1 notable player snubbed from Colorado Avalanche's 30 best in 30 years list

The upcoming NHL season is a historical one for the Colorado Avalanche, as it is their 30th in Denver, after moving from Quebec in 1995. The team recently released a new logo to celebrate the anniversary season. Hopefully this season will be as successful as the inaugural year and produces another Stanley Cup championship.

As usual when an anniversary season arrives for a team in sports, the media often publishes lists and articles praising the best-of over the years. The Locked On Avalanche podcast recently published their 30 best players in the first 30 years list on X and I thought that one player was notably snubbed from the list.

The Avalanche have been blessed with incredible talent through the years, so I understand these lists will vary and everyone has a different opinion. That being said, I can understand the argument for why each and every one of the players on this list made the cut. However, I cannot understand how Artturi Lehkonen didn't make the cut.

Artturi Lehkonen deserves a spot on this best Colorado Avalanche players list

For starters, Lehkonen stands as one of the big heroes of the 2022 Stanley Cup championship season due to his series winning goals in both the Western Conference Finals and Stanley Cup Finals. That's right, a Stanley Cup winning goal. His penchant for clutch scoring and game-winning goals has earned him the nickname 'Good Stick Lehky', which is one of my favorites. He also boasts 11 regular season game-winners. That's more than Nazem Kadri had and tied with both Sandis Ozolinsh and Devon Toews.

In addition to that, Lehkonen's 139 points in 194 games in an Avalanche sweater should also garner him more consideration. That's 0.72 points per game. In the postseason, he has 35 points 45 games, good for 0.78 points per game. That's solid production. For comparison, Stephane Yelle had 144 points in 516 games as an Av, good for 0.28 points per game. While their roles are admittedly different, that's a stark difference in points per game.

I understand the knock on Lehkonen for this list. He hasn't put in quite as much time as most of the other names and isn't quite the fan favorite as players like Logan O'Connor or Cody McLeod. He has also missed quite a lot of time due to injury and that definitely plays into how people think about these kinds of lists.

Who would Artturi Lehkonen replace?

The first guy I'd drop from the list is Cody McLeod. I fully understand the reason for his inclusion as he's a fan-favourite tough guy and beloved in the locker room. I just feel that Lehkonen's playoff game-winners are more impactful than McLeod. The only other guy I feel strongly that Lehkonen deserves a spot over is Stephane Yelle. I loved Yelle growing up, as he's one of the best third-line centers the team has had. He was a hard-working, consistent, and reliable player for the Avalanche. But again, I feel pretty strongly that Lehkonen's series-clinching goals are too important to pass him over.

So, while the list doesn't feel quite accurate to me, I know it's all in good fun. I'll just hope that Good Stick Lehky has a great year to solidify himself as one of the all-time greats in Avalanche history.