforts, the team failed to reach the playoffs for the second-straight year, the first time the club history since their move to Denver.[125] Head coach Joe Sacco signed a two-year contract extension shortly after the end of the season. Stand out rookie Gabriel Landeskog overtook Matt Duchene as the youngest in franchise history to lead the team in goals, scoring 22 in 82 games.

Having resigned most of their free agents, the club wouldn't see much change in the 2012 off-season, with the exception of losing unrestricted free agents Peter Mueller, Jay McClement and Kevin Porter.[126] Colorado would add Greg Zanon, John Mitchell and high scoring winger P. A. Parenteau to its roster.[127] Gabriel Landeskog, the Avalanche's lone representative at the 2012 NHL Awards, won the Calder Memorial Trophy, joining Chris Drury, Peter Forsberg and Peter Stastny for earning top rookie honors for the Avalanche.[128]

On September 4, 2012, Gabriel Landeskog was named the fourth captain of the Avalanche. Former captain Milan Hejduk relinquished his captaincy a week earlier.[129] At 19 years and 286 days old, Landeskog became the youngest captain in NHL history at that time, being 11 days younger than when Sidney Crosby was named captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins at 19 years and 297 days.[130]

After a disappointing 2012–13 season which saw the Colorado Avalanche finish 15th in the Conference and 29th overall in the League, it was announced on April 28, 2013, that head coach Joe Sacco had been relieved of his duties.[131] On May 10, it was announced that former long-time Avalanche captain and Hockey Hall of Famer Joe Sakic would be named Executive Vice President of hockey operations, overseeing all matters involving hockey personnel. It was also announced that Josh Kroenke, son of owner Stan Kroenke, was named President of the Avalanche, succeeding Pierre Lacroix.[132] On May 23, Patrick Roy returned to the Avalanche as head coach and Vice President of hockey operations.[133] Although Sherman retained his role as general manager, he was largely reduced to an advisory role. Roy and Sakic shared most of the duties held by a general manager on most other NHL teams, though Sakic had the final say on hockey matters.[134] The Avalanche held the top overall pick in the 2013 NHL draft, which they used to draft Nathan Mackinnon, who had previously played against the team that Patrick Roy had coached in the QMJHL.

Under Roy, in 2013–14, the Avalanche returned to the playoffs, finishing first in the Central Division and second in the Western Conference, but would lose a seven-game series to the Minnesota Wild in the First Round. Nonetheless, for his outstanding job as a first-year coach, Roy won the Jack Adams Award for the NHL's top coaching honors.[135]

Just prior to the start of the 2014–15 season, Sakic was given the title of general manager while Sherman was demoted to assistant GM, formalizing the de facto arrangement that had been in place since 2013.[136] Despite the front office changes, the Avalanche failed to qualify for the 2015 playoffs after finishing with a record of 39–31–12, resulting in a seventh-place finish in the Central Division.[137]

After failing to qualify for the playoffs again following the 2015–16 season, Roy resigned his posts on August 11, 2016.[138]

Jared Bednar era (2016–present)

Following the departure of Roy, the Avalanche hired Jared Bednar from the Calder Cup champions, the Lake Erie Monsters of the American Hockey League (AHL), as head coach.[139] Bednar walked into a difficult situation. He was hired just a month before the opening of training camp, and thus had nowhere near enough time to install his own system. He was also unable to bring his own staff, having to make do with holdovers from Roy's staff. On December 10, 2016, the Avalanche allowed ten goals in a 10–1 loss to the Canadiens. The Avalanche closed out their season with a record of 22–56–4 and 48 points, the worst record in the league and the franchise's worst since moving to Denver (only the 1989–90 and 1990–91 Nordiques finished with fewer points). It was also the worst record of any team in the NHL since the Atlanta Thrashers finished with a record of 14–61–7 and 39 points in the 1999–2000 season (which was their first season in the league)[140] and one of the worst for a non-expansion team since 1967. During the 2016 NHL draft, Colorado held the fourth overall pick, which they used to draft defenseman Cale Makar.

 
The Avalanche played the Ottawa Senators twice in November 2017, at the Ericsson Globe in Sweden.

After much speculation about wanting out of Colorado, the Avalanche traded Duchene to the Ottawa Senators in a three-team trade on November 5, 2017. From Ottawa, the Avalanche acquired Andrew Hammond, Shane Bowers, a 2018 first-round pick and a 2019 third-round pick. Additionally, the Avalanche acquired Samuel Girard, Vladislav Kamenev and a 2018 second-round pick from the Predators.[141] The Avalanche had a ten-game win streak from January 2 to 22. During that stretch, the Avalanche outscored their opponents 41–16.[142] Offensively, the Avalanche were led by Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen. MacKinnon finished fifth in league scoring with 97 points, while Rantanen scored 84 points in his sophomore season. The Avalanche qualified for the playoffs in their final game of the regular season, defeating the Blues, who they were battling with for the final wild-card spot, 5–2.[143] The team finished with 95 points, a 47-point increase from their previous season. The Avalanche matched up with the league-leading Predators in the first round. After finding themselves down 3–1, the Avalanche rallied to win Game 5 2–1 after scoring two goals late in the third period. With Varlamov and Jonathan Bernier both out with injuries, Hammond started the game, making a career-high 44 saves.[144] However, the Predators blanked the Avalanche 5–0 in Game 6 to win the series.[145]

On November 18, 2018, the Avalanche earned its 1,000th win in team history, defeating the Ducks in overtime.[146] On May 2, 2019, it was announced that the City of Denver and KSE reached an agreement to keep both the Avalanche and Nuggets in the city until 2040.[147] The Avalanche returned to the playoffs in the 2019 season, finishing again in the final wild-card spot. However, the Avalanche were able to defeat the Calgary Flames in five games, with rookie Cale Makar scoring in his first career game during game 3. The Avalanche would then get eliminated in game 7 of the second round by the San Jose Sharks. During the 2019 offseason, the Avalanche traded long time defenseman Tyson Barrie to the Toronto Maple Leafs along with Alexander Kerfoot and a sixth-round pick in exchange for Nazem Kadri, Calle Rosen, and a third-round pick. The Avalanche improved their record significantly and were sitting at 2nd in their division when the Covid-19 Pandemic paused the NHL season in March 2020. When the NHL resumed their season in September, the Avalanche defeated the Arizona Coyotes in the first round, before being eliminated in game 7 by the Dallas Stars in round 2.

Following the 2020 playoffs, the Avalanche acquired Devon Toews from the New York Islanders in exchange for second-round picks in the 2021 and 2022 NHL Draft. The Avalanche continued to improve and finished the regular season with the Presidents Trophy. The Avalanche started the postseason with 6 straight wins, including a 7-1 blowout in game 1 of the second round against the Vegas Golden Knights. However, despite the Avalanche building a 2-0 series lead over Vegas, they failed to win another game of the series and were eliminated in six games. This loss marked their third straight second round exit.

2021–22 Stanley Cup champions

During the 2021 offseason, goaltender Phillip Grubauer left during free agency and signed contract with the Seattle Kraken. To address the need for a goaltender, the Avalanche traded Conor Timmins and a 2022 first-round pick in exchange for Darcy Kuemper. In the 2021–22 season, the Avalanche finished with 119 points, clinching the playoffs for the fifth straight time. They began the playoffs with a sweep over the Nashville Predators before defeating the St. Louis Blues in six games to advanced to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in 20 years. The Avalanche then swept the Edmonton Oilers to reach the Stanley Cup Finals. On June 26, 2022, the Avalanche won their third Stanley Cup in franchise history, defeating the two-time defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning in six games.[148] Following their victory, the had finished the postseason 16-4, which tied for the best postseason record since 1988. Cale Makar was named the winner of the Conn Smyth and Norris Memorial Trophies, following his exceptional regular season and playoff performances.

Team information

 
From 1995 to 2015, the Avalanche's alternate logo was the foot of a Yeti.

The Colorado Avalanche logo is composed by a burgundy letter A with snow wrapped around, similar to an avalanche. There is a hockey puck in the lower–right end of the snow and a steel blue oval on the background.[149]

The team's original alternate logo was the foot of a Yeti and was seen on the shoulders of the Avalanche's home and away jerseys. The logo was used on their jerseys since 1995; however, prior to the start of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, the club unveiled a new alternate logo. The new logo features the insignia taken from the Colorado state flag and re-colored to match the team's color scheme. The logo was featured on a patch located on the shoulders of the team's uniforms, along with a 20th-anniversary logo, for the 2015–16 season.[150]

Jerseys

The team colors are burgundy, steel blue, black, silver, and white. For the 2007–08 season, the NHL introduced the new-look "Reebok EDGE" jerseys. The Avalanche debuted their new version of the Reebok EDGE jerseys on September 12, 2007, at an Avalanche press conference. The design is similar to the previous jerseys, with some added piping.[151]

The road jersey from 1995–2003 was predominantly burgundy and steel blue in color. Along the jersey, there are two black and white zigzag lines, one on the shoulders, and the other near the belly. Between them, the jersey is burgundy; outside those lines it is steel blue. Similar lines exist around the neck. The Avalanche logo is in the center of the jersey. On top of the shoulders, there is an alternate logo, one on each side. The away jersey is similar but with different colors. The burgundy part on the home jersey is white on the away jersey, the steel blue part is burgundy, and the black and white lines became gray and steel blue. In 2003, the NHL switched home and road jerseys, with colors being worn at home and white jerseys on the road.[152][153]

The Avalanche introduced a third jersey during the 2001–02 season.[154] It is predominantly burgundy. "Colorado" is spelled in a diagonal across the jersey where the logo is on the other jerseys. From the belly down, three large horizontal stripes, the first and the last being black and the middle one being white. In the middle of the arms, there are five stripes, black, white, and burgundy from the outside inside on both sides. On the shoulders is the primary "A" logo. The third jersey was not worn by the Avalanche for the 2007–08 or the 2008–09 seasons after the NHL switched to the Reebok EDGE jerseys.

In the 2009–10 season, the Avalanche introduced a new third jersey that was worn for the first time during the November 14, 2009, home game against the Vancouver Canucks.[155] It is similar to the club's previous third jersey, but is primarily steel blue instead of burgundy and features burgundy patches on the shoulders with the "A" logo inside. It also does not have horizontal striping on the bottom. On the arms, there are five stripes, burgundy, white, and black from the outside inside on both sides. They are closer to the elbows than the stripes on the previous third jerseys.

Prior to the 2015–16 season, the Avalanche modified their existing uniform set by replacing the yeti foot shoulder logo in favor of the burgundy and black "C" logo. A new third jersey was also unveiled, featuring navy (instead of steel blue) as the dominant color, and a minimalized, recolored version of the Rockies logo in front.[156]

The "C" logo also served as the main crest of the Avalanche's 2016 NHL Stadium Series uniforms, which featured a white base, enlarged lettering and numbers, and steel blue, silver, and burgundy sleeve stripes.[157]

Before the 2017–18 season, the Avalanche unveiled new uniforms as part of the switch to Adidas. The look was inspired from the original uniforms they wore from 1995 to 2007, save for the bold silver border that pays homage to Colorado's silver mining industry. There were no third jerseys used during that season, but for the 2018–19 season, the Avalanche would wear their 2015–2017 navy uniforms as their alternates.[158] The navy uniforms are currently used in regular season home games against Central Division opponents (though during the 2020–21 season, they only wore them against the Minnesota Wild and St. Louis Blues as both Central Division teams were briefly realigned with the Avalanche on the West Division, and made an exception in the 2021 and 2022 home openers by wearing burgundy uniforms against the Chicago Blackhawks, as well as the November 21, 2022 home game against the Dallas Stars by wearing the "Reverse Retro" uniforms), which the Avalanche dub as "Division Rivalry Nights".[159][160]

As part of the 2020 NHL Stadium Series, the Avalanche unveiled special edition uniforms inspired by Colorado's majestic landscape and the Cadet Chapel of the United States Air Force Academy. The uniforms bore a steel blue top and burgundy bottom, with white accents forming the shape of an "A" in front and the middle stripe at the back.[161]

Before the 2020–21 season, the Avalanche unveiled a "Reverse Retro" alternate uniform. The design was taken from the classic Quebec Nordiques uniforms but recolored to match the Avalanche's current color scheme.[162] The Avalanche also revealed a new color scheme for their pants and helmets, with black replaced by steel blue.[163] The following season, the road white uniforms were tweaked to feature burgundy player names and steel blue numbers with burgundy trim, thus eliminating black from the color scheme.

