Colorado Avalanche 10 Reasons to Attend Games: Fresh Start

The number one reason to attend Colorado Avalanche games during the 2017-18 season is the classic sports rationale — it’s a fresh start.

For Colorado Avalanche fans, as with fans of every sports team, the beginning of a new season heralds a fresh start. Sure, there are returning players, coaches and systems. However, a new season gives us hope.

Sports fans have to be eternal optimists. If your team wasn’t any good last year, you have to believe that they’ll be better this year. If your team was borderline, you have to believe they’ll push past the plateau to elite status. Even if your team won the championship, you have to believe they can repeat their success.

Needless to say, Colorado Avalanche fans are in the first category. While we haven’t seen any huge overhauls in the offseason, the team did make the following changes:

• Bought out 37-year-old Francois Beauchemin’s $4.5 million contract, resulting in $3.5 million more cap space.
• Let veterans Rene Bourque, Fedor Tyutin and John Mitchell walk in free agency, thus freeing up roster spots.
• Let Patrick Wiercioch and Cody Goloubef walk in free agency, thus freeing up roster spots.
• Failed to qualify Mikhail Grigorenko and Eric Gelinas, thus freeing up roster spots.
• Lost Calvin Pickard in the Expansion Draft, but signed Jonathan Bernier.
• Signed Nail Yakupov as a free agent.
• Traded for Colin Wilson.
• Signed restricted free agents Duncan Siemens, Matthew Nieto and Sven Andrighetto.
• Signed college free agents Dominic Toninato and Alexander Kerfoot.
• Signed prospects Andrei Mironov, Nicolas Meloche and J.C. Beaudin.
• Signed free agents David Warsofsky and Jesse Graham to fill out the AHL roster.
• Re-signed Rocco Grimaldo to fill out the AHL roster and serve as a call-up.
• Let Dave Farrish and Tim Army go. Replaced them and departing goalie coach Francois Allaire with Ray Bennett and Jussi Parkkila.

There are still some issues up in the air, such as whether they can get defenseman Nikita Zadorov signed and if they’ll really trade center Matt Duchene. However, the team is starting to take better shape.

The excitement is already in the air. Thanks to the Mars Volchenkov, we can see that prospects and veterans alike are already taking to the ice:

Thanks to the Colorado Avalanche social media, we can see that the Pepsi Center ice is taking shape:

Come on, you’re not an Avs fan if those pictures and videos don’t create a sense of excitement in you.

We all know it’s highly, highly unlikely the Avalanche are going to be a playoff contending team this season. There are still too many holes in the roster. They are in full rebuild.

However, 2017-18 marks a new start. We’re going to get to see some of our favorite aspects of hockey played out in burgundy and blue — flashy saves, breakaways, huge hits, hockey hugs. And there will be goals, maybe not as many as we want, but there will be goals.

We’ll get to see the young prospects duke it out for roster spots. We’ll get to see the young future stars start their legends. And we’ll get to see our favorites skating on the ice once again.

And it all takes place at the Pepsi Center, 41 times this season. You can see the action up close and personal.

10 Reasons to Attend Colorado Avalanche Games

• Home Ice Advantage
• In-Game Entertainment
• Warm Ups
• Best Pepsi Center Food
• Mascot Bernie
• Improved Systems
• New Jerseys
• New Players
• Returning Players

It’s been a long, Avs-less summer, Avs Nation. We need some hockey, and luckily for us, hockey season is nigh. So, the number one reason to attend Colorado Avalanche games this season is not only because we’re witnessing a fresh start, but because it’s Colorado Avalanche hockey.