![\"\"](\"https:\/\/gazette.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/AP26070854152989-1024x683.jpg\")
Colorado Avalanche center Nazem Kadri (91) in the first period of an NHL hockey game Sunday, March 8, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo\/David Zalubowski)<\/p>\nIf Jared Bednar wants to bring that 2022 mojo back to the Colorado Avalanche, he already has one combination in mind that could do that.<\/p>\n
His team just has to get healthy first.<\/p>\n
The Avalanche presently are without four of the eight wingers they\u2019d prefer to dress in the postseason in Ross Colton, Gabriel Landeskog, Artturi Lehkonen and Logan O\u2019Connor. While Bednar indicated on Altitude Sports Radio Wednesday the latter three are expected back with enough time for the team to get into a rhythm before the postseason begins, they\u2019re still a \u201ccouple\u201d of weeks away. Colton\u2019s timeline is a bit more up in the air.<\/p>\n
But Bednar already is cooking up some ideas for his lineup when they do get healthy.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d like to get (Landeskog) back with (Martin) Necas and (Nathan) MacKinnon,\u201d Bednar told Altitude Sports Radio. \u201cBrock Nelson has been playing a lot with Val (Nichushkin) and (Colton) and maybe we keep that together. And does Lehkonen go with \u2018Naz\u2019 and (Nicolas) Roy? I want to have all those guys at center.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Lehkonen and Kadri didn\u2019t play a ton together to close out the regular season in 2022, they spent a lot of time on the same line in the playoffs. In fact, Lehkonen\u2019s most common linemate during that 2022 Stanley Cup run for the Avalanche was the now-35-year-old Kadri.<\/p>\n
They weren\u2019t just good on a line. They were great.<\/p>\n
Colorado Avalanche center Nazem Kadri (91) in the first period of an NHL hockey game Sunday, March 8, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo\/David Zalubowski)<\/p>\n
In over 120 minutes of 5-on-5 time together, the duo controlled 63% of the shot attempts, 65% of the shots on goal and outscored the opposition 9-4. When they were away from each other, they were still effective but not nearly as effective as when their forces were combined.<\/p>\n
Both players are a little bit older but not all that dissimilar from what they were four years ago. Avalanche fans are well aware that if you put Lehkonen on a line, no matter his other linemates, that line will probably work.<\/p>\n
What is interesting in that potential scenario is the idea that Colton, who has gone long periods of time without scoring at various points of the last two seasons, stays in the top six. For Bednar to feel comfortable sticking Lehkonen with Kadri, Colton, Nelson and Nichushkin must hold up their end of the bargain.<\/p>\n
When Nichushkin and Nelson are together, the Avalanche usually have the puck. With Colton on their line, those numbers take a hit. In their 175 minutes of 5-on-5 time together, they\u2019ve controlled 53.71% of the shot attempts and have an expected-goals-for percentage of 56.73%. That\u2019s not bad, but when you compare them to the numbers when Lehkonen is on that line over Colton, it\u2019s night and day.<\/p>\n
The trio of Lehkonen, Nelson and Nichushkin has produced an expected-goals-for percentage of 68.85% in their 125 minutes together. They\u2019re generating offense at a high rate. But the big difference when paired with Lehkonen is their sturdy defense.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/gazette.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/AP26068782706035-1024x683.jpg\")
Colorado Avalanche right wing Valeri Nichushkin looks on during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Dallas Stars Friday, March 6, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo\/Julio Cortez)<\/p>\n
That will leave Bednar with a choice to make \u2014 weaken the top six to spread the wealth among the forward group or load up? Assuming they get healthy before the playoffs, no coach around the NHL will feel bad for Bednar when he must choose how to deploy his embarrassment of riches up front.<\/p>\n
The wild card in all of this continues to be Logan O\u2019Connor, who has not played a game this season. He\u2019s trending toward a return and has started to join the team on the ice without taking contact. O\u2019Connor was Colorado\u2019s second-leading scorer in the series against Dallas last year and would be a huge boost to the bottom six if he can return and be effective, a large if.<\/p>\n
Depending on O\u2019Connor\u2019s return to the lineup, there won\u2019t be a lot of runway for him to get up to speed prior to the start of the playoffs. Coming off a second major hip surgery and an additional injury that has kept him out the past few months, it\u2019s fair to question how effective he\u2019ll be in the short term.<\/p>\n
If he comes back and looks anywhere close to the O\u2019Connor fans are accustomed to seeing, you can bet Bednar will put him back on a line with Parker Kelly and Jack Drury, a line that was incredibly effective down the stretch last season.<\/p>\n
It might be a few weeks before Bednar can tinker with all of his toys in the lineup. But he now has options he didn\u2019t have three weeks ago. More options are rarely a bad thing.<\/p>\n
What I\u2019m hearing<\/p>\n
NHL players aren\u2019t as high profile as athletes from other leagues, but they still get noticed. That was the case for Kadri when he arrived at Denver International Airport after the trade. \u201cI was trying to stay incognito, but I just couldn\u2019t do it,\u201d Kadri joked. He said some fans helped him get his luggage. Good on them.<\/p>\n
The natural inclination for fans is to compare this Avalanche team to the one that won it all in 2022. Bednar isn\u2019t ready for that. \u201cWe win, then we can have that conversation,\u201d he said. Probably the wise route to take. That 2022 team steamrolled everyone on their way to a Cup. It\u2019s best not to put those types of expectations on this group.<\/p>\n
What I\u2019m seeing<\/p>\n
July 1 used to be one of the most exciting days on the NHL calendar. That is no longer the case. With Nick Schmaltz re-signing in Utah, an already weak unrestricted free agent crop got even weaker. If you want to improve your team, you either must do it via the draft or by trade. Good players just don\u2019t hit the open market anymore.<\/p>\n
Since the start of the Olympics break, the Avalanche power play has looked significantly better. Then you watch the Edmonton Oilers go to work on the man advantage and realize there\u2019s plenty of work still to be done. Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are wizards when the opposition is down a man. Perhaps it\u2019s not fair to compare anyone to the best power play in the NHL. But, boy, those Oilers sure are fun to watch with one more guy on the ice.<\/p>\n
What I\u2019m thinking<\/p>\n
It feels like Rasmus Dahlin has been in the NHL for over a decade. Yet, he\u2019s just 25 years old. He\u2019s a big reason for the Sabres\u2019 resurgence and this could be the year he finds his way into the Norris Trophy conversation. There\u2019s a lot of competition for that award, though. Between Dahlin, Cale Makar, Zach Werenski, Moritz Seider, Evan Bouchard and a few others, it\u2019s going to be a fascinating race down the stretch.<\/p>\n
If you recall, we recently published a feature story on Tyson Barrie\u2019s \u201cChilly Ones\u201d beer company. Barrie tells The Denver Gazette they\u2019re \u201cjust getting started\u201d and the launch in Colorado has gone well. They\u2019re now in over 200 key retailers in the state. Founder and former owner of N\u00dcTRL Vodka Paul Meehan just signed on as a strategic advisor and investor, so it would sure seem things are going well.<\/p>\n
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