Aarif Deen
The Avalanche decided that the best way to ring in the new year was to ensure their spot atop the Central Division, Western Conference, and NHL was as secure as possible.
After defeating the St. Louis Blues 6-1 on Wednesday, the Avs opened up a 10-point lead on the second-place Dallas Stars, who fell 4-1 to the Buffalo Sabres earlier in the day.
Jared Bednar’s club has all sorts of first-place finishes for the calendar year. Dating back to Jan. 1, they had the most points, the most goals for, fewest goals against, most wins, fewest losses, and Nathan MacKinnon recorded the most goals and points.
Still, Bednar said Wednesday morning that the word he’d use to describe 2025 was disappointing. Because when the games mattered in the playoffs, Colorado was ousted in seven games by Mikko Rantanen and the Stars.
That’s why this 10-point cushion matters. That’s why they want to ensure they keep that top seed all the way through the playoffs. Not only does home-ice advantage matter, but so does avoiding a first-round matchup against either Dallas or the Minnesota Wild.
It also helps to build those habits from the get-go.
REA MORE: Postgame Wrap: Avalanche Put 6 Past Binnington, Blow Out Blues at Ball Arena
10 Takeaways
1. Here’s another fun historic number: The Avalanche are the first team in NHL history to reach 30 wins before Jan. 1.
2. MacKinnon recorded his 400th goal. Before the PA announcer could finish announcing it, Valeri Nichushkin had scored to make it 3-0. So when MacKinnon made it 4-0 1:13 later, Alan Roach announced it as MacKinnon’s 401st career goal. The crowd loved it.
MacKinnon now has 34 goals in 39 games, which is a 72-goal pace over a full season. We’ve only seen 70+ goals 14 times from eight players in NHL history. Two years ago, Auston Matthews scored 69 with the Toronto Maple Leafs. That was the most since 1993.
The games get tighter as the season progresses but I’m still curious to see how close MacKinnon can get.
3. Nichuhskin and MacKinnon each had two goals in the first 4:39. They became the second set of teammates to score multiple goals, each, within the first five minutes of a game. Historic stuff.
4. Nelson’s assist on Nichushkin’s first tally was the 300th of his career. When he added the PP goal in the second, he reached the 30-point mark in just 39 games.
That puts Nelson on pace for 60+ points, and he’s doing it with 25 points in his last 23 games. When you mix in the defensive responsibilties he has and how well he’s playing at both ends, he’s basically giving Colorado first-line center production while playing a second-line center behind one of the league’s best players.
5. MacKinnon had four points to tie Connor McDavid for the league lead with 70 points. Just as he got No. 69, McDavid recorded an assist to get to 70 first. The Avs still have two games in hand on the Oilers, meaning MacKinnon has a higher points per game rate.
But this race for the Art Ross Trophy, if both stay healthy, is going to go right down to the wire.
MacKinnon somehow has not yet won an Art Ross despite having the most points in each of the last three calendar years. I’m sure he doesn’t care much about it, but he’s due.
6. Zakhar Bardakov was a late addition to the lineup after it was announced that Joel Kiviranta was out with a lower-body injury just 30 minutes before puck drop. Bednar played Bardakov on the wing, which allowed Parker Kelly to remain at center.
It was an interesting decision, but it also makes sense. I asked Bednar weeks ago about Bardakov and if the team wanted to give him a look on the wing eventually. Bednar said yes. It’s clear they like the player, but they want Jack Drury to be the 4C when the playoffs begin.
I can see Bardakov having a Kelly-like impact from the wing when called upon. At least in terms of the relentless physicality on the forecheck.
7. Josh Manson had two assists and was a +3. He finished December with 10 assists in 14 games, which is the most he’s ever had on one calendar month. He was also a +14.
8. Last year on New Year’s Eve, Nichushkin left the game against Winnipeg with an injury and was out for two months. Just two weeks later, Colorado had a terrible six-game homestand and traded Rantanen afterwards.
This year, he scored a hat trick on New Year’s Eve.
9. Mackenzie Blackwood is 13-1-1 on the season and finished the 2025 calendar year with 30 wins. He’s one of 11 goalies to reach that mark, and played the least games, by far, from the bunch. Blackwood had 43 starts. Everyone else had at least 10 more than him, except for Logan Thompson (51).
The most in the league was Andrei Vasilevskiy, who had 37 wins in 64 starts.
10. Here’s a fun question to consider: If Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood traded stats this season, would Blackwood be on Team Canada?
I honestly think so. Wedgewood was going to need to do so much more to make it because of his career reputation as a backup before arriving in Colorado. But if Blackwood was leading the league in wins and took the league by storm from opening night the way Wedgewood did, he would’ve been in the conversation right away and likely made the same impression Logan Thompson did a lot earlier.