The Colorado Avalanche were eliminated by the Vegas Golden Knights in the Western Conference Final of the Stanley Cup playoffs in what was an insane heartbreak for Avs fans and one of the most disappointing losses in Colorado sports in recent memory. They made history, but for the wrong reason.
There will be fans who won’t even lay a single eye on a Stanley Cup Final game that doesn’t involve the Avalanche, and they have that right to do so. But, if you are one of those fans who does watch to the very end, there is at least one reason to root for one of the teams competing for the Stanley Cup this year.
Carolina Hurricanes
The Avalanche and Hurricanes have some history. Dating back to the 1979-80 season, the Avalanche have a record of 86-58-21-2 all-time against the Hurricanes, even dating back to when the Avs were the Quebec Nordiques and the Hurricanes were the Hartford Whalers.
Colorado’s donning of their revamped Nordiques jerseys this past season did not sit well with Avs Faithful as they lost five of seven games in which they wore them.
The Hurricanes have one player on the team who used to play for the Avalanche in defenseman Sean Walker. That there is one of the few reasons Avs Faithful could be rooting for them to bring home the Stanley Cup.
I don’t know how the series against the Hurricanes would have gone for the Avalanche, but if Carolina played similar games that the Golden Knights did against Colorado, it could have gone very poorly. Then again, maybe the Avalanche would have been ready given how evident it is that the Hurricanes would be the top team in the Eastern Conference.
Vegas Golden Knights
The Golden Knights came out in front of the Avalanche in a shocking series outcome. Some will ponder why Colorado lost to them, and while it’s a fair question depending on your thinking, the fact is that only one team can advance.
If you’re against the idea of rooting for the Hurricanes, perhaps you could root for the Golden Knights, if only for the reason that Vegas losing in the Stanley Cup Final after eliminating the Avalanche would sting quite a bit.
Colorado might be the better overall team like most people think, but it takes just a couple of bad plays here and there and you’re losing. Those bad plays happened a little bit more than we would liked to have seen. It’s also a huge credit to Carter Hart for a great series.
If you’re going to eliminate a team from the postseason—especially one who is better overall than you—you better end up lifting the Stanley Cup. It would feel like a waste if the Golden Knights didn’t win.
Avs Faithful was robbed of a Stanley Cup Final appearance, while the entire NHL was robbed of what probably would have ended up as the best Stanley Cup Final matchup possible this season.
Whatever the outcome of this Stanley Cup Final is, the Avalanche hope to be representing the Western Conference in 2026-27.
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