Bowen Byram announced his presence to the entire NHL as the Avs dominated Chicago in the opening game of the season. No MacKinnon no problem as the Avs top six and defense provided more than enough scoring for Darcy Kuemper. https://youtu.be/qDRbtJYgUcg

The Avs season begins tomorrow, and while the defense won’t be at full power for opening night, the defense that has been built is hard to argue with. One final beast of a preview before it’s back into the fray. https://youtu.be/oIHTcheLo9A

A four-assist night from Alex Newhook helped the Avs rookies to their first win of the rookie tournament in a game that took overtime despite a dominant performance from the Avs’ best players. https://youtu.be/zG96zvuqhe8

The Avs rookies have officially played a proper hockey game. It did not go particularly well. Still, in a setting like this, there is no sense dwelling on the negatives as some of the big names showed they are ready for the season. https://youtu.be/u_VF2fDiA6c

Official on-ice activities are about to begin once again for the Avs with development camp followed by the rookie tournament. The Avs prospect pool still boasts significant high-end talent and solid depth to dive into, pyramid style. https://youtu.be/1fNEjKhJA08

It was a good news kind of morning at Ball Arena. The Colorado Avalanche began their day by announcing the return of fans to the arena. 4,050 fans will be allowed back to watch Avalanche and Nuggets games beginning April 2. That particular number represents approximately 22% of the max capacity of Ball Arena and the announcement resulted in the…...

Following a brief morning skate at Ball Arena, Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar announced that star forward Nathan MacKinnon was ready to go tonight against the visiting Anaheim Ducks. Having MacKinnon in the lineup is a stroke of good fortune for the club after he was the recipient of a headshot by San Jose rookie Joachim Blichfeld halfway through the…...

Each team came into the game with the same 5-3 record. Minnesota, happy to be here after an unexpectedly strong start. Colorado, just finding its stride after a disappointing 3-3 start but feeling better about themselves. With division-leading Vegas idle due to COVID-related postponements, the Avs and Wild were battling to overtake the Golden Knights and put their mark on…...

This is the middle six the Avs are looking for. A goal-scoring spree to put some confidence in almost all of the Avs forwards as they bulldoze a sloppy Sharks team. https://youtu.be/IcJ3E0fkqF4

The entire Cale Makar experience was legitimately one of the more thrilling things I’ve had the pleasure of covering in my short career covering the Colorado Avalanche. From the draft to his UMass career, which started off with a “meh” freshman season, to leading the Minutemen to the national championship and playing in Game 3 of Colorado’s first-round series 48…...

“That’s what I want to do.” It was nothing short of a disastrous start for Brandon Saad in Colorado, scoring just one goal in his first six games and repeatedly being on the ice when the opposing team found the back of the net. Following a two-goal performance in Colorado’s 7-3 beatdown of the San Jose Sharks, Saad was upbeat…...

In terms of effort, this was the kind of game we expected to see a lot more of from the Colorado Avalanche this season. In terms of execution, this was the kind of game we expected would happen going against a goaltender of John Gibson’s ilk this season. The Avalanche outshot the Anaheim Ducks 33-15, allowing just a single shot…...

Bowen Byram was the spark for the Avs in the third period as Philipp Grubauer outdueled John Gibson in an overtime nail biter. https://youtu.be/kciBqU3CIZI

“He was definitely our best player on the ice.” When the guy who scores the game-winning goal in overtime has that definitive of a statement about your night, you know it’s been a good performance. There weren’t a lot of incredible, highlight-reel saves made by Philipp Grubauer as he stopped 36 of 38 shots from the Anaheim Ducks, but when…...

Despite the best efforts of Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen, the lackluster play of the Avs depth costs them what could have been a routine win. https://youtu.be/rMmpz4OR2OU

The way winning always papers over flaws is one of the more charming aspects of sports to me. When the outcome is what you set out to achieve, how you got there ends up being a justified journey, even if it wasn’t perfect. See Tuesday night’s win against Los Angeles as a good example of that for the Avalanche. They…...

Both Bowen Byram and Erik Johnson practiced with the team for the first time this season, kicking off speculation of when either might get into the lineup. As the Avs head to California for a four-game road trip, the lineup on defense is a major focus as Johnson is a proven regular and Byram is arguably the best defenseman in…...

The Avalanche finalized their opening night roster yesterday and officially announced it today. Because of salary cap restrictions, they are not utilizing the full 23-player allotment, instead going with 21 players but using a full six-player taxi squad. The breakdown of the roster is: 12 forwards Burakovsky MacKinnon Rantanen Saad Kadri Landeskog Nichushkin Compher Donskoi Jost Bellemare Calvert 7 defensemen…...

The dust has settled on the biggest U20 tournament of the year and after all four Avs prospects at the tournament played in the final match, the USA brought home the gold over Canada. The Avs players ranged from rock-solid to downright stunning throughout and on this edition of The Tape we breakdown some of their top plays. 1. Justin…...