A second "Reverse Retro" uniform (branded as Reverse Retro 2.0) was unveiled in the 2022–23 season, utilizing the 1995–2007 white uniform template but recolored to the blue, red and gold colors originally used by the NHL's Rockies and is found on the Colorado state flag. The "C" alternate logo replaced the primary in front.[164]

Broadcasters

Avalanche games air on regional sports network Altitude Sports and Entertainment since 2004, replacing FSN Rocky Mountain.[165] Peter Mcnab, the long-time color commentator for the Colorado Avalanche from 1995 until his death in 2022, is honored inside Ball Arena with a banner under broadcast booth.

  • Marc Moser – TV play-by-play[166]
  • Mark Rycroft – TV color commentator
  • John-Michael Liles – TV studio analyst
  • Kyle Keefe – TV studio host
  • Conor McGahey – Radio play-by-play/analyst
  • Mark Bertagnolli – Radio studio host
  • Alan Roach – Public address


Season-by-season record

This is a partial list of the last five seasons completed by the Avalanche. For the full season-by-season history, see List of Colorado Avalanche seasons

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against

Season GP W L OTL Pts GF GA Finish Playoffs
2017–18 82 43 30 9 95 257 237 4th, Central Lost in First Round, 2–4 (Predators)
2018–19 82 38 30 14 90 260 246 5th, Central Lost in Second Round, 3–4 (Sharks)
2019–20 70 42 20 8 92 237 191 2nd, Central Lost in Second Round, 3–4 (Stars)
2020–21 56 39 13 4 82 197 133 1st, West Lost in Second Round, 2–4 (Golden Knights)
2021–22 82 56 19 7 119 312 234 1st, Central Stanley Cup champions, 4–2 (Lightning)

Players and personnel

Current roster

Updated March 25, 2023[167][168]

No. Nat Player Pos S/G Age Acquired Birthplace
4   Bowen Byram D L 21 2019 Cranbrook, British Columbia
11   Andrew Cogliano LW L 35 2022 Toronto, Ontario
37   J. T. Compher C R 27 2015 Northbrook, Illinois
20   Lars Eller C L 33 2023 Rødovre, Denmark
39   Pavel Francouz   G R 32 2018 Plzeň, Czechoslovakia
40   Alexandar Georgiev G L 27 2022 Ruse, Bulgaria
49   Sam Girard D L 24 2017 Roberval, Quebec
43   Darren Helm C L 36 2021 St. Andrews, Manitoba
17   Brad Hunt D L 34 2022 Maple Ridge, British Columbia
31   Jonas Johansson G L 27 2022 Gavle, Sweden
6   Erik Johnson D R 35 2011 Bloomington, Minnesota
3   Jack Johnson D L 36 2023 Indianapolis, Indiana
92   Gabriel Landeskog (C)   LW L 30 2011 Stockholm, Sweden
62   Artturi Lehkonen   LW L 27 2022 Piikkiö, Finland
56   Kurtis MacDermid D/LW L 29 2021 Quebec City, Quebec
29   Nathan MacKinnon (A) C R 27 2013 Halifax, Nova Scotia
8   Cale Makar D R 24 2017 Calgary, Alberta
81   Denis Malgin C R 26 2022 Olten, Switzerland
42   Josh Manson   D R 31 2022 Hinsdale, Illinois
18   Alex Newhook C L 22 2019 St. John's, Newfoundland
13   Valeri Nichushkin RW L 28 2019 Chelyabinsk, Russia
83   Matt Nieto LW L 30 2023 Long Beach, California
25   Logan O'Connor RW R 26 2018 Missouri City, Texas
96   Mikko Rantanen (A) RW L 26 2015 Nousiainen, Finland
9   Evan Rodrigues   RW R 29 2022 Etobicoke, Ontario
7   Devon Toews D L 29 2020 Abbotsford, British Columbia


Team captains

 
Adam Foote was the team captain for the Avalanche from 2009 to 2011.

Note: This list of team captains does not include captains from the Quebec Nordiques (WHA & NHL).

General managers

Note: This list does not include general managers from the Quebec Nordiques (WHA & NHL).

Head coaches

Main article: List of Colorado Avalanche head coaches

The current head coach is Jared Bednar, who was named on August 31, 2016.[169]

Honored members

See also: List of Colorado Avalanche players and List of Colorado Avalanche award winners

Retired numbers

 
Three of the six banners for numbers retired by the Colorado Avalanche hanging at Ball Arena.

In addition to those below, the NHL retired Wayne Gretzky's No. 99 for all its member teams at the 2000 NHL All-Star Game.[170]

Colorado Avalanche retired numbers
No. Player Position Career No. retirement
19 Joe Sakic 1 C 1995–2009 October 1, 2009
21 Peter Forsberg C 1995–2004
2008, 2011		 October 8, 2011
23 Milan Hejduk RW 1998–2013 January 6, 2018
33 Patrick Roy G 1995–2003 October 28, 2003
52 Adam Foote D 1995–2004
2008–2011		 November 2, 2013
77 Ray Bourque D 2000–2001 November 24, 2001
Notes:
  • 1 The banner features the captain "C" to honor his eighteen years as team captain with both the Avalanche and predecessor Nordiques.

The numbers retired when the franchise was in Quebec – J. C. Tremblay's No. 3, Marc Tardif's No. 8, Michel Goulet's No. 16 and Peter Stastny's No. 26 – were entered back into circulation after the move to Colorado.

Hall of Famers

The Colorado Avalanche hold an affiliation with a number of inductees to the Hockey Hall of Fame. Ten inductees from the players category of the Hall of Fame are affiliated with the Avalanche. Of those ten, Forsberg, Roy, and Sakic earned their credentials primarily with the Avalanche.

Team culture

Rivalry with the Detroit Red Wings

See also: Avalanche-Red Wings rivalry and Avalanche-Red Wings brawl

In 1996, the Colorado Avalanche met the Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference Finals and upset the Red Wings 4–2. During Game 6, Red Wings player Kris Draper was checked into the boards face-first by Avalanche player Claude Lemieux.[171] As a result, Draper had to undergo facial reconstructive surgery and had to have his jaw wired shut for five weeks.[172] The incident marked the beginning of a rivalry often considered one of the most intense in NHL history by the press and fans.[173]

In the following season, in the last regular season meeting between the Avalanche and the Red Wings on March 26, 1997, a brawl known as the Brawl in Hockeytown broke out. The game ended with nine fights, 11 goals, 39 penalties, 148 penalty minutes, one hat-trick (by Valeri Kamensky) and a goaltender fight between Stanley Cup champion Patrick Roy and Mike Vernon.[172] Claude Lemieux was one of the players singled out by the Red Wings players. The Red Wings ended up winning the game in overtime 6–5.[172] The teams met again in the Western Conference Finals that season, with the Red Wings emerging victorious and going on to win the Stanley Cup.

The rivalry between the Avalanche and the Red Wings was at its peak from 1996 to 2002.[174] During those seven seasons the two teams played five postseason series against each other in the Stanley Cup playoffs, with the Avalanche winning three of the series (1995–96, 4–2; 1998–99, 4–2; 1999–2000, 4–1) and the Red Wings winning two of them (1996–97, 4–2; 2001–02, 4–3).[174] During this time frame, these two teams combined for a total of five Stanley Cup championships in seven years, the Avalanche winning twice (1995–96 and 2000–01) and the Red Wings winning three times (1996–97, 1997–98 and 2001–02).[174] After 2002, the rivalry between the two teams began to cool down, and the two teams would not meet again in the playoffs until 2008, when the Red Wings swept the Avalanche in the Western Conference Semi-finals and went on to win the Stanley Cup.[174] The Red Wings moved to the Eastern Conference in 2013–14 season as part of the realignment which makes the two rivals only see each other twice a year.[175]

Franchise records and leaders

Franchise scoring leaders

 
Scoring 805 points as an Avalanche, Milan Hejduk is the franchise's fourth highest all-time points leader.

These are the top-ten-point-scorers in franchise (Quebec and Colorado) history. Figures are updated after each completed NHL regular season.

  •  *  – current Avalanche player

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game

Franchise records

Note: This list does not include records from the Quebec Nordiques (WHA & NHL). Items in bold are NHL records. Records as of April 9, 2007.[36][176][177]

 
Recording 86 assists, Peter Forsberg holds the Avalanche's franchise record for most assists in a single season.

Regular season

Playoffs

Team

  • Most consecutive division titles: 9 (1994–95 to 2002–03)[58]
  • Most points in a season: 119 (2021–22)
  • Most wins in a season: 56 (2021–22)
  • Most goals: 326 (1995–96)
  • Largest margin of victory: 10 (December 5, 1995, vs San Jose (12–2))
  • Longest consecutive attendance sellout: 487 (1995–2006)[83]
  • Most points without making Stanley Cup playoffs: 95 (2006–07)

See also

References

General

  • . The Internet Hockey Database. Archived from the original on October 1, 2007. Retrieved July 8, 2007.
  • (PDF). Colorado Avalanche. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 10, 2007. Retrieved July 8, 2007.

Footnotes

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  2. ^ "Avalanche Directory" (PDF). 2022–2023 Colorado Avalanche Media Guide (PDF). NHL Enterprises, L.P. Retrieved March 7, 2023.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ Harden, Mark (October 7, 2015). "NFL owners let Kroenke keep Rams; transfer Nuggets, Avalanche to his wife". Denver Business Journal. Retrieved May 31, 2018.
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  6. ^ "WHA Yearly Standings". WHA Hockey. Retrieved March 25, 2007.
  7. ^ . National Hockey League. Archived from the original on May 21, 2011. Retrieved March 25, 2007.
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  10. ^ . National Hockey League. Archived from the original on January 24, 2001. Retrieved March 25, 2007.
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  12. ^ "As expected, Quebec selects Lindros No.1". Associated Press. June 23, 1991. Retrieved March 25, 2007.
  13. ^ "Eric Lindros notes". National Hockey League. Retrieved February 22, 2010.
  14. ^ "The List: Readers Pick Most Lopsided Trades". ESPN. Retrieved July 11, 2007.
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  18. ^ "Quebec's Government Plans Bailout to keep Nordiques from moving". Associated Press. April 9, 1994. Retrieved March 25, 2007.
  19. ^ "NHL's Nordiques sold, moving west to Denver \ Comsat Entertainment Group bought the team. Quebec had refused to fund a new hockey arena". The Philadelphia Inquirer. May 26, 1995. Retrieved March 25, 2007.
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  23. ^ "Nordiques' Move To Denver Finalized". Chicago Tribune. June 22, 1995. Retrieved March 5, 2018. Lyons said the hockey team, which will play in the Pacific Division, already has sold 7,500 season tickets.
  24. ^ a b c "Denver Nuggets – Company History". Funding Universe. Retrieved June 17, 2007.
  25. ^ Butzer, Stephanie (June 15, 2022). "A look back at the Colorado Avalanche's first-ever game in 1995, Stanley Cup win in 1996". KMGH-TV. Retrieved June 17, 2022.
  26. ^ Sadowski, Rick (June 29, 2006). . Rocky Mountain News. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved March 25, 2007.
  27. ^ Ulman, Howard (June 11, 1996). "No stopping the Avalanche – Colorado completes Cup sweep of Panthers with 3OT victory". Associated Press. Retrieved March 25, 2007.
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  32. ^ "Legends of Hockey – NHL Player Search – Player – Sandis Ozolinsh". hhof.com. Retrieved November 14, 2018.
  33. ^ Legends of Hockey (2007). . Legends of Hockey. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved April 9, 2007.
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  38. ^ Staff, From; Reports, Wire (May 28, 1998). "Avalanche Says That Crawford Quit Job". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 15, 2018.
  39. ^ "N.H.L.: COLORADO; Hartley Picked To Coach Avalanche". The New York Times. Associated Press. June 3, 1998. Retrieved November 15, 2018.
  40. ^ "HOCKEY; In Denver, Games Are Called Off". The New York Times. Associated Press. April 22, 1999. Retrieved July 18, 2019.
  41. ^ "The 10 least-deserving NHL award winners of the past 20 years". ESPN.com. July 20, 2018. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
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External links

