The Colorado Avalanche were busy up until the trade deadline on Friday, with the news of Nazem Kadri returning to Denver hit news circuits after it had even passed. That news instantly made Avalanche fans cheer so loud that I could hear them from Canada. Okay, not really, but Avalanche fans have been ecstatic since that move finally became official.
Before Kadri signed with the Avalanche in 2019, fans were speculating about the potential move. Most, if not all, people wanted that move to happen. It finally did, it continued to pay off. While his first two seasons in Colorado were shortened due to COVID, the Avs just continued to get better. In the Avs’ first season with Kadri, they went 42-20-0-8. In his second year on the team, they went 39-13-0-4. Finally, their Stanley Cup time came in 2021-22, as they finished the regular season 56-19-0-7, good for second place in the division.
The Avalanche right now are the best team in the league, with a record of 42-10-0-9 and 92 points. Their success has been consistent, though they did have a rough time in January, when they went 6-4-0-2. Their current success has been noted by everybody, including an ESPN reporter who had a fun prediction for the Stanley Cup Final.
Corey Perry back to the Lightning.
— Kristen Shilton (@kristen_shilton) March 6, 2026
Nazem Kadri back to the Avalanche.
Tampa vs. Colorado meet again in the Cup Final.
Corey Perry loses, again.
The fact this could be a real thing is wild.
Yes, Corey Perry is now a member of the Tampa Bay Lightning for his second stint. He was on the Lightning during the 2021-22 season, the one where Colorado beat them in that Stanley Cup Final. Everybody takes note of Perry’s lack of success in the postseason. He won the championship in his rookie year, 2007, but anytime he’s been close, his team has not been able to lift the Cup.
It’s kind of fun to poke fun at, though I know that it would suck to have that sort of track record. Still, as an Avalanche fan, I do expect a team such as Tampa Bay to be in contention for the final round of the postseason. As an Avalanche fan, I expect Colorado to reach it, as well. For the Avs, Kadri returning and helping the Avalanche get through the playoff gauntlet is a great story and is certainly possible.
People also talk about the President’s Trophy curse, where the team who wins that trophy (for most wins in the regular season) end up falling short of the Stanley Cup Final win. Colorado has a chance to flip that history, and doing so against the team they won against in 2021-22 would just be the best story in the entire NHL.