Last season was a big year on the stat sheet for a lot of Colorado Avalanche players. Nathan MacKinnon set a franchise record with 140 points on the way to winning his first Hart Trophy. Cale Makar had the highest-scoring season by a defenseman in team history with 90 points, and Mikko Rantanen joined MacKinnon to become just the second teammates in franchise history to post back-to-back 100-point campaigns.
That sets the bar pretty high going into 2024-25, but the Avalanche could be on the cusp of making another scoring breakthrough never seen in franchise history. For the first time, Colorado could post three 100-point scorers in the same season. In 2022-23, the Edmonton Oilers became the first team in nearly 30 years to accomplish the feat – with Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins all hitting the century mark. The Avs are going to have to take a different approach, and here’s what they’ll need to do it:
MacKinnon Leads the Charge
Since the team moved to Colorado in 1995, no player has recorded 100 points in three straight seasons. MacKinnon has a shot to add that to his resume in 2024-25. Peter Stastny did it in six straight seasons from 1980-86. MacKinnon racked up 140 points last season after 111 in 2022-23. Barring injury, he’ll be a heavy favorite to score at least 100 points again this season. Colorado leans heavily on MacKinnon, and he proved last season that he is more than capable of carrying the load, and bringing his teammates along with him.
If the Avalanche are going to get three players to the 100-point plateau, MacKinnon is going to have to be the one driving the bus. He’s central to a lot of the Avs offense, and plays a huge role in Rantanen’s production as well. Those two are the big guns on the power play – which usually posts Makar and MacKinnon at the point. Colorado’s success on the power play will also help dictate whether or not these guys all get to the milestone, since all three play heavy minutes with the man advantage.
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MacKinnon is coming off the best season in franchise history, and was rewarded with the Hart Trophy for his efforts. He doesn’t have to be the unstoppable force he was all of last season to get there, but if he is, the Avalanche have a great chance to pile up a lot of points. Availability is a big factor, and the sky could be the limit if they get another season where MacKinnon plays all 82 games. He’s the driving force behind their offense and will set the tone if the Avs are going to have a special season.
Makar Needs Another Career Year
Makar just keeps getting better and better – which is saying quite a bit. In his five NHL seasons, he’s been a Norris Trophy finalist four times, and won the award in 2022. He has three of the top four highest-scoring seasons by a defenseman in Avalanche history, and his 90 points last season were four more than he scored the year he won the Norris. Consistency is his key, and he has steadily improved over the course of his short career.
However, availability has been an issue at times. He has never played more than 60 games in back-to-back seasons, and that could be the roadblock to getting Colorado their third 100-point scorer. He played in 77 games last season and in his Norris-winning 2021-22 season, but has played 60 games or less in each of the other three. Two of those seasons were shortened due to COVID, but he still missed time in each of those campaigns.
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No one is questioning Makar’s ability to score, but he will also need a huge year to get there. As stellar as he has been, adding 10 more points to his career-best will be a big task. It would also put him in some rarified air. Only six defensemen have ever scored 100 points in a season, and while some players did it more than once, only Erik Karlsson has done it in the last 32 years. Karlsson did it with the San Jose Sharks in 2022-23, and was the oldest defenseman to do it at age 32. It feels like only a matter of time before Makar adds his name to that list, and the 2024-25 season would be the perfect time to do it.
Rantanen Keeps Flying Under the Radar
Rantanen might be one of the most underrated superstars in the NHL today. He has scored a whopping 301 points over the last three seasons, including 105 behind a career-high 55 goals in 2022-23 and 104 behind a career-best 62 assists last season. The biggest part of that comes from his availability. Rantanen has missed just nine games over the past three seasons, and seven of those came in 2021-22. If he can remain healthy, there’s little question that he could post another 100-point campaign.
Another calling card of Rantanen’s play has been his consistency. His longest stretch without a point last season was only three games, and he had only two other instances where he went back-to-back games without a point. The familiarity with MacKinnon is also a big bonus, as Rantanen has played almost his entire career alongside the reigning Hart Trophy winner. If they can get some consistency on the top line – whether it comes from Gabriel Landeskog or Valeri Nichushkin (or both) coming back, or another player filling in consistently, expect Rantanen to threaten the 100-point mark once again.
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When the Oilers posted three 100-point scorers a couple of seasons ago, it was the first time since the Pittsburgh Penguins did it in 1995-96. You have to go back a few years to the Penguins of 1992-93 to get a team with at least three 100-point scorers that included a defenseman – as Paul Coffey gave that team four players with 100 points, alongside Mario Lemieux, Rick Tocchet, and Kevin Stevens. MacKinnon is one of the best offensive forces in the NHL, and Makar gives them enough offense from the blue line to seriously chase a 100-point season. Rantanen is the underappreciated piece in the equation for Colorado, but his last two seasons prove he’s one of the top forwards in the NHL. If they can all stay healthy and continue improving like they have the past couple of seasons, the situation could be right to create a historic season for all three of those players.