 
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  • Official website  

March 26, 2023
colorado, avalanche, this, article, about, hockey, team, former, soccer, team, denver, denver, avalanche, colloquially, known, professional, hockey, team, based, denver, they, compete, national, hockey, league, member, central, division, western, conference, a. This article is about the hockey team For the former soccer team in Denver see Denver Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche colloquially known as the Avs are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver They compete in the National Hockey League NHL as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference The Avalanche play their home games at Ball Arena which they share with the NBA s Denver Nuggets and Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League Colorado Avalanche2022 23 Colorado Avalanche seasonConferenceWesternDivisionCentralFounded1972HistoryQuebec Nordiques1972 1979 WHA 1979 1995 NHL Colorado Avalanche1995 presentHome arenaBall ArenaCityDenver ColoradoColorsBurgundy blue silver black 1 2 MediaAltitude Sports and EntertainmentAltitude 950Altitude Sports 92 5Owner s Kroenke Sports amp Entertainment 3 General managerChris MacFarlandHead coachJared BednarCaptainGabriel LandeskogMinor league affiliatesColorado Eagles AHL Utah Grizzlies ECHL Stanley Cups3 1995 96 2000 01 2021 22 Conference championships3 1995 96 2000 01 2021 22 Presidents Trophy3 1996 97 2000 01 2020 21 Division championships11 1995 96 1996 97 1997 98 1998 99 1999 00 2000 01 2001 02 2002 03 2013 14 2020 21 2021 22 Official websitewww wbr nhl wbr com wbr avalancheFounded in 1972 as the Quebec Nordiques the team was one of the charter franchises of the World Hockey Association The franchise joined the NHL in 1979 as a result of the NHL WHA merger Following the 1994 95 season they were sold to the COMSAT Entertainment Group and relocated to Denver During their first season in Denver the Avalanche won the Pacific Division and went on to sweep the Florida Panthers in the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals The 1996 Avalanche became the first Denver based team in the four major North American professional sports leagues to win a league championship They were also the second major North American sports team to win a championship a year after relocating joining the National Football League NFL s 1937 Washington Redskins In the 2001 Stanley Cup Finals the Avalanche defeated the New Jersey Devils in seven games to win their second championship In the 2022 Stanley Cup Finals the Avalanche defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games to win their third championship As a result they remain the only active NHL team that has won all of its appearances in the Stanley Cup Finals The Avalanche have won eleven division titles since relocating to Denver and set the league record for most consecutive division titles at nine in a row from 1995 to 2003 one in Quebec the rest in Colorado and qualified for the playoffs in each of their first ten seasons after relocation this streak ended in 2007 4 Contents 1 Franchise history 1 1 Quebec Nordiques 1972 1995 1 2 Colorado Avalanche 1995 present 1 2 1 Early success 1995 2001 1 2 1 1 1995 96 Stanley Cup champions 1 2 1 2 2000 01 Stanley Cup champions 1 2 2 Remaining competitive 2001 2006 1 2 3 New beginnings 2006 2009 1 2 4 Decline 2009 2016 1 2 5 Jared Bednar era 2016 present 1 2 6 2021 22 Stanley Cup champions 2 Team information 2 1 Logo 2 2 Jerseys 2 3 Broadcasters 3 Season by season record 4 Players and personnel 4 1 Current roster 4 2 Team captains 4 3 General managers 4 4 Head coaches 5 Honored members 5 1 Retired numbers 5 2 Hall of Famers 6 Team culture 6 1 Rivalry with the Detroit Red Wings 7 Franchise records and leaders 7 1 Franchise scoring leaders 7 2 Franchise records 7 2 1 Regular season 7 2 2 Playoffs 7 2 3 Team 8 See also 9 References 9 1 General 9 2 Footnotes 10 External linksFranchise history EditQuebec Nordiques 1972 1995 Edit Main article Quebec Nordiques The Quebec Nordiques were one of the World Hockey Association s WHA original teams when the league began play in 1972 Though first awarded to a group in San Francisco the team was subsequently sold and relocated to Quebec City prior to the start of the league s opening 5 During their seven WHA seasons the Nordiques won the Avco World Trophy once in 1977 and lost the finals once in 1975 6 In 1979 the franchise entered the NHL along with the WHA s Edmonton Oilers Hartford Whalers and Winnipeg Jets 7 Quebec Nordiques practicing prior to a game in the 1986 87 season The Avalanche previously played as the Nordiques from 1972 to 1995 After making the postseason for seven consecutive years from 1981 to 1987 the Nordiques started to decline From 1987 88 to 1991 92 the team finished last in their division every season with three of those finishes landing them last in the league This included a dreadful 12 win season in 1989 90 that is still the worst in franchise history 8 As a result the team earned three consecutive first overall draft picks used to select Mats Sundin 1989 Owen Nolan 1990 and Eric Lindros 1991 9 10 Lindros made it clear he did not wish to play for the Nordiques 11 to the extent he did not wear the team s jersey for the press photographs only holding it when it was presented to him 12 On advice from his mother he refused to sign a contract and began a holdout that lasted over a year On June 30 1992 he was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for five players the rights to Swedish prospect Peter Forsberg two first round draft picks and US 15 million 13 The Eric Lindros trade turned the moribund Nordiques into a Stanley Cup contender almost overnight and is seen in hindsight as one of the most one sided deals in sports history 14 In the first season after the trade 1992 93 the Nordiques reached the playoffs for the first time in six years 15 Two years later they won the Northeast Division and had the second best regular season record during the lockout shortened season 16 While the team experienced on ice success it spent most of its first 23 years struggling financially Quebec City was by far the smallest market in the NHL 17 and the changing financial environment in the NHL made things even more difficult In 1995 team owner Marcel Aubut asked for a bailout from Quebec s provincial government 18 as well as a new publicly funded arena 17 The bailout fell through and Aubut subsequently began talks with COMSAT Entertainment Group in Denver which already owned the Denver Nuggets 19 In May 1995 COMSAT announced an agreement in principle to purchase the team 20 The deal became official on July 1 1995 and 12 000 season tickets were sold in the 37 days after the announcement of the move 20 COMSAT considered several names for the team including Extreme Blizzards and Black Bears It also debated whether to brand the team as a Denver team or as a regional franchise representing either Colorado or the entire Rocky Mountain region Initially COMSAT filed copyright protection for Black Bears 21 but reportedly decided to name the team Rocky Mountain Extreme When The Denver Post leaked the intended name fan reaction was so negative that COMSAT reconsidered and chose the name Colorado Avalanche 22 The new name was revealed on August 10 1995 20 With the move the newly relocated team transferred to the Pacific Division of the Western Conference 23 Colorado Avalanche 1995 present Edit Early success 1995 2001 Edit Patrick Roy played for the Avalanche from 1995 to 2003 After purchasing the team COMSAT organized its Denver sports franchises under a separate subsidiary Ascent Entertainment Group Inc which went public in 1995 COMSAT retained an 80 controlling interest with the other 20 available on NASDAQ 24 The Avalanche played their first game in the McNichols Sports Arena in Denver on October 6 1995 winning 3 2 against the Detroit Red Wings It marked a return of the NHL to Denver after an absence of 13 years when the Colorado Rockies not to be confused with the Major League Baseball team of the same name moved to New Jersey to become the New Jersey Devils Valeri Kamensky scored the first goal as the Avalanche as well as the game winning goal in the final minutes 25 Led on the ice by captain Joe Sakic forward Peter Forsberg and defenseman Adam Foote and with Pierre Lacroix as the general manager and Marc Crawford as the head coach the Avalanche became stronger when All Star Montreal Canadiens goaltender Patrick Roy joined the team Roy joined the Avalanche on December 6 1995 together with ex Montreal captain Mike Keane in a trade for Jocelyn Thibault Martin Rucinsky and Andrei Kovalenko 26 1995 96 Stanley Cup champions Edit The Avalanche finished the regular season with a 47 25 10 record for 104 points won the Pacific Division and finished second in the Western Conference Colorado progressed to the playoffs defeating the Vancouver Canucks Chicago Blackhawks and the Presidents Trophy winning Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference Finals all in six games In the Stanley Cup Finals the Avalanche met the Florida Panthers who were also in their first Finals The Avalanche swept the series 4 0 In Game 4 during the third overtime and after more than 100 minutes of play with no goals defenseman Uwe Krupp scored to claim the franchise s first Stanley Cup 27 Joe Sakic was the playoff s scoring leader with 34 points 18 goals and 16 assists 28 winning the Conn Smythe Trophy The 1995 96 Cup was the first major professional championship won by a Denver team The Avalanche are the only team in NHL history to win the Stanley Cup their first season after a relocation and only the second team to win a championship their first season after a relocation in any of the four major North American sports leagues following the NFL s Washington Commanders They also became the second team from the WHA to win the Cup 20 With the Cup win Russians Alexei Gusarov and Valeri Kamensky and Swede Peter Forsberg became members of the Triple Gold Club the exclusive group of ice hockey players who have won Olympic gold World Championship gold and the Stanley Cup 29 In 1996 97 Colorado won the Pacific Division again as well as the Presidents Trophy for finishing the regular season with the best record in the NHL at 49 24 9 for 107 points 30 The team was also the NHL s best scoring with an average of 3 38 goals scored per game The Avalanche met the two lowest scorers of the Western Conference in the first two rounds of the playoffs the Chicago Blackhawks and the Edmonton Oilers defeating them in six and five games respectively 31 During a rematch of the previous year Western Conference Finals the Avalanche lost to the Detroit Red Wings in six games 31 Detroit went on to sweep the Stanley Cup Finals just as the Avalanche had done the year before 31 Sandis Ozolinsh was elected for the NHL s first All Star team at the end of the season 32 In 1997 the Avalanche matched an offer sheet on Joe Sakic instigating salary raises throughout the NHL As a free agent during the summer of 1997 Joe Sakic signed a three year 21 million offer sheet with the New York Rangers Under the collective agreement in place at the time between the NHL and NHL Players Association NHLPA the Avalanche had one week to match the Rangers offer or let go of Sakic Colorado would match the offer 33 which instigated a salary raise for NHL players 34 The Avalanche sent 10 players representing seven countries as well as head coach Marc Crawford representing Canada to the 1998 Winter Olympics ice hockey tournament in Nagano Japan 35 Milan Hejduk won the gold medal with Czech Republic Alexei Gusarov and Valeri Kamensky won the silver medal with Russia and Jari Kurri won bronze with Finland 36 In the following season Colorado won the Pacific Division with a 39 26 17 record for 95 points The team lost in the Western Conference Quarterfinals against the Edmonton Oilers in seven games having led the series 3 1 37 Peter Forsberg was the NHL s second highest scorer in the regular season with 91 points 25 goals and 66 assists and was elected for the NHL s First All Star Team 37 After the end of the season head coach Marc Crawford rejected the team s offer of a two year contract 38 Bob Hartley was hired to the head coach position in June 1998 39 In 1998 99 with the addition of the Nashville Predators the NHL realigned their divisions moving the Avalanche to the new Northwest Division Despite a slow 2 6 1 start Colorado finished with a 44 28 10 record for 98 points won the Division and finished second in the Western Conference Between January 10 and February 7 the Avalanche had their longest ever winning streak with 12 games 36 Following the Columbine High School massacre Colorado postponed their first two playoff games to a later date they would wear patches in honor of the Columbine victims on their jerseys during the playoffs The series was altered to a 2 3 2 format as a result of the tragedy 40 After defeating both the San Jose Sharks and the Detroit Red Wings in six games in the first two rounds Colorado met the Presidents Trophy winning Dallas Stars in the Conference Finals where they lost in seven games Forsberg the playoffs leading scorer with 24 points 8 goals and 16 assists 28 was again elected to the NHL s First All Star team and Chris Drury won the Calder Memorial Trophy for the best rookie of the season 41 Both Drury and Hejduk were elected to the NHL All Rookie Team at the end of the season The Pepsi Center opened as