The Colorado Avalanche have hoisted the cup for the first time in 21 years. After a hard-fought best of 7 series, the Avs have dethrone the back-to-back Stanley Cup champions in 6 games. The Tampa Bay Lightning went for a 3-peat; however, they couldn’t stop the force of an Avalanche to achieve that. After just posting 48 points in the 2016-17 season, Joe Sakic has constructed arguably one of the most dominant teams in the NHL ever. Many transactions prior to this year and at the trade deadline help boost this team from a playoff force to Stanley Cup Champions.
Some of the noticeable deals that were made were Darcy Kuemper, Arturri Lehkonen, Josh Manson, Andrew Cogliano, and Nico Sturm. They all contributed greatly to not only to be the best team in the West, but the best in the league. Darcy Kuemper had his difficulties, but overall came up massive when the team needed it. He was able to lead the club to 10 wins with some clutch performances in the
playoffs. Pavel Francouz also helped in the crease contributing to 6 wins as well. The big question heading into the playoffs was goaltending and it seemed to be stable throughout. Arturri Lehkonen was the acquisition of the season. He came for a solid price of prospect Justin Barron and a 2nd round pick. During the playoffs, he had 8 goals and 6 assists including the clinching Western Conference Final overtime goal and the Stanley Cup Final clinching goal in game 6 to win it for the Avs. Josh Manson was also a key addition to the blue line. He began as a great physical threat that then added a bit of offense. He had 3 goals and 5 assists during the playoffs, which also included a game winning overtime goal against the Blues in game 1 in the second round. Andrew Cogliano, who was a sneaky player, added to the lineup contributed greatly on the forecheck as well as the penalty kill. He also found the score sheet occasionally. Nico Sturm was a defensive forward that added to the size of this team. He didn’t find the scoresheet much but was still a force on the penalty kill and on shutdown game. All these players had key roles that were fulfilled to complete the quest for the cup.
The original players also brought their best games during the playoffs. Val Nichushkin came out on a mission, recording 9 goals and 6 assists. After being criticized by many people, he has certainly found his game in Colorado this season. Nazem Kadri was another key component to the run after having 7 goals and 8 assists in this year’s playoffs. He missed a little bit of time after breaking his thumb but came back in game 4 of the final and scored the dramatic overtime winner to give the Avs a commanding 3-1 lead in the series. The captain once again brought his leadership, which translated to the score sheet as he produced 11 goals and 11 assists. Andre Burakovsky put up 8 points but ended up coming up with great tallies at the right time, including an electrifying overtime winning goal in game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final to earn their first win of the series. Unfortunately, he suffered an injury in game 2 of the final which sidelined him for the remainder of the year. The moose, Mikko Rantanen had a slow start in this year’s playoffs, but ended up using his playmaking skills to accommodate 20 assists and 5 goals. J.T. Compher was another one who grabbed 8 points and ended up scoring at clutch points in games that ultimately led to wins.
Some of these wins were game 6 of the second round and game 3 of the Western Conference Finals. Nathan MacKinnon made it known that this year was going to be different and ended scoring numerous highlight reel points. He picked up 13 hard earned goals and 11 assists to clinch the ultimate prize. The Norris Trophy winner Cale Makar played at an elite level contributing 8 goals and 21 assists for the team. His efforts helped earn him the Conn Smyth award to add to his hardware, which goes to the MVP of the playoffs, which was voted unanimously. What a team. This was one of the most incredible runs to watch, as it was a whole team effort to get it done. Colorado had 2 sweeps and only 4 losses during the whole playoffs. It was a special group of players that believed and disregarded any past stipulations of losing in big moments. There is a lot going to happen in the offseason, but no one in the locker room is worried about that at this moment, as they have a parade to look forward to on Thursday. It was truly a huge pleasure to watch this team do some damage during the 2021-22 hockey season.
