The Colorado Avalanche get a quick shot at redemption Wednesday night, with the New Jersey Devils back in Ball Arena after beating them 4-3 on October 20.
That game looked far more one-sided than the final score suggested, with Colorado tacking on two late goals to narrow things in the end. Now the Avs have a chance to show that result was a blip, while also trying to stop a Devils team that has won four straight. New Jersey is coming off a 5-1 win in Dallas on Tuesday night, when Jack Hughes and Connor Hellebuyck powered the attack against the Avalanche’s division rivals.
For Colorado, the timing matters. The Avalanche are 4-5-1 over their last 10 and haven’t looked like the dominant team they were a season ago. That puts a little extra weight on this matchup, especially with an opportunity to answer New Jersey and get back to the level that has defined the franchise in recent years.
At the center of Colorado’s concerns is an offense that leans heavily on its stars. Nathan MacKinnon has piled up 21 points in 12 games, Artturi Lehkonen leads the team with 10 goals, and Martin Necas has given the Avalanche another dangerous scoring threat. When those three are rolling, Colorado can make life miserable for anyone.
The issue is that the Avalanche need more than that. They need production from the rest of the lineup, and they need it now.
Parker Kelly is one of the names under the microscope. He does not look like the player who scored 20 goals a year ago, though there is still time for him to heat up. The problem is that Colorado can’t afford to wait forever.
The same goes for Brock Nelson, Nazem Kadri, and Jaden Schwartz. None of them are in a full-blown slump, but none has given the Avalanche enough either.
Kadri has just one goal in 12 games. Nelson does not appear to be on track for another 30-goal season.
Schwartz has not been the stabilizing presence the team needs in the bottom six.
That is the balancing act for Colorado right now: the top end is good, but the depth has to start pulling its weight.
Jared Bednar may also make a few changes before puck drop. He does not appear ready to overhaul everything, but the return of Nic Roy could shuffle the middle six.
Roy could land on the second line with Nelson and Gabe Landeskog, which would push Kadri into a third-line center role alongside T.J. Hughes and Schwartz.
The fourth line looks set with Kelly skating with Fedor Svechkov and Logan O’Connor. Svechkov’s return is worth watching after he was benched on Sunday night, and Wednesday gives him a fresh chance to make a case for more steady work. If the night goes sideways again, though, it will only add to the frustration.
In goal, MacKenzie Blackwood is expected back in the crease. He has been solid this season, and Colorado will be counting on that stability if it wants to turn this into the kind of home response it needs.
In Other News...
Cale Makars Deal May Not Squeeze The Avalanche Much Longer
Cale Makars contract has long been one of the biggest moving parts on the Avalanches books, but the landscape around it may not stay the same for much longer. NHL salary-cap chatter has already shifted into the next decade, with league projections pointing toward a ceiling as high as $150 million by 2029-30, a change that would make todays biggest deals look more manageable in relative terms.
For Colorado, that matters because the clubs core is built around stars whose value will only keep climbing if the cap keeps rising. Nathan MacKinnon is already part of that conversation, with the possibility of another massive extension somewhere around 2030 depending on how he ages and performs by then. For now, the Avalanche can keep planning around a deal that once looked like a squeeze, but may not feel nearly as restrictive in a few years. [Read more 🡒]
Former Avalanche Pick May Finally Be Becoming What Colorado Expected
Alex Newhooks latest turn with Montreal gave a little more proof that his game is moving in the direction the Avalanche once hoped it would. In a 5-2 win over the Stars, the former Colorado first-round pick scored twice, giving him his ninth multi-goal game in the NHL and adding to a season start that has already produced six points in 13 games.
For Avalanche fans who followed Newhooks uneven path after the trade, the encouraging part is not just the scoring night itself but the trend behind it. He is building on last seasons playoff showing and doing so after injuries had slowed his progress, with signs that he may finally be settling into the kind of steady offensive role that once felt just out of reach. [Read more 🡒]
Avalanche Prospects Are Forcing A Tough Decision In Denver
The Colorado Eagles have opened the 2026-27 AHL season in style, sitting atop the Pacific Division after 10 games, and a big reason why is the way several Avalanche prospects have come through in key roles. Goaltender Ilya Nabokov has given the club steady work in net, while right winger Gavin Brindley has emerged as the teams points leader even with some time spent with the Avalanche, and left winger Adam Beckman has set the pace in goals.
For Colorado, that kind of production is exactly the sort of problem it wants to have, but it also starts to sharpen the roster conversation in Denver. When young players are driving results at the AHL level and showing they can handle bigger responsibilities, the next step gets harder to ignore, and the organization will have to decide how much longer it can keep all three on the same track before their play forces a move. [Read more 🡒]