the Avalanche s new home arena in 1999 It was in the 1999 2000 season that the Colorado Avalanche played their first game in the new Pepsi Center which cost US 160 million 42 Milan Hejduk scored the first goal of a 2 1 victory against the Boston Bruins on October 13 1999 43 The Avalanche finished the season with a 42 28 11 1 record for 96 points winning the Division Before the playoffs the Avalanche strengthened their defense for a run towards the Stanley Cup citation needed On March 6 2000 the Boston Bruins traded future Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman Ray Bourque and forward Dave Andreychuk to Colorado for Brian Rolston Martin Grenier Samuel Pahlsson and a first round draft pick Bourque who had been a Bruin since 1979 requested a trade to a contender for a chance to win the Stanley Cup 44 However Colorado lost in the Conference Finals against the Dallas Stars in seven games after defeating the Phoenix Coyotes and Detroit Red Wings in five games 45 46 The Avalanche s success came amid considerable turmoil in the front office COMSAT s diversification into sports ownership was proving a drain on the company Cost overruns associated with the construction of Pepsi Center had shareholders up in arms Finally in 1997 COMSAT agreed in principle to sell Ascent to Liberty Media 24 However Liberty was not interested in sports ownership at the time though it has since purchased Major League Baseball s Atlanta Braves and made the deal contingent upon Ascent selling both the Avalanche and Nuggets 47 After almost two years Ascent sold the teams to Wal Mart heirs Bill and Nancy Laurie for 400 million However a group of Ascent shareholders sued claiming the sale price was several million dollars too low Ascent then agreed to sell the teams to Denver banking tycoon Donald Sturm for 461 million 48 A new wrinkle appeared when the City of Denver refused to transfer the parcel of land on which Pepsi Center stood unless Sturm promised to keep the Avalanche and Nuggets in Denver for at least 25 years Sturm had made his bid in his own name and the city wanted to protect taxpayers in the event Sturm either died or sold the teams While Sturm was willing to make a long term commitment to the city he was not willing to be held responsible if he died or sold the teams After negotiations fell apart Liberty bought all of Ascent but kept the Nuggets and Avalanche on the market 49 Finally in July 2000 the teams and the Pepsi Center were bought by real estate entrepreneur Stan Kroenke and brother in law to the Lauries in a 450 million deal 24 with Liberty retaining a 6 5 interest As part of the deal Kroenke placed the teams into a trust that would ensure they stay in Denver until at least 2025 49 After the deal Kroenke organized his sports assets under Kroenke Sports Enterprises 2000 01 Stanley Cup champions Edit The 2000 01 season was the best season the team has ever had due to phenomenal play by the all time leading scorer in Avalanche history Joe Sakic The Avalanche won the Division and captured their second Presidents Trophy after having finished the regular season with 52 16 10 4 for 118 points Sakic finished the regular season with 118 points 54 goals and 64 assists only three behind Jaromir Jagr s 121 points On February 4 2001 the Avalanche hosted the 51st NHL All Star Game Patrick Roy Ray Bourque and Joe Sakic played for the North American team who won 14 12 against the World team which featured Milan Hejduk and Peter Forsberg All but Hejduk were part of the starting lineups 36 Before the playoffs the Avalanche acquired star defenseman Rob Blake and center Steven Reinprecht from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Adam Deadmarsh Aaron Miller and their first round 2001 Draft pick 50 The engraved names of the 2001 Stanley Cup champions the Colorado Avalanche In the playoffs Colorado swept their Western Conference Quarterfinals against the Vancouver Canucks In the Western Conference Semi finals the Avalanche defeated the Los Angeles Kings in seven games after having wasted a 3 1 lead After the last game of the series Peter Forsberg underwent surgery to remove a ruptured spleen and it was announced he would not play until the following season The injury was a huge upset for the team former NHL goaltender Darren Pang considered it devastating to the Colorado Avalanche 51 The team would overcome Forsberg s injury in the Western Conference Finals Colorado defeated the St Louis Blues 4 1 and progressed to the Stanley Cup Finals where they faced the defending champion New Jersey Devils The Avalanche came back from a 3 2 series deficit and won the series 4 3 marking the second year in a row that defending champions lost in the Finals as the Devils themselves defeated the Dallas Stars in 2000 After being handed the Cup from NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman captain Joe Sakic immediately turned and gave it to Ray Bourque capping off Bourque s 22 year career with his only championship 52 Sakic was the playoffs leading scorer with 26 points 13 goals and 13 assists 28 He won the Hart Memorial Trophy given to the NHL s most valuable player during the regular season the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy awarded to the player that has shown the best sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with performance in play the Lester B Pearson Award and shared the NHL Plus Minus Award with Patrik Elias of the Devils Patrick Roy won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs 53 Shjon Podein was awarded the King Clancy Memorial Trophy for significant humanitarian contributions to his community namely his work on charitable organizations and his own children foundation 54 Ray Bourque and Joe Sakic were elected to the NHL s First All Star Team Rob Blake was elected to the Second All Star Team 55 56 Remaining competitive 2001 2006 Edit In the 2001 02 season Colorado finished the regular season with 99 points from a 45 28 8 1 record winning the Northwest Division Colorado had the league s lowest goals conceded 169 an average of 2 06 per game The NHL season was interrupted for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City The Avalanche had nine players representing six countries Canada won the ice hockey tournament with Rob Blake Adam Foote and Joe Sakic won gold medals American Chris Drury took home a silver medal 36 With the win Blake and Sakic became members of the Triple Gold Club 29 The Avalanche advanced through the first two rounds of the playoffs winning 4 3 against the Los Angeles Kings and 4 3 against the San Jose Sharks Patrick Roy had a shutout on the decisive game of each series 57 The Avalanche made the Western Conference Finals for the fourth consecutive season and sixth overall in the last seven seasons meeting the Detroit Red Wings in the playoffs for the fifth time in seven years Colorado had a 3 2 lead after five games but lost Game 6 at home 2 0 and Game 7 in Detroit 7 0 As in 1997 Detroit went on to win the Stanley Cup Peter Forsberg was the playoffs leader scorer with 27 points 9 goals 18 assists 28 Roy won the William M Jennings Trophy given to the goaltenders of the team with fewest goals scored against Roy and Sakic were both elected to the NHL s First All Star Team with Rob Blake elected to the Second All Star Team The following season 2002 03 saw the Avalanche claim the NHL record for most consecutive division titles nine 58 breaking the Montreal Canadiens streak of eight titles from 1974 1982 59 The division title came after a bad start by the team that led to the exit of head coach Bob Hartley in December 60 General manager Pierre Lacroix promoted assistant coach Tony Granato who had only three months of coaching experience as an assistant to the head coach position 61 The team s playoff spot seemed in doubt at one point but the Avalanche managed to finish with 105 points ahead of the Vancouver Canucks by one The race to the title was exciting namely the second to last game of the season as the Avalanche needed to win the game to stay in the race and Milan Hejduk scored with ten seconds left in overtime to defeat the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 62 The title was guaranteed in the final day of the regular season when the Avalanche defeated the St Louis Blues 5 2 and the Vancouver Canucks lost against the Los Angeles Kings 2 0 63 In the Western Conference Quarterfinals the Avalanche blew a 3 1 series lead over the Minnesota Wild losing in overtime in Game 7 64 Peter Forsberg won the Art Ross Trophy for the leading scorer of the regular season which he finished with 106 points 29 goals 77 assists Forsberg also won the Hart Memorial Trophy for the regular season s most valuable player and shared the NHL Plus Minus Award with teammate Hejduk Hejduk scored 50 goals to win the Maurice Rocket Richard Trophy awarded annually to the leading goal scorer in the NHL Forsberg was elected to the NHL s First All Star Team Hejduk was elected to the Second All Star Team Patrick Roy retired after that season and the team signed star wingers Paul Kariya from the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim and Teemu Selanne from the San Jose Sharks 65 66 Both struggled during their first season with the team Kariya spent most of the 2003 04 season injured and Selanne scored only 32 points 16 goals and 16 assists in 78 games 67 There were doubts if goaltender David Aebischer could perform at the top level the team was used to while having Roy 68 Having nine elite players 69 the most talented top six forwards on one team since the days of the Edmonton Oilers 70 was not good enough as the franchise failed to win the Northwest Division title ending the NHL record streak The 40 22 13 7 record was good enough for 100 points one less than the Northwest Division champion Vancouver Canucks This ended a streak of nine consecutive division titles dating to the team s last year in Quebec 4 During a game against Vancouver on March 8 2004 Canucks player Todd Bertuzzi punched Colorado s Steve Moore from behind leaving Moore unconscious It was said to be retaliation for a hit Moore had delivered to Canucks captain Markus Naslund the month before 71 Moore sustained three fractured neck vertebrae among other injuries caused by the hit and subsequent pile up ending his career 72 Bertuzzi was away from professional hockey for 17 months as a result of suspensions 73 In Denver after the Moore hit it became tradition for the home fans to boo Todd Bertuzzi every time he gained possession of the puck whenever his team faced the Avalanche at Pepsi Center In the 2004 playoffs Colorado won the Western Conference Quarterfinals against the Dallas Stars in five games but lost in the Semi finals against the Sharks in six games Joe Sakic was once again elected to the 2004 All star team winning the NHL Sheraton Road Performer Award and became the first Avalanche player ever to be chosen as game MVP when he scored a hat trick 36 In July 2004 Joel Quenneville was hired for the position of head coach replacing Tony Granato who became his assistant 61 The 2004 05 NHL season was canceled because of an unresolved lockout During the lockout many Avalanche players played in European leagues 74 David Aebischer returned home with Alex Tanguay to play for Swiss club HC Lugano Milan Hejduk and Peter Forsberg returned to their former teams in their native countries HC Pardubice and Modo Hockey Nine other players from the roster played in Europe during the lockout 74 After the 2004 05 lockout and implementation of a salary cap the Avalanche were forced to release some of their top players Peter Forsberg and Adam Foote were lost in free agency to save room in the cap for Joe Sakic and Rob Blake 75 Although the salary cap was a blow to one of the highest spenders of the league 76 the team finished the 2005 06 regular season with a 43 30 9 record for 95 points good enough to finish second in the Division seven behind the Calgary Flames and tied with the Edmonton Oilers The season paused in February for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin Italy The Avalanche sent a league leading 11 players from eight countries 35 Finnish Antti Laaksonen earned the silver medal while Ossi Vaananen ended up not playing because of an injury Czech Milan Hejduk won a bronze medal 36 In the Conference Quarterfinals Colorado defeated Dallas Stars team that had the second best record in the Conference in five games The team lost the Semi finals swept for the first time ever Anaheim Ducks The next day Pierre Lacroix resigned after service as GM since 1994 and Francois Giguere was hired as his replacement 77 78 Lacroix remained president of the franchise until spring 2013 when the team owner s son Josh Kroenke took over as team president and governor Pierre Lacroix remained an advisor to the team until his death in 2020 from COVID 19 79 80 New beginnings 2006 2009 Edit By the beginning of the 2006 07 season Joe Sakic and Milan Hejduk were the only two remaining members from the 2000 01 Stanley Cup winning squad with Sakic being the only one from the team s days in Quebec though Hejduk was drafted by the Nordiques Paul Stastny son of Nordiques legend Peter Stastny also provided a link to the franchise s past Before the previous season s playoffs in a move reminiscent of Patrick Roy s trade the Avalanche traded Aebischer to the Montreal Canadiens for the Vezina Trophy winning Jose Theodore 81 However the move would not turn out to be as successful when Theodore posted a 13 15 1 record in 2006 07 with an 891 