Why Jared Bednar could finally win the Jack Adams Award

Jared Bednar has been with the Colorado Avalanche since the 2016-17 season. Over his tenure as bench boss, Colorado has been a consistent contender. Aside from the very first season, which was more or less doomed to be dismal, the Avalanche have made the playoffs every year. Despite that success, it would seem an overall win percentage of .606 has actually hurt the likelihood of wider recognition.

The Jack Adams Award, which is given to the NHL's best coach, is all about turn-around. Thus, if you don't win early as a coach, you may never see the trophy. Bednar has only been a finalist once, in 2017-18, which illustrates the point. Going 43-30 gets more credit than any subsequent record, because of perceived difficulty.

Arguing that Bednar could have been honored when the team went 42-20, or 39-13 in COVID-shortened seasons fell on deaf ears. Even a 56-19 season, complete with a Stanley Cup, meant next to nothing to the league.

Enter the 2024-25 campaign, where the Colorado Avalanche at times look like a MASH unit as much as a hockey team. Where their still-injured captain Gabriel Landeskog remains out after over two seasons. Landeskog has been out so long, that even at MHS we wonder if his future is in a non-player role.

Add to that the offseason surgery of Artturi Lehkonen, who thankfully debuted this week after missing a dozen games. Also, don't forget the season-opener, where key FA signing Jonathan Drouin was hurt, and hasn't played since.

Ross Colton, who started off the season red-hot with a team best eight goals, also went down. Colton's broken foot will keep him sidelined for 6 to 8 weeks. Also placed on IR was Colton's bestie Miles Wood.

While guys like Drouin and Wood could be back soon, Colton will be out for weeks yet. Colorado's forward core is as injury-stricken as I've ever seen. That's even before you factor in the absence of suspended star Valeri Nichushkin, who could return November 15th against Washington.

Unfortunately the defense has also been banged up, although to a lesser degree so far. Devon Towes was out for a bit, after being hurt in Colorado's third game. Oliver Kylington, who filled in, struggled mightily. Kylington even saw some starts at forward and was exposed there too. So much that MHS has mused unfavorably about his fit.

On top of all these issues, Colorado had another injury scare with Cale Makar on Tuesday night. Makar is traveling with the club, but his status for tonight's game in Winnipeg seems to be a game-time decision.

All these difficulties have been compounded by goalie problems. Only Justus Annunen has looked remotely good enough in my opinion. Annunen has secured 5 of the team's 6 victories. In truth, he has also had shaky breakdowns. The 5-4 rollercoaster game against Ottawa serves as the chief example.

It is encouraging, that at least for now, Bednar has seemingly decided Annunen is his #1 goaltender, even if he hasn't annointed him publicly. The squad needs that assurance internally to build confidence.

The Avalanche managing such significant scoring output from leaders Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar is likely the main narrative you'll hear from the outside. MacKinnon and Makar are first and second in the NHL with 25 and 23 points respectively.

But it is a breakout from Casey Mittelstadt, and the emergence of rookies: Ivan Ivan, Nikolai Kovalenko, and Sam Malinski that is feeding my hope. An unlikely hero in Joel Kiviranta caught fire briefly, too.

As Colorado gets healthy, slowly but surely, I expect things will stabilize. Currently, at 6-7 the Avalanche are doing their best to hang around. A fully healthy, or even mostly healthy Avalanche roster could get rolling at any moment.

I believe that if the Avalanche can find their way into a firm playoff spot amidst this cavalcade of injuries, Jared Bednar would be more than deserving of his first ever Jack Adams Award. Previously the roster was perhaps too talented for coaching to be deemed noteworthy.

If Coach Jared Bednar does earn the Jack Adams, he will join Patrick Roy as the only Avalanche coach to win the award. Roy, who is obviously better-known for the glory he brought the Avs and Canadians on the ice, secured a Jack Adams in 2013-14. That was Roy's first year coaching and thus better follows the trend of turn-around I mentioned earlier in this article.

Jared Bednar is now the third-longest tenured coach in the league behind Jon Cooper and Mike Sullivan. None of those men have ever been given a Jack Adams Award for their efforts. This fact probably hurts his case with voters, but shouldn't.

Meanwhile, both Boston and Calgary have seen two coaches lauded as league best in the time since Roy won. Barry Trotz has hoisted the award twice, for two separate clubs, the Capitals and Islanders, in the same time frame.

Coach Bednar would undoubtedly have a unique journey to one of hockey's major accolades if he wins a Jack Adams in 2024-25. Yet he would be no less deserving of praise and recognition for navigating his club through adverse circumstances.