The Colorado Avalanche have a unique opportunity to repeat history in 2025-26. The last time the Avs won the Stanley Cup, they were coming off a bitter second-round exit at the hands of the Vegas Golden Knights the season before.
All sorts of questions swirled around the club’s ability to get past the second round. Uncertainty clouded the team, leading pundits to declare the Avalanche as one of those teams that could not get the job done.
Then, the breakthrough came in the 2021-22 season. The Avs landed a second-straight division title and set up a first-round date with the Nashville Predators. They dispatched the Preds in a sweep, to set up a second-round matchup with the St. Louis Blues.
This time around, there would be no disappointing second-round exit. The Avs got past the Blues in six. Then, they steamrolled the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference Final in four straight.
That landed the Avalanche in the Stanley Cup Final against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Lightning, a Florida-based team, was coming off back-to-back Stanley Cup championships. Their mostly veteran core was looking to establish a dynasty.
That dynasty ran into Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog, and Cale Makar. The Avalanche took the series in six for the franchise’s third championship.
In 2025-26, the stage is set for the Avalanche to repeat history. A Florida-based team is coming off three-straight Stanley Cup Finals appearances and back-to-back championships. That Florida-based team, the Panthers, is looking to establish a dynasty.
Colorado Avalanche on track to stifle another Florida dynasty
The parallels between the Lightning and Panthers is interesting. The Lightning made a name for themselves during the bubble playoffs in 2020 and 2021. They fudged the salary cap with LTIR to earn their second Cup in 2021.
The Panthers went through the gauntlet, winning their Cups in a full 82-game season. But they also took advantage of LTIR to earn their second Cup. Now, there’s talk of a Panthers dynasty.
But a reloaded Avalanche team looks poised to step in and have a say in the Panthers’ quest for a three-peat.
Sure, the Panthers have to get through a loaded Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference. So do the Avs. More than likely, the road to the Stanley Cup Final will take the Avalanche through Edmonton. That could mean the Avalanche will need to dispatch a battle-tested Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl on the war path for a Cup of their own.
Can the Avalanche knock off all of these formidable contenders along the way? Absolutely. The season is a long grind filled with various peaks and troughs. The Avs have the wherewithal to pull off another Cup run with this core.
History doesn’t repeat itself, but it sure rhymes.