save percentage and 3 26 goals against average GAA His US 6 million salary became a heavy burden for the Avalanche in the salary cap era 82 That same season saw an 11 year sell out streak of 487 home games ended on October 16 2006 in a home game against the Chicago Blackhawks that saw the Pepsi Center under capacity by 326 seats 83 The sell out streak was an all time NHL record for the longest consecutive attendance sell outs at home games with 487 and began on November 9 1995 on the Avalanche s eighth regular season home game during the 1995 96 season at the McNichols Sports Arena 84 The record has since been broken by the Pittsburgh Penguins who saw their own streak end in October of 2021 at 633 games 85 The Avalanche missed the playoffs for the 2006 07 season missing it for the first time since 1993 94 when they were still in Quebec The team had a 15 2 2 run in the last 19 games of the season to keep their playoffs hopes alive until the penultimate day of the season A 4 2 loss against the Nashville Predators on April 7 with former player Peter Forsberg assisting the game winning goal scored by another former player Paul Kariya eliminated Colorado from the playoff race 86 As consolation the team won the last game of the season against the Calgary Flames the following day and finished fourth in the Northwest Division and ninth in the Western Conference with a 44 31 7 record for 95 points one less than eighth seeded Calgary Nonetheless the result was greater than expected by hockey pundits Sports Illustrated previewed before the start of the season that the Avalanche would finish 13th in the Western Conference 87 During that last game of the season Joe Sakic scored a goal and two assists and became the second oldest player in NHL history to reach 100 points behind only Gordie Howe who had 103 points at age 40 in the 1968 69 season 88 During the season Paul Stastny set an NHL record for longest point streak by a rookie with 20 games 89 three more than the previous record held by Teemu Selanne 90 and Karlis Skrastins set a new NHL record for the longest game streak by a defenseman with 495 games 91 Until the Avalanche s 2006 07 season no team in the history of the NHL had ever made it to 95 points without earning a spot in the playoffs 92 In the Eastern Conference three teams progressed to the playoffs with fewer than 95 points the New York Rangers 94 the Tampa Bay Lightning 93 and the New York Islanders 92 The Avalanche signed Ryan Smyth prior to the 2007 08 season For the 2007 08 season the Avalanche signed two free agents defenseman Scott Hannan and left winger Ryan Smyth These acquisitions filled the team s needs and were expected to help make an impact in the playoffs 93 On February 25 2008 unrestricted free agent Peter Forsberg signed with the Avalanche for the remainder of the 2007 08 season 94 A day later at the trade deadline they re acquired defenseman Adam Foote from the Columbus Blue Jackets as well as Ruslan Salei from the Florida Panthers 95 In the Western Conference Quarter finals Colorado defeated the Minnesota Wild in six games 96 In the Western Conference Semi finals however the Avalanche were swept 97 by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings 98 On May 9 2008 the Avalanche announced that Joel Quenneville would not return to coach the team next season Two weeks later Tony Granato was named head coach of the Avalanche for the second time 99 The 2008 09 season was the worst season the Avalanche had since moving to Denver 100 Posting a record of 32 45 5 finishing 15th in the Western Conference 28th overall and recording the fewest points since their days in Quebec during the 1979 80 season 101 The Avalanche missed the postseason for the second time in three seasons It would be the first time in Avalanche history the team s top scorer would score less than 70 points on the season as Milan Hejduk and Ryan Smyth would register only 59 points each 101 102 On April 13 2009 just one day after the end of the season the Avalanche relieved Francois Giguere of his general manager duties 103 Colorado would go on to receive the highest draft pick in Avalanche history third overall 104 That pick turned out to be Brampton Battalion star Matt Duchene 104 Decline 2009 2016 Edit Members of the Avalanche celebrate a win against the Vancouver Canucks clinching the eighth and final Western Conference seed for the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs In the 2009 off season the Avalanche named Greg Sherman the new general manager and Joe Sacco the new head coach 105 106 The following month top scorer Ryan Smyth was traded to the Los Angeles Kings and Joe Sakic the only team captain the Avalanche had ever known retired after 21 seasons in the NHL 107 The Avalanche named Adam Foote as his replacement 108 Sakic s jersey retirement ceremony took place on October 1 2009 before the season opener at home against the San Jose Sharks where the Avalanche won 5 2 109 The Avalanche started the season off strong until the Olympic break Three Avalanche team members played in Vancouver Paul Stastny for the United States Ruslan Salei for Belarus and Peter Budaj for Slovakia 110 Following the Winter Olympics the Avalanche struggled but eventually clinched a playoff spot with 95 points on the season a 26 point improvement from the previous year s effort and good enough for eighth place in the Western Conference 111 The Avalanche fell in the Western Conference Quarterfinals to the top seeded San Jose Sharks in six games 112 Stan Kroenke purchased full ownership in the NFL s St Louis Rams in 2010 Since the NFL does not allow its owners to hold majority control of major league teams in other NFL cities Kroenke turned over day to day control of the Nuggets and Avalanche to his son Josh toward the end of 2010 Kroenke had to sell his controlling interest in both teams by 2014 113 114 In 2010 the Avalanche made it to the playoffs but lost in the quarterfinals 4 2 against San Jose 115 Joe Sacco finished third in Jack Adams Trophy voting that season The Avalanche failed to qualify for the playoffs in 2011 116 In the 2010 11 season the Avalanche saw their worst season yet since moving to Denver They only had 68 points in the standings and had winless streaks after the All Star break 117 118 They finished 29th in the 30 team NHL besting only their division mates the Edmonton Oilers 117 Matt Duchene set a franchise record as the youngest scoring leader in Quebec Colorado history with 67 points sharing the club goals leader title with David Jones 119 Former Avalanche player Peter Forsberg attempted a comeback in the NHL with Colorado mid season However after two games no points and compiling a plus minus rating of 4 Forsberg announced his retirement from professional hockey 120 121 Captain Adam Foote also retired after the final game of the season 122 Gabriel Landeskog during his rookie season Landeskog was selected second overall in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft In the off season Colorado had two first round picks Present at the draft former Avalanche great Joe Sakic served his first duties as new alternate governor and adviser of hockey operations of the club With their first pick second overall they selected Gabriel Landeskog the young captain of the Ontario Hockey League s Kitchener Rangers 123 124 Second they selected defenseman Duncan Siemens 11th overall a pick acquired from the St Louis Blues in the controversial trade that sent power forward Chris Stewart long time top prospect Kevin Shattenkirk and a second round pick to the Blues in exchange for their first round pick veteran Jay McClement and 2006 former first overall pick Erik Johnson A complete overhaul at the goal tending position sent Peter Budaj to the Montreal Canadiens and Brian Elliott to St Louis Elliott having been acquired from the Ottawa Senators for Craig Anderson during the team s downward spiral the season previous Goaltender Semyon Varlamov was dealt to Colorado from the Washington Capitals in exchange for a first and second pick while veteran netminder and former Conn Smythe Trophy winner Jean Sebastien Giguere was signed as a free agent in hopes to mentor the young Varlamov Duncan Siemens was sent back to his major junior team the Saskatoon Blades in camp while Gabriel Landeskog made the opening night roster against the Red Wings on October 8 2011 at Pepsi Center Adam Deadmarsh was promoted from video developmental coach to offensive assistant coach after Steve Konowalchuk accepted a job as head coach in the minor league Peter Forsberg s number 21 became the fourth jersey number retired by the Avalanche on opening night a contest Colorado would lose to Detroit 3 0 Colorado redeemed themselves in game two of the season on October 10 2011 against the 2011 Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins Varlamov negated all 30 shots registered by Boston and posted the fifth shutout of his career and first win as an Avalanche in the regular season Milan Hejduk scored the game winning goal and first goal of the season for the club in a 1 0 victory over the defending champions In April 2012 the Avalanche were eliminated from playoff contention and finished 11th place in the Western Conference Despite a 20 point improvement from last season s efforts the team failed to reach the playoffs for the second straight year the first time the club history since their move to Denver 125 Head coach Joe Sacco signed a two year contract extension shortly after the end of the season Stand out rookie Gabriel Landeskog overtook Matt Duchene as the youngest in franchise history to lead the team in goals scoring 22 in 82 games Having resigned most of their free agents the club wouldn t see much change in the 2012 off season with the exception of losing unrestricted free agents Peter Mueller Jay McClement and Kevin Porter 126 Colorado would add Greg Zanon John Mitchell and high scoring winger P A Parenteau to its roster 127 Gabriel Landeskog the Avalanche s lone representative at the 2012 NHL Awards won the Calder Memorial Trophy joining Chris Drury Peter Forsberg and Peter Stastny for earning top rookie honors for the Avalanche 128 On September 4 2012 Gabriel Landeskog was named the fourth captain of the Avalanche Former captain Milan Hejduk relinquished his captaincy a week earlier 129 At 19 years and 286 days old Landeskog became the youngest captain in NHL history at that time being 11 days younger than when Sidney Crosby was named captain of the Pittsburgh Penguins at 19 years and 297 days 130 After a disappointing 2012 13 season which saw the Colorado Avalanche finish 15th in the Conference and 29th overall in the League it was announced on April 28 2013 that head coach Joe Sacco had been relieved of his duties 131 On May 10 it was announced that former long time Avalanche captain and Hockey Hall of Famer Joe Sakic would be named Executive Vice President of hockey operations overseeing all matters involving hockey personnel It was also announced that Josh Kroenke son of owner Stan Kroenke was named President of the Avalanche succeeding Pierre Lacroix 132 On May 23 Patrick Roy returned to the Avalanche as head coach and Vice President of hockey operations 133 Although Sherman retained his role as general manager he was largely reduced to an advisory role Roy and Sakic shared most of the duties held by a general manager on most other NHL teams though Sakic had the final say on hockey matters 134 The Avalanche held the top overall pick in the 2013 NHL draft which they used to draft Nathan Mackinnon who had previously played against the team that Patrick Roy had coached in the QMJHL Under Roy in 2013 14 the Avalanche returned to the playoffs finishing first in the Central Division and second in the Western Conference but would lose a seven game series to the Minnesota Wild in the First Round Nonetheless for his outstanding job as a first year coach Roy won the Jack Adams Award for the NHL s top coaching honors 135 Just prior to the start of the 2014 15 season Sakic was given the title of general manager while Sherman was demoted to assistant GM formalizing the de facto arrangement that had been in place since 2013 136 Despite the front office changes the Avalanche failed to qualify for the 2015 playoffs after finishing with a record of 39 31 12 resulting in a seventh place finish in the Central Division 137 After failing to qualify for the playoffs again following the 2015 16 season Roy resigned his posts on August 11 2016 138 Jared Bednar era 2016 present Edit Following the departure of Roy the Avalanche hired Jared Bednar from the Calder Cup champions the Lake Erie Monsters of the American Hockey League AHL as head coach 139 Bednar walked into a difficult situation He was hired just a month before the opening of training camp and thus had nowhere near enough time to install his own system He was also unable to bring his own staff having to make do with holdovers from Roy s staff On December 10 2016 the Avalanche allowed ten goals in a 10 1 loss to the Canadiens The Avalanche closed out their season with a record of 22 56 4 and 48 points the worst record in the league and the franchise s worst since moving to Denver only the 1989 90 and 1990 91 Nordiques finished with fewer points It was also the worst record of any team in the NHL since the Atlanta Thrashers finished with a record of 14 61 7 and 39 points in the 1999 2000 season which was their first season in the league 140 and one of the worst for a non expansion team since 1967 During the 2016 NHL draft