![May 13, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon (29) celebrates his goal with center Martin Necas (88) and center Brock Nelson (11) and ]center Nazem Kadri (91) and defenseman Brent Burns (84) in the third period against the Minnesota Wild in game five of the second round of the 2026 Stanely Cup Playoffs at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_4789,h_2693/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/production/108/01ksgwkjd645rh0krpbr.jpg "May 13, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon (29) celebrates his goal with center Martin Necas (88) and center Brock Nelson (11) and ]center Nazem Kadri (91) and defenseman Brent Burns (84) in the third period against the Minnesota Wild in game five of the second round of the 2026 Stanely Cup Playoffs at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images")
Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland has been rumored to be somebody who will have interest from at least one other club. The rumored team is the Nashville Predators, per chatter going around.
One of the bigger reasons I feel it would make sense for MacFarland to go somewhere else is that two of his recent acquisitions haven’t been able to make big splashes in the postseason.
Martin Necas, acquired in the deal that sent Mikko Rantanen to the Carolina Hurricanes, has played in 19 postseason games over the past two seasons for the Avalanche. He has two goals and 15 assists. While 11 of those assists are from this postseason, Necas has historically been a poor playoff performer.
That’s an oversight by MacFarland. While I do enjoy watching him during the regular season, his absence from the scoresheet in the playoffs is glaring.
Another player who plays a ton of minutes in the regular season but who is also someone who hasn’t exactly lit up the scoresheet is Brock Nelson, acquired by the New York Islanders in a trade that gave away Calum Ritchie. Nelson has played in 19 playoff games, scoring two goals and five assists for Colorado.
It’s hard to understand what exactly is going on with these players when it comes to the Stanley Cup playoffs. I don’t mean to throw dirt at them, but the facts are the facts. Something is up with these guys. While it made sense at the time to acquire Nelson and ship Ritchie away, you might just have to wonder what could have been.
It is the coaches’ job to get players ready, so the blame might not all be on MacFarland, but everyone in the organization has a job and acquiring top talent is the job for the general manager. It’s cool that he took a shot at acquiring guys who could have the high upside, but the fact is that it hasn’t shown from Nelson and Necas.
It will be interesting to see what the Avalanche do with Necas as his contract runs out at the end of this postseason. Can the Avalanche convince him to sign a prove-it deal?
While the focus here has been about a few guys that haven’t lived up to the team’s hopes in the postseason, I have to give credit where it’s due. MacFarland was the man behind the acquisitions of Mackenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood as the Avalanche looked to reform their goaltending room. That has been the best thing MacFarland has done. It’s remarkable.
The Avalanche’s downfall this series isn’t all on MacFarland’s additions of Nelson and Necas. He’s done several good things for the club. But, if he really wants to redeem himself, and he probably should, he might need to make another big splash in the upcoming offseason.
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