Avаlаncһe Equіpped to Wіn 2025 Stаnley Cup After Trаde Deаdlіne

With the 2025 NHL Trade Deadline firmly in the rearview, the revamped Colorado Avalanche have set off on their journey of capturing the 2025 Stanley Cup. Brock Nelson, Charlie Coyle, Ryan Lindgren, Jimmy Vesey, and Erik Johnson have been airlifted in to make this group as formidable as its been since the 2022 Stanley Cup title season.

Though the impressively comprehensive roster overhaul executed by general manager Chris MacFarland leading up to the day of the deadline beefed up Colorado’s forward group and defensive core, it’s not as though the team was treading water beforehand.

The Avalanche rank seventh in the NHL by points percentage (PTS%) since the start of 2025 (.625) and tied for third since the start of February (.731). The biggest difference is that since the turn of the year, the Avalanche are allowing the third-fewest goals-per-game (2.39) compared to ranking 24th from the start of the season to Dec. 31. This is a team finding its stride and starting to fire on all cylinders, something that should make their Western Conference foes anxious as we approach the playoffs.

Nelson and Coyle Trades Give Avalanche Elite Center Depth

The Avalanche’s Stanley Cup hopes begin and end with the health and production of superstar center Nathan MacKinnon, the reigning Hart Trophy winner who has his eyes set on the first Art Ross Trophy of his already storied career.

Only Connor McDavid and Nikita Kucherov rank higher by regular-season points-per-game (P/G) over the past five seasons, while only McDavid and teammate Leon Draisaitl have bested MacKinnon’s rate of playoff production. Very few teams have won the Stanley Cup without a superstar forward, but Colorado has that area covered.

With Nelson being acquired from the New York Islanders and Casey Mittelstadt sent to the Boston Bruins as part of a package for the 33-year-old Coyle, the Avalanche’s depth down the middle behind MacKinnon looks a lot different than it did even two weeks ago.

Mittelstadt floundered in his first full season with the Avalanche, partly as a result of a rotating cast of wingers due to injuries and partly due to his inability to assimilate into the team’s system. Nelson and Coyle collectively bring a level of physicality and responsible two-way play which Mittelstadt did not, making it clear that the front office believes that a different player profile will succeed in a playoff environment. The trades do not come without some risk, however.

Mittelstadt is seven years younger than both of his replacements, and is under contract for two more years after this one. While Coyle’s deal runs through next season, he is no longer in his prime and could regress further next season. Nelson has the same age concerns as Coyle, but he is also a pending unrestricted free agent (UFA) next season. He’s a big center with three 30-goal seasons to his name which would make him one of the more attractive UFAs if he does not re-sign in Colorado.

For now, the Avalanche are hoping that the emphasis on size and strength can push them over the edge in a loaded Western Conference, and to leave questions about next season’s roster to the summer.

Avalanche Blue Line Sees Minor Additions

For all of the re-shuffling done up front, the Avalanche’s blue line has been mostly untouched. Cale Makar, Devon Toews, Samuel Girard, and Josh Manson are still here as the core which was instrumental in delivering Colorado’s 2022 championship. The third pairing has seen some combination of Sam Malinski, Keaton Middleton, Oliver Kylington, and Calvin de Haan take a regular shift this season.

Only the first two remain on the roster following the deadline, with longtime Avalanche defender Johnson making an unexpected return, along with Lindgren coming over from the New York Rangers. What has emerged in the aftermath is a collection of more physical rearguards who play safer and more risk-averse styles that head coach Jared Bednar wasn’t getting from the now-traded players.

The top four will see a massive share of the five-on-five minutes during the playoffs, but the depth defensemen will have to hold their own when the Avalanche don’t have the benefit of last change to insulate them against other teams’ best players.

Avalanche Should Be Considered Stanley Cup Contenders

The Avalanche now have eight players who are scoring at a 20-goal pace or higher, and 11 scoring at an 18-goal pace or higher. This is a loaded offense when fully healthy (which hasn’t been often), and gives Bednar many viable options to choose from when assembling his lineup.

The defense is deeper, but questions remain about how far Manson, Lindgren, and Johnson are from their physical best. All three have had stints as difference-makers on the back end in the past, but the trio has struggled due to injuries, age, or some combination of the two. The presence of Makar and Toews – a duo which acted as Team Canada’s top pair at the 4 Nations Face-Off – can mitigate most issues, and the Avalanche will need them to be at the top of their games.

In the crease, MacFarland’s dealings earlier in the year may have saved the Avalanche’s season. Prior to Justus Annunen being traded to the Nashville Predators for Scott Wedgewood on Nov. 30, the Avalanche ranked last in the league in save percentage (SV%). With Alexandar Georgiev being traded to the San Jose Sharks for Mackenzie Blackwood less than two weeks later, the Avalanche rank in the top five by SV% since Dec. 1 and have unsurprisingly compiled a record of 26-12-3 over that time.

In all three areas, the Avalanche are better now than they were before the trade deadline. Whether they can overcome their slow start to the season remains to be seen, but the team is equipped to go deep into the postseason. Is the second Stanley Cup of the MacKinnon era in the cards?