Colorado held the fourth overall pick which they used to draft defenseman Cale Makar The Avalanche played the Ottawa Senators twice in November 2017 at the Ericsson Globe in Sweden After much speculation about wanting out of Colorado the Avalanche traded Duchene to the Ottawa Senators in a three team trade on November 5 2017 From Ottawa the Avalanche acquired Andrew Hammond Shane Bowers a 2018 first round pick and a 2019 third round pick Additionally the Avalanche acquired Samuel Girard Vladislav Kamenev and a 2018 second round pick from the Predators 141 The Avalanche had a ten game win streak from January 2 to 22 During that stretch the Avalanche outscored their opponents 41 16 142 Offensively the Avalanche were led by Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen MacKinnon finished fifth in league scoring with 97 points while Rantanen scored 84 points in his sophomore season The Avalanche qualified for the playoffs in their final game of the regular season defeating the Blues who they were battling with for the final wild card spot 5 2 143 The team finished with 95 points a 47 point increase from their previous season The Avalanche matched up with the league leading Predators in the first round After finding themselves down 3 1 the Avalanche rallied to win Game 5 2 1 after scoring two goals late in the third period With Varlamov and Jonathan Bernier both out with injuries Hammond started the game making a career high 44 saves 144 However the Predators blanked the Avalanche 5 0 in Game 6 to win the series 145 On November 18 2018 the Avalanche earned its 1 000th win in team history defeating the Ducks in overtime 146 On May 2 2019 it was announced that the City of Denver and KSE reached an agreement to keep both the Avalanche and Nuggets in the city until 2040 147 The Avalanche returned to the playoffs in the 2019 season finishing again in the final wild card spot However the Avalanche were able to defeat the Calgary Flames in five games with rookie Cale Makar scoring in his first career game during game 3 The Avalanche would then get eliminated in game 7 of the second round by the San Jose Sharks During the 2019 offseason the Avalanche traded long time defenseman Tyson Barrie to the Toronto Maple Leafs along with Alexander Kerfoot and a sixth round pick in exchange for Nazem Kadri Calle Rosen and a third round pick The Avalanche improved their record significantly and were sitting at 2nd in their division when the Covid 19 Pandemic paused the NHL season in March 2020 When the NHL resumed their season in September the Avalanche defeated the Arizona Coyotes in the first round before being eliminated in game 7 by the Dallas Stars in round 2 Following the 2020 playoffs the Avalanche acquired Devon Toews from the New York Islanders in exchange for second round picks in the 2021 and 2022 NHL Draft The Avalanche continued to improve and finished the regular season with the Presidents Trophy The Avalanche started the postseason with 6 straight wins including a 7 1 blowout in game 1 of the second round against the Vegas Golden Knights However despite the Avalanche building a 2 0 series lead over Vegas they failed to win another game of the series and were eliminated in six games This loss marked their third straight second round exit 2021 22 Stanley Cup champions Edit During the 2021 offseason goaltender Phillip Grubauer left during free agency and signed contract with the Seattle Kraken To address the need for a goaltender the Avalanche traded Conor Timmins and a 2022 first round pick in exchange for Darcy Kuemper In the 2021 22 season the Avalanche finished with 119 points clinching the playoffs for the fifth straight time They began the playoffs with a sweep over the Nashville Predators before defeating the St Louis Blues in six games to advanced to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in 20 years The Avalanche then swept the Edmonton Oilers to reach the Stanley Cup Finals On June 26 2022 the Avalanche won their third Stanley Cup in franchise history defeating the two time defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning in six games 148 Following their victory the had finished the postseason 16 4 which tied for the best postseason record since 1988 Cale Makar was named the winner of the Conn Smyth and Norris Memorial Trophies following his exceptional regular season and playoff performances Team information EditLogo Edit From 1995 to 2015 the Avalanche s alternate logo was the foot of a Yeti The Colorado Avalanche logo is composed by a burgundy letter A with snow wrapped around similar to an avalanche There is a hockey puck in the lower right end of the snow and a steel blue oval on the background 149 The team s original alternate logo was the foot of a Yeti and was seen on the shoulders of the Avalanche s home and away jerseys The logo was used on their jerseys since 1995 however prior to the start of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft the club unveiled a new alternate logo The new logo features the insignia taken from the Colorado state flag and re colored to match the team s color scheme The logo was featured on a patch located on the shoulders of the team s uniforms along with a 20th anniversary logo for the 2015 16 season 150 Jerseys Edit The team colors are burgundy steel blue black silver and white For the 2007 08 season the NHL introduced the new look Reebok EDGE jerseys The Avalanche debuted their new version of the Reebok EDGE jerseys on September 12 2007 at an Avalanche press conference The design is similar to the previous jerseys with some added piping 151 The road jersey from 1995 2003 was predominantly burgundy and steel blue in color Along the jersey there are two black and white zigzag lines one on the shoulders and the other near the belly Between them the jersey is burgundy outside those lines it is steel blue Similar lines exist around the neck The Avalanche logo is in the center of the jersey On top of the shoulders there is an alternate logo one on each side The away jersey is similar but with different colors The burgundy part on the home jersey is white on the away jersey the steel blue part is burgundy and the black and white lines became gray and steel blue In 2003 the NHL switched home and road jerseys with colors being worn at home and white jerseys on the road 152 153 The Avalanche introduced a third jersey during the 2001 02 season 154 It is predominantly burgundy Colorado is spelled in a diagonal across the jersey where the logo is on the other jerseys From the belly down three large horizontal stripes the first and the last being black and the middle one being white In the middle of the arms there are five stripes black white and burgundy from the outside inside on both sides On the shoulders is the primary A logo The third jersey was not worn by the Avalanche for the 2007 08 or the 2008 09 seasons after the NHL switched to the Reebok EDGE jerseys In the 2009 10 season the Avalanche introduced a new third jersey that was worn for the first time during the November 14 2009 home game against the Vancouver Canucks 155 It is similar to the club s previous third jersey but is primarily steel blue instead of burgundy and features burgundy patches on the shoulders with the A logo inside It also does not have horizontal striping on the bottom On the arms there are five stripes burgundy white and black from the outside inside on both sides They are closer to the elbows than the stripes on the previous third jerseys Prior to the 2015 16 season the Avalanche modified their existing uniform set by replacing the yeti foot shoulder logo in favor of the burgundy and black C logo A new third jersey was also unveiled featuring navy instead of steel blue as the dominant color and a minimalized recolored version of the Rockies logo in front 156 The C logo also served as the main crest of the Avalanche s 2016 NHL Stadium Series uniforms which featured a white base enlarged lettering and numbers and steel blue silver and burgundy sleeve stripes 157 Before the 2017 18 season the Avalanche unveiled new uniforms as part of the switch to Adidas The look was inspired from the original uniforms they wore from 1995 to 2007 save for the bold silver border that pays homage to Colorado s silver mining industry There were no third jerseys used during that season but for the 2018 19 season the Avalanche would wear their 2015 2017 navy uniforms as their alternates 158 The navy uniforms are currently used in regular season home games against Central Division opponents though during the 2020 21 season they only wore them against the Minnesota Wild and St Louis Blues as both Central Division teams were briefly realigned with the Avalanche on the West Division and made an exception in the 2021 and 2022 home openers by wearing burgundy uniforms against the Chicago Blackhawks as well as the November 21 2022 home game against the Dallas Stars by wearing the Reverse Retro uniforms which the Avalanche dub as Division Rivalry Nights 159 160 As part of the 2020 NHL Stadium Series the Avalanche unveiled special edition uniforms inspired by Colorado s majestic landscape and the Cadet Chapel of the United States Air Force Academy The uniforms bore a steel blue top and burgundy bottom with white accents forming the shape of an A in front and the middle stripe at the back 161 Before the 2020 21 season the Avalanche unveiled a Reverse Retro alternate uniform The design was taken from the classic Quebec Nordiques uniforms but recolored to match the Avalanche s current color scheme 162 The Avalanche also revealed a new color scheme for their pants and helmets with black replaced by steel blue 163 The following season the road white uniforms were tweaked to feature burgundy player names and steel blue numbers with burgundy trim thus eliminating black from the color scheme A second Reverse Retro uniform branded as Reverse Retro 2 0 was unveiled in the 2022 23 season utilizing the 1995 2007 white uniform template but recolored to the blue red and gold colors originally used by the NHL s Rockies and is found on the Colorado state flag The C alternate logo replaced the primary in front 164 Broadcasters Edit Avalanche games air on regional sports network Altitude Sports and Entertainment since 2004 replacing FSN Rocky Mountain 165 Peter Mcnab the long time color commentator for the Colorado Avalanche from 1995 until his death in 2022 is honored inside Ball Arena with a banner under broadcast booth Marc Moser TV play by play 166 Mark Rycroft TV color commentator John Michael Liles TV studio analyst Kyle Keefe TV studio host Conor McGahey Radio play by play analyst Mark Bertagnolli Radio studio host Alan Roach Public addressSeason by season record EditThis is a partial list of the last five seasons completed by the Avalanche For the full season by season history see List of Colorado Avalanche seasonsNote GP Games played W Wins L Losses T Ties OTL Overtime Losses Pts Points GF Goals for GA Goals against Season GP W L OTL Pts GF GA Finish Playoffs2017 18 82 43 30 9 95 257 237 4th Central Lost in First Round 2 4 Predators 2018 19 82 38 30 14 90 260 246 5th Central Lost in Second Round 3 4 Sharks 2019 20 70 42 20 8 92 237 191 2nd Central Lost in Second Round 3 4 Stars 2020 21 56 39 13 4 82 197 133 1st West Lost in Second Round 2 4 Golden Knights 2021 22 82 56 19 7 119 312 234 1st Central Stanley Cup champions 4 2 Lightning Players and personnel EditCurrent roster Edit viewtalkedit Updated March 25 2023 167 168 No Nat Player Pos S G Age Acquired Birthplace4 Bowen Byram D L 21 2019 Cranbrook British Columbia11 Andrew Cogliano LW L 35 2022 Toronto Ontario37 J T Compher C R 27 2015 Northbrook Illinois20 Lars Eller C L 33 2023 Rodovre Denmark39 Pavel Francouz G R 32 2018 Plzen Czechoslovakia40 Alexandar Georgiev G L 27 2022 Ruse Bulgaria49 Sam Girard D L 24 2017 Roberval Quebec43 Darren Helm C L 36 2021 St Andrews Manitoba17 Brad Hunt D L 34 2022 Maple Ridge British Columbia31 Jonas Johansson G L 27 2022 Gavle Sweden6 Erik Johnson D R 35 2011 Bloomington Minnesota3 Jack Johnson D L 36 2023 Indianapolis Indiana92 Gabriel Landeskog C LW L 30 2011 Stockholm Sweden62 Artturi Lehkonen LW L 27 2022 Piikkio Finland56 Kurtis MacDermid D LW L 29 2021 Quebec City Quebec29 Nathan MacKinnon A C R 27 2013 Halifax Nova Scotia8 Cale Makar D R 24 2017 Calgary Alberta81 Denis Malgin C R 26 2022 Olten Switzerland42 Josh Manson D R 31 2022 Hinsdale Illinois18 Alex Newhook C L 22 2019 St John s Newfoundland13 Valeri Nichushkin RW L 28 2019 Chelyabinsk Russia83 Matt Nieto LW L 30 2023 Long Beach California25 Logan O Connor RW R 26 2018 Missouri City Texas96 Mikko Rantanen A RW L 26 2015 Nousiainen Finland9 Evan Rodrigues RW R 29 2022 Etobicoke Ontario7 Devon Toews D L 29 2020 Abbotsford British Columbia Team captains Edit Adam Foote was the team captain for the Avalanche from 2009 to 2011 Note This list of team captains does not include captains from the Quebec Nordiques WHA amp NHL Joe Sakic 1995 2009 Adam Foote 2009 2011 Milan Hejduk 2011 2012 Gabriel Landeskog 2012 presentGeneral managers Edit Note This list does not include general managers from the Quebec Nordiques WHA amp NHL Pierre Lacroix 1995 2006 Francois Giguere 2006 2009 Greg Sherman 2009 2014 Joe Sakic 2014 2022 Chris MacFarland 2022 presentHead coaches Edit Main article List of Colorado Avalanche head coaches The current head coach is Jared Bednar who was named on August 31 2016 169 Honored members EditSee also List of Colorado Avalanche players and List of Colorado Avalanche award winners