The Colorado Avalanche could not ask for a better start to the 2025-26 season. With their victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets, they extended their point streak to five games and looked to make it six as one of the strongest lineups in the league hosted the Boston Bruins.
Despite going down early, the Avalanche quickly erased the deficit and never looked back. Aside from a quiet second period, the Avalanche coasted to yet another win, their fifth in six games, with a 4-1 defeat of the Boston Bruins.
A Dominant Two-Way Effort
There are a few things that stand out about this game, but one quick look at the box score tells you one major story. The Avalanche outshot the Bruins 38-14 and, at times, it never even really felt that close. John Beecher put in a nifty slap-pass from Charlie McAvoy past Scott Wedgewood to give the Bruins an early lead.
But after that, it was lights out for the Bruins. They mustered seven shots in the first period – as many as they would register across the next two periods combined. The Avalanche shut things down so badly in the second period that the Bruins managed just two shots.
Its easy to contrast and compare this Avalanche team with the 2024-25 version, but it really is night and day. The Avalanche play a strong defensive game and Wedgewood’s performance has combined with that effort to make one of the best defensive teams in the league.
High-End Firepower
While the defensive game is nice to talk about, a lot of fans tune in to see the fireworks. Nathan MacKinnon provided more than a few of those. His line with Artturi Lehkonen and Martin Necas has proven to be one of the most dynamic and exciting in the entire league.
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MacKinnon took a nice feed from Lehkonen in the first, made a nifty move, and put a smooth backhander past Jeremy Swayman. In the third period, he took a feed from Lehkonen at the right faceoff dot that MacKinnon absolutely hammered home.
While it is nice to get a complete team effort, there is just something reassuring about having an absolutely dominating line. The trio has been virtually unstoppable through six games this season and doesn’t show any signs of slowing down.
A Little Top-Heavy
It’s hard to criticize a team whose only blemish is a shootout loss to the Dallas Stars, but there is one thing worth noting. It’s not that the Avalanche haven’t been getting contributions from other players, but they are very top-heavy right now.
The trio of MacKinnon, Lehkonen, and Necas – plus Cale Makar – have combined for 34 points so far this season. The only other player with more than four points so far is Brent Burns and several forwards have no more than two points.
All of that being said, we are just six games into the season. Certain guys will find their offensive game, which will only serve to make the Avalanche more dangerous. For now, it’s just nice to see them winning easily without having to get top-to-bottom contributions.
The Best-Case Scenario
For the Avalanche, this is the best possible scenario for the start of the season. They are 5-0-1, leading the Central Division, and they are doing so without their starting goaltender and one of their top four defensemen. Getting both back will only strengthen what very well may be the best team in the NHL.
There really is nothing left to say other than that Avs fans should enjoy this. We are seeing two Hall of Fame-level players at their absolute peaks – MacKinnon and Makar – dominating on a nightly basis. Even more than that, we are watching the Avalanche play like one of the most dominant teams in the league.
