Strike 2: As usual, any time the Denver Broncos are good and in the running for a shot at the Super Bowl, they’re instantly and continuously topic No. 1-A all across the Front Range. And with the fast start and injury drama surrounding the Denver Nuggets, the local hoops team – with title aspirations of their own – is taking up a decent amount of bandwidth as well.
Breaking News: We’d better leave some space for the best team in town, the Colorado Avalanche.
After two consecutive shutout wins away from home over the weekend, the Avs have won nine in a row, lead the NHL in points and haven’t lost a game in regulation in almost a month. In fact they’ve only lost one game in regulation all season.
Since making a couple big trades about 11 months ago, Colorado now has a pair of standout/stand-on-your-head goaltenders in Scott Wedgewood and Mackenzie Blackwood. All that pair did was toss those consecutive blankings on consecutive days for the first time in the illustrious history of the franchise. Defense, which used to be an issue with the Avalanche, isn’t anymore. They have the best defenseman in the world (Cale Makar) on their roster as well as group of talented All-Star caliber defenders.
While the Nuggets continue to slowly blend in a few newcomers acquired during the off season into their talented locker room, the Avs went ahead and pulled the trigger on similar moves much earlier, during last season. Things didn’t happen overnight, and they lost a rugged seven-game playoff series to Dallas before they could reach their goal. Still, the moves that were made by the front office last season gave this year’s squad a head start, and it’s been off and skating at top speed since Day 1.
Things aren’t perfect. The power play is stagnant for some inexplicable reason. This uber-talented offense, with All-Stars and Olympians dotting the roster, can’t even muster a decent shot with a man advantage some nights. It’s sort of like the Nuggets on-again, off-again 3-point shooting. They find a way to overcome it and win anyway.
This current pace will be impossible to maintain, of course. But having a seven-point lead over the Stars in the Western Conference standings as they reach the end of November is something every local fan can be thankful for.
What really matters is what happens in next spring’s playoffs. And as the Nuggets have found out, there’s no such thing as staying injury free. But the Avs are already getting contributions from a few young players, so they should be prepared. When they get Logan O’Connor and Val Nichushkin back, they’ll get another offensive boost.
They don’t have to get much better, they just have to stay consistent and continue doing what they’re doing (along with figuring out the power play issues.) From this point forward, the Avs can just keep working and ultimately position themselves for a favorable playoff set up. With a top seed and a healthy roster, they will be the favorites to win another Stanley Cup.
So while the Broncos continue to tantalize the local fan base with dreams of another trip to the Super Bowl, and the Nuggets continue to feature the all-time greatness of Nikola Jokic as they make a championship push as well, the fact of the matter is that the best chance for another championship parade through downtown Denver in 2026 is the local ice skaters wearing burgundy and blue.
