The Colorado Avalanche are back in the thick of the NHL regular season, and what a whirlwind it’s been since the Olympic break! After nearly three weeks away from league action, the Avs leaped straight into a grueling stretch—three games in four days, with the schedule only getting tougher. Despite the challenge, the team managed to notch two wins and one loss, clinging to their position at the top of the NHL standings and keeping their eyes trained on the playoffs.
"The break was great, obviously, but the schedule is tough — jumping right back into it and go back-to-back. But, yeah, it’s good to just get thrown right back in the fire and start playing again," defenseman Sam Malinski said after the Avs’ 3-1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks. His words capture the mood in the Avalanche locker room: gratitude for the rest, but a clear-eyed focus on the demanding road ahead.
The Olympic hiatus was a welcome pause for a team that had been struggling in the month prior. Even though the Avalanche held onto the No. 1 spot, the break offered a much-needed reset. Non-Olympic players used the time to rest, recover, and gear up for the final push of the regular season. But as goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood explained, nothing can quite replicate the intensity of real game action. "It’s so mental, just the way you have to see the ice. It’s hard to get that in practice. Before you get back to playing, you’re doing all your goalie school stuff, trying to be technical. But when you get in the game, you have to have good reads. Be patient and technical — it’s the whole shebang. So it takes a little bit sometimes to feel good, but I think we’re doing a good job right now."
One of the biggest stories coming out of the break isn’t just the team’s rapid-fire schedule, but the return of Avalanche stars from Olympic duty. Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and Devon Toews represented Canada in Milan, coming home with silver medals after a dramatic run that saw them fall to the United States, 2-1 in overtime, in the gold medal game. For MacKinnon, the experience was unforgettable—even if it ended with a sting. "Just fondly," MacKinnon said of his Olympic memories. "I had an amazing time. It was a really unique hockey experience. Yeah, nothing but good memories. Obviously, it stings. It still stings. I still had an amazing time. Everyone did."
MacKinnon’s Olympic journey had its share of drama and adversity. There was ample speculation about his health, with reports that he played through injury or illness—he was even seen vomiting on the bench during one contest. He missed the Avalanche’s first game back for maintenance but showed no signs of slowing down upon his return, racking up two points in each of his first two games and logging over 23 minutes of ice time. "A couple things," MacKinnon said when asked about what he was dealing with. "It’s part of it. It’s not easy. But, nothing too crazy."
Perhaps the defining moment of MacKinnon’s Olympic run came in the semifinal against Finland. With Canada down 2-0, MacKinnon scored with just 35.2 seconds left—capping a power play and a furious comeback that sent Canada to the gold medal game. "It was really cool," MacKinnon admitted. "I was so tired at that point. I was cramping everywhere during the power play. I just hit it. I was exhausted, but it was still a really, really cool feeling."
Returning to the NHL grind after the Olympic spectacle hasn’t been easy for MacKinnon or his teammates. "Yeah, it’s difficult," he said. "I think it still feels like we’re on Europe time a little bit. I was prepared after the Four Nations last year, but it’s hard. It’s really hard. I was ready, so it wasn’t as difficult this time. It’s just a different level of intensity, do or die. The emotions are nervous and everything. You’re not that nervous for (an NHL) game in February. It just feels like a bunch of Game 7s over and over again. But I don’t get paid by (Hockey Canada). I get paid here. I’m really happy to be back, to try and chase down home ice and hopefully go deep (in the playoffs)."
As the Avalanche push forward, head coach Jared Bednar faces the tricky task of managing his stars’ minutes. The team’s schedule is relentless: five games in seven days, including back-to-back road tilts against the Los Angeles Kings and Anaheim Ducks, followed by a trip to Dallas before returning home for a matinee against the Minnesota Wild. Bednar’s plan is to put games away early, allowing him to roll all four lines in the third period and keep his top players fresh for the postseason.
Still, not everything has gone smoothly. The Avalanche’s power play has been a sore spot, converting just one of ten opportunities in the first three games after the break. Yet Bednar saw signs of improvement. "I like their power play tonight. That was a really good first step coming out of the break on how we’d like to get in attack mode. And they get us a big power play goal, even though it just had just ended. It was a huge goal for us," he said following the win over Chicago.
On the flip side, discipline has become a concern. The Avs took six penalties against Minnesota and five against Chicago, a trend that didn’t sit well with captain Gabriel Landeskog. "Not a big fan of the penalties we took … that tilts the ice for sure," Landeskog commented after the loss to the Wild. "It just gives them unnecessary momentum here, especially after we just tied it up and we felt like we started tilting the ice. So, yeah, undisciplined, and we got to be better there." Bednar echoed the sentiment, labeling the penalties as "easily fixable" and expressing confidence that his team would return to its disciplined ways.
Injury news also looms over the Avalanche. Bednar revealed that Valeri Nichushkin has been hampered by a wrist injury at various points this season, which may explain his dip in production—12 goals in 49 games this year after scoring 49 in 97 games over the previous two seasons. "I like his work ethic, I like his attention to detail most nights," Bednar said. "I feel like he’s been beating up the puck a little bit this year, just hasn’t been real easy for him to handle it and make plays at times. He said he feels like he’s turning the corner (with the injury), so I expect some production to come with that."
With a packed schedule, Olympic fatigue, and playoff aspirations, the Colorado Avalanche are juggling plenty as the season’s final stretch heats up. The coming days will test their depth, discipline, and resilience. But if there’s one thing this group has shown, it’s an ability to rise to the challenge—no matter how tough the schedule, or how high the stakes.