The Avalanche defeated the Jets in six games in the second round of the playoffs back in 2024, but that’s 2024. That’s no guarantee that the Avalanche would win in 2026. Connor Hellebuyck is either going to be on it, or he’s not. And if he’s as outstanding as he’s been in most of the regular season against this team, or as superhuman as he was during the Olympic Games in Milano Cortina, it’s going to be extremely difficult to score. Add in the fact that the Avalanche still have work to do defensively, and it could be a matchup Colorado would rather avoid, especially this early in the postseason.