Retired numbers Edit Three of the six banners for numbers retired by the Colorado Avalanche hanging at Ball Arena In addition to those below the NHL retired Wayne Gretzky s No 99 for all its member teams at the 2000 NHL All Star Game 170 Colorado Avalanche retired numbers No Player Position Career No retirement19 Joe Sakic 1 C 1995 2009 October 1 200921 Peter Forsberg C 1995 20042008 2011 October 8 201123 Milan Hejduk RW 1998 2013 January 6 201833 Patrick Roy G 1995 2003 October 28 200352 Adam Foote D 1995 20042008 2011 November 2 201377 Ray Bourque D 2000 2001 November 24 2001Notes 1 The banner features the captain C to honor his eighteen years as team captain with both the Avalanche and predecessor Nordiques The numbers retired when the franchise was in Quebec J C Tremblay s No 3 Marc Tardif s No 8 Michel Goulet s No 16 and Peter Stastny s No 26 were entered back into circulation after the move to Colorado Hall of Famers Edit The Colorado Avalanche hold an affiliation with a number of inductees to the Hockey Hall of Fame Ten inductees from the players category of the Hall of Fame are affiliated with the Avalanche Of those ten Forsberg Roy and Sakic earned their credentials primarily with the Avalanche Colorado Avalanche Hockey Hall of Fame inducteesHall of Fame playersDave AndreychukRob Blake Ray BourquePeter Forsberg Jarome IginlaPaul Kariya Jari KurriPatrick Roy Joe SakicTeemu SelanneTeam culture EditRivalry with the Detroit Red Wings Edit See also Avalanche Red Wings rivalry and Avalanche Red Wings brawl In 1996 the Colorado Avalanche met the Detroit Red Wings in the Western Conference Finals and upset the Red Wings 4 2 During Game 6 Red Wings player Kris Draper was checked into the boards face first by Avalanche player Claude Lemieux 171 As a result Draper had to undergo facial reconstructive surgery and had to have his jaw wired shut for five weeks 172 The incident marked the beginning of a rivalry often considered one of the most intense in NHL history by the press and fans 173 In the following season in the last regular season meeting between the Avalanche and the Red Wings on March 26 1997 a brawl known as the Brawl in Hockeytown broke out The game ended with nine fights 11 goals 39 penalties 148 penalty minutes one hat trick by Valeri Kamensky and a goaltender fight between Stanley Cup champion Patrick Roy and Mike Vernon 172 Claude Lemieux was one of the players singled out by the Red Wings players The Red Wings ended up winning the game in overtime 6 5 172 The teams met again in the Western Conference Finals that season with the Red Wings emerging victorious and going on to win the Stanley Cup The rivalry between the Avalanche and the Red Wings was at its peak from 1996 to 2002 174 During those seven seasons the two teams played five postseason series against each other in the Stanley Cup playoffs with the Avalanche winning three of the series 1995 96 4 2 1998 99 4 2 1999 2000 4 1 and the Red Wings winning two of them 1996 97 4 2 2001 02 4 3 174 During this time frame these two teams combined for a total of five Stanley Cup championships in seven years the Avalanche winning twice 1995 96 and 2000 01 and the Red Wings winning three times 1996 97 1997 98 and 2001 02 174 After 2002 the rivalry between the two teams began to cool down and the two teams would not meet again in the playoffs until 2008 when the Red Wings swept the Avalanche in the Western Conference Semi finals and went on to win the Stanley Cup 174 The Red Wings moved to the Eastern Conference in 2013 14 season as part of the realignment which makes the two rivals only see each other twice a year 175 Franchise records and leaders EditFranchise scoring leaders Edit Scoring 805 points as an Avalanche Milan Hejduk is the franchise s fourth highest all time points leader These are the top ten point scorers in franchise Quebec and Colorado history Figures are updated after each completed NHL regular season current Avalanche playerNote Pos Position GP Games played G Goals A Assists Pts Points P G Points per game Points Player Pos GP G A Pts P GJoe Sakic C 1 378 625 1016 1 641 1 19Peter Stastny C 737 380 668 1 048 1 42Michel Goulet LW 813 456 489 945 1 16Milan Hejduk RW 1 020 375 430 805 78Peter Forsberg C 591 217 538 755 1 27Nathan MacKinnon C 638 242 406 648 1 02Anton Stastny LW 650 252 384 636 98Gabriel Landeskog LW 738 248 323 571 77Alex Tanguay LW 598 167 321 488 81Dale Hunter C 523 140 318 464 88 Goals Player Pos GJoe Sakic C 625Michel Goulet LW 456Peter Stastny C 380Milan Hejduk RW 375Anton Stastny LW 252Gabriel Landeskog LW 248Nathan MacKinnon C 242Peter Forsberg C 217Matt Duchene C 178Alex Tanguay LW 167 Assists Player Pos AJoe Sakic C 1 016Peter Stastny C 668Peter Forsberg C 538Michel Goulet LW 489Milan Hejduk RW 430Nathan MacKinnon C 406Anton Stastny LW 384Gabriel Landeskog LW 323Alex Tanguay LW 321Dale Hunter C 318 Franchise records Edit Note This list does not include records from the Quebec Nordiques WHA amp NHL Items in bold are NHL records Records as of April 9 2007 36 176 177 Recording 86 assists Peter Forsberg holds the Avalanche s franchise record for most assists in a single season Regular season Edit Most goals in a season Joe Sakic 54 2000 01 Most assists in a season Peter Forsberg 86 1995 96 Most points in a season Joe Sakic 120 1995 96 Average points per game in a season Joe Sakic 1 46 PPG 1995 96 Most points in a season by defenceman Cale Makar 86 2021 22 Most goals in a season by defenceman Cale Makar 28 2021 22 Average points per game in a season by defenceman Cale Makar 1 12 PPG 2021 22 Most penalty minutes in a season Jeff Odgers 259 1998 99 Most game winning goals in a season Joe Sakic 12 2000 01 Most points in a season rookie Paul Stastny 78 2006 07 NHL record longest points streak rookie Paul Stastny 20 games 2006 07 Best record in a season Milan Hejduk and Peter Forsberg 2002 03 Devon Toews 52 2021 22 Most wins in a season Semyon Varlamov 41 2013 14 Most shutouts in a season Patrick Roy 9 2001 02 Best goals against average in a season Patrick Roy 1 94 2001 02 Playoffs Edit Most goals in a playoff season Joe Sakic 18 1996 Most assists in a playoff season Cale Makar 21 2022 Most points in a playoff season Joe Sakic 34 1996 Most goals in a playoff season by defenceman Cale Makar 8 2022 Most assists in a playoff season by defenceman Cale Makar 21 2022 Most points in a playoff season by defenceman Cale Makar 29 2022 Most penalty minutes in a playoff season Adam Foote 62 1997 Most overtime game winning goals in playoff career Joe Sakic 8 Best record in playoff career Peter Forsberg 54Team Edit Most consecutive division titles 9 1994 95 to 2002 03 58 Most points in a season 119 2021 22 Most wins in a season 56 2021 22 Most goals 326 1995 96 Largest margin of victory 10 December 5 1995 vs San Jose 12 2 Longest consecutive attendance sellout 487 1995 2006 83 Most points without making Stanley Cup playoffs 95 2006 07 See also EditList of Colorado Avalanche draft picks Quebec NordiquesReferences EditGeneral Edit Colorado Avalanche season statistics and records The Internet Hockey Database Archived from the original on October 1 2007 Retrieved July 8 2007 Franchise Record Book includes year by year results PDF Colorado Avalanche Archived from the original PDF on July 10 2007 Retrieved July 8 2007 Footnotes Edit Frequently Asked Questions ColoradoAvalanche com NHL Enterprises L P Retrieved September 29 2017 Avalanche Directory PDF 2022 2023 Colorado Avalanche Media Guide PDF NHL Enterprises L P Retrieved March 7 2023 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint url status link Harden Mark October 7 2015 NFL owners let Kroenke keep Rams transfer Nuggets Avalanche to his wife Denver Business Journal Retrieved May 31 2018 a b Colorado Avalanche history Hockey Reference com Retrieved November 15 2018 Quebec Nordiques WHA Hockey Retrieved March 25 2007 WHA Yearly Standings WHA Hockey Retrieved March 25 2007 From the WHA to the NHL National Hockey League Archived from the original on May 21 2011 Retrieved March 25 2007 National Hockey League seasons The Internet Hockey Database Archived from the original on October 3 2008 Retrieved July 11 2007 NHL Entry Draft First Round Selections 1980 89 National Hockey League Archived from the original on January 27 2001 Retrieved March 25 2007 NHL Entry Draft First Round Selections 1990 99 National Hockey League Archived from the original on January 24 2001 Retrieved March 25 2007 Lindros Refusal to play for Nordiques was about an owner not a city theScore com Retrieved November 15 2018 As expected Quebec selects Lindros No 1 Associated Press June 23 1991 Retrieved March 25 2007 Eric Lindros notes National Hockey League Retrieved February 22 2010 The List Readers Pick Most Lopsided Trades ESPN Retrieved July 11 2007 Burfiend Dustin June 3 2010 An Interesting Parallel 92 93 Quebec Nordiques Mile High Hockey Retrieved December 24 2018 1994 95 Quebec Nordiques Roster and Statistics Hockey Reference com Retrieved December 24 2018 a b Deacon James May 6 1995 Nordiques Move to Colorado Maclean s Archived from the original on September 30 2007 Retrieved May 11 2007 Quebec s Government Plans Bailout to keep Nordiques from moving Associated Press April 9 1994 Retrieved March 25 2007 NHL s Nordiques sold moving west to Denver Comsat Entertainment Group bought the team Quebec had refused to fund a new hockey arena The Philadelphia Inquirer May 26 1995 Retrieved March 25 2007 a b c d Miscellaneous Community Altitude PDF Colorado Avalanche Archived from the original PDF on July 10 2007 Retrieved June 17 2007 Donovan Michael Leo 1997 The Name Game Football Baseball Hockey amp Basketball How Your Favorite Sports Teams Were Named Toronto Warwick Publishing ISBN 978 1 895629 74 3 Rocky Mountain Extreme what was supposed to be the Avalanche s original team name The Denver Post July 21 2014 Nordiques Move To Denver Finalized Chicago Tribune June 22 1995 Retrieved March 5 2018 Lyons said the hockey team which will play in the Pacific Division already has sold 7 500 season tickets a b c Denver Nuggets Company History Funding Universe Retrieved June 17 2007 Butzer Stephanie June 15 2022 A look back at the Colorado Avalanche s first ever game in 1995 Stanley Cup win in 1996 KMGH TV Retrieved June 17 2022 Sadowski Rick June 29 2006 Roy gets call he s in Hall Rocky Mountain News Archived from the original on September 30 2007 Retrieved March 25 2007 Ulman Howard June 11 1996 No stopping the Avalanche Colorado completes Cup sweep of Panthers with 3OT victory Associated Press Retrieved March 25 2007 a b c d Leading playoff scorers by year National Hockey League Archived from the original on April 12 2009 Retrieved July 13 2007 a b Triple Gold Club PDF International Ice Hockey Federation Archived from the original PDF on June 29 2007 Retrieved June 17 2007 NHL Presidents Trophy Winners Hockey Reference com Retrieved November 14 2018 a b c 1997 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs Summary Hockey Reference com Retrieved November 14 2018 Legends of Hockey NHL Player Search Player Sandis Ozolinsh hhof com Retrieved November 14 2018 Legends of Hockey 2007 Joe Sakic Page Legends of Hockey Archived from the original on September 29 2007 Retrieved April 9 2007 Three key contracts helped kill the CBA The Sports Network Associated Press 2004 Retrieved February 22 2010 a b Colorado Avalanche at the 1998 Winter Olympics PDF p 218 Archived from the original PDF on July 14 2011 Retrieved November 5 2018 a b c d e f g Franchise Records PDF Colorado Avalanche Archived from the original PDF on July 10 2007 Retrieved June 17 2007 a b 1997 98 Colorado Avalanche Roster and Statistics Hockey Reference com Retrieved November 15 2018 Staff From Reports Wire May 28 1998 Avalanche Says That Crawford Quit Job Los Angeles Times Retrieved November 15 2018 N H L COLORADO Hartley Picked To Coach Avalanche The New York Times Associated Press June 3 1998 Retrieved November 15 2018 HOCKEY In Denver Games Are Called Off The New York Times Associated Press April 22 1999 Retrieved July 18 2019 The 10 least deserving NHL award winners of the past 20 years ESPN com July 20 2018 Retrieved November 22 2022 KSE Pepsi Center PDF Colorado Avalanche Archived from the original PDF on October 30 2008 Retrieved June 13 2007 2001 NHL All Star Game Pepsi Center Facts Sports Illustrated Retrieved June 17 2007 Bourque relishes memory of winning Stanley Cup National Hockey League Retrieved November 15 2018 1999 00 Colorado Avalanche Roster and Statistics Hockey Reference com Retrieved January 4 2019 1998 99 Colorado Avalanche Roster and Statistics Hockey Reference com Retrieved January 4 2019 Sports News The Denver Post Schley Stewart June 1 2006 Stan Kroenke s full court press six years after swooping in to rescue the Nuggets and Avalanche the unassuming AllBusiness com Archived from the original on November 27 2007 Retrieved August 24 2022 a b Moore Paula Why one deal went smoothly Denver Business Journal July 17 2000 Sadowski Rick March 23 2001 Kings take Avs Aulin to complete Blake trade Rocky Mountain News Archived from the original on June 24 2011 Retrieved March 25 2007 Doctor Full recovery is expected ESPN Associated Press May 10 2001 Retrieved June 17 2007 Allen Kevin June 10 2001 Avalanche beat Devils to capture Stanley Cup USA Today Retrieved March 25 2007 NHL Conn Smythe Trophy Winners National Hockey League January 1 2017 Retrieved March 24 2018 2000 01 King Clancy Memorial Trophy Podein Shjon Legends of Hockey Archived from the original on September 30 2007 Retrieved