Overhauled Avalanche peaking at right time

The vibes are mile high in Denver right now.

The Nuggets are contending for their second NBA title in three years. The Broncos have enjoyed a strong offseason building around franchise quarterback Bo Nix. The Rockies ... well, uh, the Rockies play at Coors Field, one of baseball's nicest ballparks.

Most notably, the Avalanche are peaking at the right time with the Stanley Cup Playoffs only weeks away.

The city's NHL franchise is 9-1-1 in its last 11 games entering Friday. The front office, led by president of hockey operations Joe Sakic and general manager Chris MacFarland, is coming off a busy deadline. The Avalanche added Brock Nelson and Charlie Coyle to fortify their depth down the middle behind NHL leading scorer Nathan MacKinnon, and brought in gritty defender Ryan Lindgren. They also added depth up front in Jimmy Vesey and reunited on the back end with old friend Erik Johnson.

Those were just the most recent moves. Colorado stunned everyone in January when it traded Mikko Rantanen to the Carolina Hurricanes for a package including Martin Necas and Jack Drury. Necas is thriving in an Avs uniform, with 19 points in 21 games.

The Avalanche also completely overhauled their goaltending before the midway mark of the season, acquiring Scott Wedgewood in November and Mackenzie Blackwood in December.

Colorado turned over nearly half its roster through trades alone this season: three new centers, two new wingers, two new defensemen, and both goalies.

So it's fair to ask: Is there such thing as too much change for an elite team midseason?

"I think yes and no," Norris Trophy favorite Cale Makar told theScore ahead of Wednesday's 2-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs. "I don't think I've been a part of a team where there's been too much change. Obviously with the turnover we've had this year and how many guys we've brought in, it's different.

"You've got to find the right guys and bring in the right guys that are going to mesh with everybody and I think (the front office) has done a good job of doing that. Definitely can shake up things and can shake up the team chemistry wise, but I don't think for this team it's done that. I think it's elevated it in every way."

Blackwood, who signed a five-year, $26.25-million extension less than a month after joining the Avalanche, agrees there's inherent risk with such a significant overhaul, but management seemed to find the sweet spot.

"I don't think we have that, but I think it can be possible," the goaltender said. "I think you have to be careful when you're adjusting your roster but I think they've done a good job here of not overdoing it."

Blackwood and Wedgewood arrived because the goalie tandem to begin the year of Alexandar Georgiev and Justus Annunen simply didn't get the job done, combining for an .873 save percentage before being jettisoned. The new duo's been excellent.

GSAx = Goals saved above expected.

"They've been incredible," Makar said of the netminders. "It's fun to be able to play with them. To have that consistency and calmness back there, it's great."

Lindgren's been helping out the goalies since his arrival, and his lunch-pail mentality on the blue line seems to be the perfect complement to the flash of Makar, Devon Toews, and Sam Girard.

Lindgren's game was trending in the wrong direction with the New York Rangers, but he's been rejuvenated in Colorado. He's been on the ice for only three goals against at even strength in nine games with the Avs. His 1.77 five-on-five expected goals against per 60 minutes is best among Avs defensemen, albeit in a small sample.

"Such a tough defender," Makar said. "He's so good on both ends of the ice. Defensively he's been an absolute rock for us."

Blackwood said he appreciates Lindgren's willingness to sacrifice his body to block shots.

"He's the kind of guy you always like having in front of you," Blackwood added.

Neither Nelson or Coyle have yet to truly get going offensively, combining for two goals and four assists in seven games apiece. That's surely to come, though, especially for Nelson, who broke the dam Thursday with two goals in Colorado's 5-1 win against the Ottawa Senators. Nelson potted 20 goals in 61 games with the New York Islanders this season before the trade, and averaged 36 goals per year the prior three campaigns.

Coyle, an overqualified third-line center, has already made his presence felt defensively.

"I like his 200-foot game on both sides of the puck," head coach Jared Bednar said. "He's obviously a trusted defender in all situations - penalty kill, right-handed faceoff guy. He's helped us. That line for us (with Joel Kiviranta and Ross Colton) has a found a way to contribute consistently since he's been here."

The Avalanche started 0-4-0. They were 13-11-0, sitting outside the playoff picture, before the first notable trade for Wedgewood. Sakic and MacFarland knew changes were needed. While they risked disrupting team chemistry by making as many moves as they did, it appears they were able to find the right pieces of the puzzle.

"What I really like about the team and some of our additions is we got a little older, a little more experienced. All guys that are well established, good team guys," Bednar said. "They provide a little bit more personality to our room in different ways. That's helped build the energy off the ice, which I think has carried over onto the ice."

He added: "To be able to revamp our roster on the fly is pretty impressive."

Bold in-season moves have worked for this franchise before. In 1995-96, the Avs traded away Owen Nolan - who at the time was a 22-year-old, former No. 1 overall pick, with three 30-goal seasons already under his belt - for Sandis Ozolinsh. Like the Rantanen trade, it took major guts, but Ozolinsh ended up being a key cog in their Stanley Cup victory that year. Colorado also massively improved its goaltending that season, trading for future Hall of Famer Patrick Roy.

In 2000-01, the Avalanche traded away a productive homegrown player in Adam Deadmarsh in a deal for another future Hall of Famer, defenseman Rob Blake. Colorado won the Cup that season, too (and Jack Drury's uncle Chris was on the roster, as well).

Of course, Sakic captained both the '96 and '01 clubs. He knows a thing or two about finding the right mix.

It's also possible the Avs still have one more addition to come: captain Gabriel Landeskog.

Landeskog hasn't played since raising the Cup for the Avalanche in 2022, missing each of the last two seasons and all of 2024-25 so far due to a knee injury. But he's been ramping up his rehab, even joining Colorado on its current road trip. There's still no timeline for his return, but if he'd be able to come back for the postseason - even as a fraction of the player he used to be - it would provide a huge boost to a team that's already riding high.

"He provides a lot to our team, and a lot of it isn't measured on the ice," Bednar said.

With or without Landeskog, Colorado's journey to glory won't be easy. The Avs are on a collision course in Round 1 with the Dallas Stars, where a legitimate Cup contender will be ousted early. Oddly enough, Sakic and MacFarland's overhaul will likely to be put to the test against Rantanen, who Dallas acquired at the deadline. That'll be fun.

(Analytics source: Evolving-Hockey)