VGKnow Your Enemy: Colorado Avalanche

Fitting that the Vegas Golden Knights will have to go through the king of the mountain to take the crown for themselves

The Stanley Cup is now in sight for the Golden Knights, but they have the most difficult test of all awaiting them in the form of the Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference Final

Schedule

Game 1: May 20, 5 p.m. (Ball Arena)

Game 2: May 22, 5 p.m. (Ball Arena)

Game 3: May 24, 5 p.m. (T-Mobile Arena)

Game 4: May 26, 6 p.m. (T-Mobile Arena)

*Game 5: May 28, 5 p.m. (Ball Arena)

*Game 6: May 30, 5 p.m. (T-Mobile Arena)

*Game 7: June 1, 5 p.m. (Ball Arena)

* — if necessary

How they got here

The Golden Knights have warded off two teams that were looking to knock them off their perch amidst the top teams in the NHL.

While both the Utah Mammoth and Anaheim Ducks provided moments of genuine menace, the Golden Knights were able to get the key plays at the right moments. Despite splitting the first four games in both series, Vegas was able to rally back to overtime victories in Game Fives before slamming the door shut on the road in Game Six. The Golden Knights have had zero issue cooling raucous crowds so far, and they seem to perform at their best when the pressure starts to ramp up.

That is going to have to be the case again, as the Avalanche have cruised through the playoffs so far.

The President’s Trophy winner is proving exactly why they lead the NHL in points this season, sweeping the Los Angeles Kings with relative ease before dispatching a presumed Cup contender in the Minnesota Wild in only five games. While Minnesota did provide a challenge, Colorado was up for it by means of a three-goal comeback in Game Five. It is truly Cup-or-bust for the Avalanche at this stage, who are looking to climb back to the top of the hockey world for the first time since 2022.

Keys to victory

Vegas: Time to talk about the Vegas penalty kill again.

While the Golden Knights did take some hits while shorthanded against Anaheim, the team’s success is going to be imperative once again. Despite Colorado’s struggles with the power play during the regular season (27th in the NHL), the Avalanche went 5-for-13 against the Wild on the man advantage. With the amount of dynamic athletes Colorado has at their disposal, the Golden Knights will have to limit any power play opportunities; adding to the shorthanded goal counter (four) would only help matters.

Colorado: Reading through Colorado’s roster feels like the lineup of a murderer’s row.

The Avalanche are far beyond just Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar. The forward group is loaded with high-end talent from top to bottom, while the defense as a whole has easily been the best of the playoffs so far. Any player is a threat to score the moment the puck reaches their stick, so the Golden Knights will essentially have to keep their heads on swivels for the full 60 minutes.

X-factors

Vegas: William Karlsson turned out to be an excellent choice for the Anaheim series with his instant chemistry between Mitch Marner and Brett Howden, so now we head to another injured player in Mark Stone.

The Golden Knights captain’s status is still very much up in the air for this series, but Vegas will need him in the ‘all hands on deck’ scenario they find themselves in. Stone has continued to slide in nicely with Jack Eichel, and reuniting the first line with either Ivan Barbashev or Pavel Dorofeyev would be a massive boost. If the captain is still less than 100 percent, the pressure ramps up significantly on key players throughout the entire lineup, so Stone is going to have to be the heartbeat of his team once again.

Colorado: The Avalanche’s defensive corps has taken a beating so far this postseason, and the question could easily become if they have the depth to manage if anyone misses critical time.

Makar had to miss a good chunk of the third period in Game Five against Minnesota, while Sam Malinski missed the final two games of the series as well. Brent Burns was also not on the ice for practice on Sunday to suggest the veteran defenseman is also dealing with an ailment, but Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar has been quick to say that everyone who has missed games or practices will likely be suiting up for Game One. With the Golden Knights’ propensity to play the body and be physical in several situations, expect Vegas to test just how battle-ready Colorado’s back end truly is.

Series prediction

Pundits have been quick to suggest that Colorado could roll to another easy series victory, but it is difficult to imagine that being the case.

The Avalanche were the better team with home-ice advantage in the lone series between these two teams in 2021, and the Golden Knights were the ones to come out on top in six games. Given both teams would win the Stanley Cup the next two go-arounds, the series was a case of iron sharpening iron, and both have remained at or near the top of the sport for the majority of the time since.

However, what is also difficult is imagining the Avalanche struggling to overcome this latest test. The Golden Knights certainly have the horses to contend, but expecting them to be at their absolute best the entire way through a seven-game series is always going to be a tough ask regardless of their opponent. Colorado moves on for the chance to finally break the President’s Trophy curse, but they will have to earn it every step of the way.

Avalanche in six games.