June 17 2007 MacKinnon Named To NHL s Second All Star Team National Hockey League Retrieved November 15 2018 Colorado Avalanche Team History go rauzulusstreet com Retrieved November 15 2018 Dolezar Jon A September 17 2002 2002 Colorado Avalanche Team Preview CNN Sports Illustrated Retrieved July 10 2007 a b The 1994 95 Division title was won while the franchise was still in Quebec and together with the eight titles the Avalanche won between 1995 and 1996 and 2002 03 makes the record number of nine consecutive division titles NHL Hockey Colorado Avalanche Team Report The Sports Network April 10 2003 Archived from the original on June 24 2011 Retrieved June 17 2007 Allen Kevin February 6 2003 Roy Avs put clamps on Red Wings USA Today Retrieved June 17 2007 a b Marshall John July 7 2004 Avs make bench switch to Quenneville USA Today Associated Press Retrieved June 17 2007 Colorado 4 Anaheim 3 CBS Sportsline April 5 2003 Archived from the original on October 6 2003 Retrieved May 6 2007 Avalanche win game Northwest Hejduk gets 50th CBS Sportsline April 6 2003 Archived from the original on July 20 2004 Retrieved June 17 2007 Minnesota 3 Colorado 2 Sports Illustrated April 22 2003 Retrieved March 25 2007 Patrick Roy retires after 18 years Canadian Broadcasting Corporation May 28 2003 Archived from the original on October 13 2007 Retrieved June 17 2007 Avalanche sign Kariya Selanne to one year deals CNN Associated Press July 3 2003 Retrieved March 25 2007 Sadowski Rick March 16 2007 Passion is back for Selanne Rocky Mountain News Archived from the original on September 30 2007 Retrieved May 17 2007 Cannella Stephen October 3 2003 Colorado Avalanche Fortunately a souped up offense will boost the scoring because Patrick Roy is gone Sports Illustrated Retrieved July 10 2007 Fitzpatrick Jamie September 2 2003 2003 2004 NHL Season Preview Colorado Avalanche About com Retrieved June 17 2007 Heika Mike September 24 2003 Avs silver lining has a cloud ESPN Archived from the original on January 25 2005 Retrieved June 17 2007 Sadowski Rick June 2 2007 Ex Avalanche player May enjoys new surroundings Rocky Mountain News Archived from the original on September 30 2007 Retrieved June 18 2007 Moore seeks further damages from Bertuzzi USA Today Associated Press March 7 2006 Retrieved June 18 2006 Simon suspended minimum of 25 games Associated Press March 12 2007 Retrieved June 18 2007 a b NHLers in Europe TSN Archived from the original on June 13 2007 Retrieved October 31 2006 Sakic Blake to stay Forsberg Foote up in air Associated Press July 26 2005 Retrieved March 25 2007 Goldstein Wes August 31 2005 Winners losers undecided in wake of free agent frenzy CBS Sportsline Archived from the original on October 1 2005 Retrieved March 25 2007 Lacroix steps down as Colorado GM USA Today Associated Press May 12 2006 Retrieved March 25 2007 Avs hire Giguere as team s general manager Associated Press May 24 2006 Retrieved March 25 2007 Lacroix stepping down as Avalanche president May 10 2013 O Brien James December 13 2020 Pierre Lacroix former Avalanche GM dies at age 72 ProHockeyTalk NBC Sports Retrieved June 29 2022 Theodore traded to Avs Aebischer goes to Canadiens USA Today Associated Press March 8 2006 Retrieved June 22 2007 Frei Terry June 21 2007 Buyouts New deals Which way do teams lean during free agency ESPN Retrieved June 22 2007 a b Frei Terry October 17 2006 Avs see sellout streak get away The Denver Post Retrieved March 25 2007 Avalanche Reaches 500th Sellout in Denver Colorado Avalanche January 20 2007 Archived from the original on October 12 2007 Retrieved March 25 2007 Skrbina Paul Nashville Predators sellout streak ends at 192 The Tennessean Retrieved June 29 2022 Nashville Predators at Colorado Avalanche Box Score April 7 2007 Hockey Reference com Retrieved November 26 2018 Western Conference SI predicts how they ll finish CNN September 26 2006 Retrieved July 10 2007 STAPLETON ARNIE April 9 2007 Sakic Reaches 100 Points As Avs Win The Washington Post Retrieved November 15 2018 Stastny Named To NHL All Rookie Team Colorado Avalanche June 14 2007 Archived from the original on October 12 2007 Retrieved June 22 2007 Stastny Breaks NHL Rookie Record Colorado Avalanche March 11 2007 Archived from the original on October 12 2007 Retrieved June 22 2007 Skrastins Record Streak Ends at 495 Colorado Avalanche February 25 2007 Archived from the original on October 12 2007 Retrieved June 22 2007 Avs Win Season Finale Associated Press April 8 2007 Archived from the original on October 12 2007 Retrieved June 17 2007 Cullen Scott July 3 2007 Numbers Game Rocky Mountain Way TSN Archived from the original on June 22 2011 Retrieved February 22 2010 Forsberg Returns to Avalanche Behold your father s Avs The Denver Post February 26 2008 Retrieved November 26 2018 Adrian Dater April 20 2008 Avs win playoff series vs Wild The Denver Post Retrieved June 5 2008 Adrian Dater May 2 2008 Detroit dumps Avs from postseason The Denver Post Retrieved June 5 2008 Adrian Dater June 5 2008 Red Wings capture Stanley Cup The Denver Post Retrieved June 5 2008 Tony Granato returning as head coach of the Colorado Avalanche National Hockey League Retrieved November 15 2018 Colorado Avalanche s decline has left fans disillusioned The Denver Post April 6 2013 Retrieved November 15 2018 a b The 2008 09 Avalanche season PDF SB Nation Archived PDF from the original on November 16 2018 Retrieved November 15 2018 2008 09 Colorado Avalanche Roster and Statistics Hockey Reference com Retrieved November 15 2018 Avalanche fire GM Giguere Sports Illustrated Retrieved November 15 2018 a b Avs Select Seven Players at 2009 Draft National Hockey League June 27 2009 Retrieved March 24 2018 Greg Sherman Named Avalanche GM Archived from the original on June 6 2009 Dater Adrian June 4 2009 Avs hire Sacco as head coach The Denver Post Retrieved June 4 2009 Sakic less Avalanche start to rebuild NHL com News www nhl com Retrieved December 24 2018 September 11 CBC Sports Foote replaces Sakic as Avalanche captain CBC Retrieved December 24 2018 Sharks vs Avalanche Game Recap October 1 2009 ESPN Retrieved December 24 2018 Stastny named to US Olympic Team National Hockey League January 1 2010 Retrieved April 7 2010 Avalanche vs Canucks Recap ESPN April 6 2010 Retrieved April 7 2010 2010 NHL Playoffs Conference Quarterfinals Sharks vs Avalanche ESPN ESPN com Retrieved December 24 2018 Stan Kroenke is new Rams owner ESPN August 25 2010 Wertheim L Jon THE MOST POWERFUL MAN IN SPORTS YOU HAD NO IDEA DID YOU STAN KROENKE Vault Retrieved December 24 2018 2009 10 Colorado Avalanche Roster and Statistics Hockey Reference com Retrieved December 24 2018 Joe Sacco fired as coach of Colorado Avalanche after four NHL seasons The Denver Post April 28 2013 Retrieved December 24 2018 a b 2010 11 Colorado Avalanche Roster and Statistics Hockey Reference com Retrieved December 24 2018 2010 11 Colorado Avalanche Schedule and Results Hockey Reference com Retrieved December 24 2018 Matt Duchene s curious contract with Colorado sports yahoo com Retrieved December 24 2018 Forsberg halts comeback retires from hockey ESPN com February 14 2011 Retrieved December 24 2018 Peter Forsberg Stats Hockey Reference com Retrieved December 24 2018 Avalanche captain Adam Foote shares his thoughts on retirement The Denver Post April 8 2011 Retrieved December 24 2018 Avalanche Selects Landeskog in First Round NHL com Retrieved August 31 2019 Colorado Avalanche Draft History at hockeydb com www hockeydb com Retrieved August 31 2019 Scores for the 2012 season pre playoffs ESPN Peter Mueller not given qualifying offer by Avalanche All Things Avalanche Retrieved August 31 2019 Avalanche sign P A Parenteau to 16 million deal add John Mitchell The Denver Post July 1 2012 Retrieved August 31 2019 Gabriel Landeskog wins Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year The Denver Post June 20 2012 Retrieved August 31 2019 Gabriel Landeskog succeeds Milan Hejduk as Colorado Avalanche captain Denver Post September 4 2012 Retrieved June 20 2019 Gabriel Landeskog OK losing his place in history NHL com Retrieved June 20 2019 Dater Adrian Joe Sacco fired as coach of Colorado Avalanche after four NHL seasons The Denver Post Archived from the original on April 29 2013 Sakic will have final say in new Avalanche role National Hockey League theScore thescore com Archived from the original on June 15 2013 Retrieved December 9 2017 Wyshynski Greg September 20 2014 Joe Sakic named Avs GM sad ballad of Greg Sherman continues Yahoo Sports Retrieved October 6 2014 Roarke Shawn June 25 2014 Avalanche s Roy wins Jack Adams Award NHL com Retrieved October 5 2022 Dater Adrian Joe Sakic now has full GM title with Avalanche Greg Sherman assistant GM Archived July 7 2015 at the Wayback Machine The Denver Post September 19 2014 Sadowski Rick August 10 2015 Roy determined to get Avalanche back in playoffs NHL com Retrieved October 5 2022 Patrick Roy parts ways with Avalanche organization Sportsnet August 11 2016 Sadowski Rick Jared Bednar hired as Avalanche coach National Hockey League Retrieved April 23 2018 Avalanche 2016 17 Season in Review Colorado sinks to new low The Denver Post April 7 2017 Retrieved April 26 2017 Rosen Dan Duchene traded to Senators by Avalanche National Hockey League Retrieved April 23 2018 Farrell Sean Canadiens stop Avalanche winning streak at 10 National Hockey League Retrieved April 23 2018 Associated Press Avalanche head back to playoffs after win over Blues Sportsnet ca Retrieved April 23 2018 Associated Press Avalanche stay alive beat Predators to force Game 6 Sportsnet ca Retrieved April 23 2018 Associated Press Predators eliminate Avalanche with blowout win in Game 6 Sportsnet ca Retrieved April 23 2018 Colorado Avalanche Get 1 000th Win against Anaheim Ducks Mile High Sticking November 19 2018 Retrieved November 26 2018 Bailey Jeff May 2 2019 Denver Nuggets and Colorado Avalanche are staying in Denver through at least 2040 The Denver Post Retrieved May 8 2019 Brehm Mike June 26 2022 Avalanche end Lightning s reign win Stanley Cup for first time since 2001 USA Today Retrieved June 28 2022 The Colorado Avalanche s new uniforms are here and they look good Denverite Retrieved November 15 2018 Creamer Chris June 26 2015 Avalanche Tweak Uniforms SportsLogos net Retrieved June 27 2015 Avalanche Blows It With Lousy Jersey Design Mile High Hockey September 12 2007 Retrieved November 15 2018 Karol Kristofer January 27 2003 NHL quacked up with hockey jersey switch State News Archived from the original on October 11 2007 Retrieved August 30 2006 Balint Jim Have Dark Home Jerseys Killed the Whiteout Bleacher Report Retrieved June 29 2022 Dater Adrian October 19 2001 OILERS 4 AVALANCHE 1 Third jersey to make debut on Halloween The Denver Post Retrieved March 26 2007 Rink Notes Tucker Ready To Return Colorado Avalanche November 10 2009 Pass or Fail Colorado Avalanche new third jersey for 2015 16 sports yahoo com Retrieved December 24 2018 Avs Reveal Coors Light NHL Stadium Series Sweater Colorado Avalanche September 22 2015 New Avalanche uniforms revealed for 2017 18 season The Denver Post June 21 2017 Retrieved December 24 2018 Avalanche Third Jersey Schedule Colorado Avalanche Avalanche Announces Reverse Retro Third Jersey Schedules 2020 21 Colorado Avalanche Avalanche jersey for NHL Stadium Series inspired by Colorado terrain National Hockey League January 16 2020 Reverse Retro alternate jerseys for all 31 teams unveiled by NHL adidas NHL com December 1 2020 Retrieved February 28 2021 Colorado Avalanche to Celebrate 25th Anniversary Season in 2020 21 ColoradoAvalanche com NHL Enterprises L P November 17 2020 Retrieved February 28 2021 NHL Reverse Retro jerseys for all 32 teams unveiled by adidas NHL com October 20 2022 Retrieved October 20 2022 On Air Talent Altitude Sports www altitudesports com Retrieved March 28 2019 Altitude Sports Announces New Avalanche Play By Play Announcers National Hockey League Retrieved July 11 2018 Colorado Avalanche Roster National Hockey League Retrieved March 25 2023 Colorado Avalanche Hockey Transactions The Sports Network Retrieved March 25 2023 Jared Bednar introduced as new Avalanche coach plans to retain 3 assistant coaches The Denver Post August 31 2016 Retrieved November 14 2018 Perfect setting Gretzky s number retired before All Star Game CNN Sports Illustrated Associated Press February 6 2000 Archived from the original on November 12 2013 Retrieved June 9 2014 Dater Adrian 2006 Blood Feud Detroit Red Wings vs Colorado Avalanche Taylor Trade Publishing ISBN 978 1 58979 319 4 a b c Neumann Thomas March 26 2007 Happy anniversary to Red Wings Avalanche ESPN Retrieved March 27 2007 Part II Top rivalries ESPN October 29 2005 Retrieved March 27 2007 a b c d Looking back at the bloody Avalanche Wings rivalry National Hockey League Retrieved November 15 2018 Detroit Red Wings officially heading to Eastern Conference as NHL approves realignment MLive com March 14 2013 Retrieved November 15 2018 Regular Season Record Books Colorado Avalanche Database Archived from the original on September 28 2007 Retrieved May 12 2007 Playoff Record Book PDF Colorado Avalanche Archived from the original PDF on July 10 2007 Retrieved July 8 2007 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Colorado Avalanche Official website Portals Ice hockey Colorado Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Colorado Avalanche amp oldid 1145225140, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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