The Colorado Avalanche scored their first goal of the season with just about seven minnutes gone from the first period against the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday. The goal went to forward Brock Nelson.
The shocking part, perhaps, is not that the Avalanche scored first—they made that a habit last season. It is, though, the fact that the goal came on the power play.
The Avalanche have had five different players score the first goal of the season over the past five seasons. From descending order (2025-26 and backwards): Martin Necas, Mikko rantanen, Nathan MacKinnon, Andrew Cogliano, and Jack Johnson.
It is something that I found pretty interesting when doing some research for the season. Maybe it is a sign that something big is going to come for Nelson this season. Avalanche fans can only hope that it is a sign for great things to come.
The Kings were penalized for knocking the puck out of the rink in their own zone.
Nelson had 33 goals in 81 games for the Avalanche last season, the fourth time in his career where he scored over 30 goals.
Last season, the Avalanche finished 27th in the entire NHL at a 17.1% conversion rate on the man-advantage. It was essentially the biggest reason in which they were unsuccessful in the postseason.
Getting off to a hot start is going to be key for the Avalanche yet again. It is a new season where each team begins 0-with every intent the same: winning the Stanley Cup. Colorado is a hot contender and has been ever since head coach Jared Bednar’s second season in the league.
The team that scores the first goal of a game has an advantage in that they can sit back a little bit and have the pressure put almost completely on the other team. While I don’t advise that necessarily, it’s a good feeling to be ahead. The Avalanche have what it takes to withstand
All of that being said, this fact still remains: The season opening game is far from over. They still have to close it out, which they have obviously been able to do so often. The Kings were an easy team to face in the Stanley Cup Playoffs last postseason, but it’s a new year. The last thing anybody wants their team to do is to let off the gas.
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