Colorado Avalanche rewind: Top 6 forwards showcased best, worst of challenging season
May 8—The Denver Gazette takes one last look at the 2022-23 Colorado Avalanche season and first-round playoff exit with an in-depth review of different position groups. Next on the Avs rewind: Top-six forwards.
Quotable
"It would have been easy for some of those core guys to get frustrated a little bit this year. They're like me. They get the taste of winning, and you just want it every year. But with winning, there's a lot of things that happen. ... Hopefully, we can surround those guys with the right mix of players."
— Avs coach Jared Bednar after Colorado's first-round playoff elimination at the hands of the Seattle Kraken
Expectations
On paper, back in August, the Avalanche believed their top-six forwards group could return to a championship level. Captain Gabe Landeskog planned to be ready for the season opener after knee surgery. The team signed Nathan MacKinnon and Valeri Nichushkin to long-term extensions. Mikko Rantanen was on the cusp of becoming an All-Star. The team trusted Artturi Lehkonen on the top line.
Of course, the departure of Cup winning second-line center Nazem Kadri (Flames) left a huge gap in the lineup. Yet internal optimism reigned in training camp that Alex Newhook would grow into that role. General manager Chris MacFarland also signed Evan Rodrigues (Penguins) in free agency to bolster the top six. But would it be enough?
Reality
Short answer: Nope. Colorado's top-six showcased the best and worst of a challenging title defense.
Long answer: The Avs were especially top heavy with MacKinnon and Rantanen each recording their first 100-point seasons. Lehkonen, despite missing 18 games to injury, set NHL personal bests in goals (21) and assists (30). But production dropped down the lineup, significantly, due to missed games and underwhelming performances.
Landeskog never played. Nichushkin left the team for "personal reasons" in the playoffs. And the failure to replace their production (or find a reliable 2C) haunted the Avs in their most important games. Newhook and Rodrigues were far too inconsistent. Denis Malgin and Andrew Cogliano were quality depth forwards playing out of position. The J.T. Compher experiment blew up in the playoffs with zero goals.
Colorado picked up Lars Eller (Capitals) before the trade deadline and he anchored the second line in Game 7 against Seattle. That didn't work, either.
Future
The Avalanche's top line is here to stay based on when their current deals expire: Lehkonen (2027), MacKinnon (2031) and Rantanen (2027). That's huge. But the jury is still out on whether two more long-term deals — Landeskog (2029) and Nichushkin (2030) — are positive or negative for the organization's future.
The Avalanche can't afford to waste valuable salary cap space missing star players.
General manager Chris MacFarland's priority in roster retooling should be finding an elite second-line center. Immediate names that come to mind currently available on the free agent market: Jonathan Toews (Blackhawks) and Erik Haula (Devils). But don't stop there. They need to evaluate trade targets with teams in need of what Colorado has to offer.
Wishing and hoping that Landeskog and Nichushkin will be available to start next season is a failed strategy.
