DENVER — The Colorado Avalanche did not light the world on fire at season’s end, losing five of nine games to close the year following a four-game win streak in late March. Their first-round opponent, the once-formidable Dallas Stars, are sputtering into the playoffs on a seven-game losing streak and down a key player.
Jason Robertson, the Stars’ second-leading points scorer this season, will miss the start of the playoffs with a lower body injury suffered in the Stars’ regular season finale.
So it becomes a series that’s about as evenly matched as you can get: Division rivals separated by four points in the standings, who will face off in the postseason for the seventh time, including last year.
This year’s matchup, of course, has an extra dose of intrigue as Dallas Stars right winger Mikko Rantanen faces his former team with whom he hoisted Lord Stanley’s Cup in 2022. Rantanen was a trade-deadline acquisition for Dallas this season that at the time made the Stars this year’s Cup favorite.
Denver7 Sports’ Lionel Bienvenu, Nick Rothschild and Bradey King broke down three keys to the Avs-Stars series. Hear their analysis in the video player below:
Rival Rantanen
Rantanen is one of the top players in the game, and he may be playing with something to prove against his former team.
“I know he's already come back once to play the Avs in Ball Arena, and had the tribute, and everything's fine,” Bienvenu said. “But in a playoff series with Mikko coming back, he's going to be like a hornet coming out of the nest when the Avs hit it with a stick.”
But will Colorado be able to neutralize the advantage Dallas gains from the Avs’ former Star? Rothschild thinks so:
“The Avs have played with this guy for his entire career. They've got to know all of his little tips and tricks and things that he does on the ice,” he said. “So although he's such a great player, let's not overestimate or underestimate that side of it. I actually happen to think that this is a good thing for the Avs that they have a little inside information on one of the best players on the other team.”
Rantanen will likely be playing with a lot of emotion – we’ll see if the emotion is enough to impact his game.
The Captain’s return
Some major personnel news looms over the early goings of this series: When will Gabe Landeskog return to the lineup?
The last time he took the ice for the NHL squad was during that 2022 Stanley Cup run. If and when he returns, he’ll be an immediate boost.
“When he gets inserted back in the lineup – because he will, at some point in this series – he's going to be the best third liner in maybe NHL history, certainly in the current NHL,” Rothschild said. “It's just an incredible boost that he will provide on the ice in the dressing room.”
If Nick was calling the shots for the Avs, he says he’d bring Landeskog back for Game 3, after two road games in Dallas to get him acclimated to the game environment and potentially being on the bench with the team.
“I think you do the best by Gabe, by letting him come back home after everything he's been through,” he said. “Let him get his moment in front of the fans when he first comes into the game.”
Bienvenu disagreed:
“This is big boy hockey,” he said. “Gabe Landeskog has lifted a cup. He has played two games with the Eagles. He's practiced, there’s nothing else he can do [...] He's already been brought along as slow as you possibly could. Game 1, on the ice. Do it.”
The Avs’ front office constructed this team to compete for a Cup even if Landeskog didn’t return to the lineup. Adding a player of Landeskog’s caliber could be what puts them back in the Stanley Cup final.
A full series from Nichushkin
Avs fans need no reminder that Nichushkin – a former Dallas Star – has deserted his team the last two postseasons, being disqualified over off-the-ice matters.
Nichushkin missed two months midseason with a lower body injury, but logged 34 points in 43 games played this season. His availability as a force on the inside is crucial for Colorado.
“If you're [Avs general manager] Chris McFarland, you hire somebody to just follow him around, right?,” Rothschild said. “You don't have to treat him like a child, but he also has to understand his importance to this team.”
“His teammates say he [has gone and done] the work,” King said. “He has earned their trust and respect back. So we just have to take that at their word.”
Keeping Nichushkin on the right track could be one more added benefit of Landeskog’s return, too.
Avalanche-Stars playoffs schedule (game times in Mountain Time)
- Game 1: Avalanche @ Stars | Saturday, April 19 at 6:30 p.m.
- Game 2: Avalanche @ Stars | Monday, April 21 at 7:30 p.m.
- Game 3: Stars @ Avalanche | Wednesday, April 23 at 7:30 p.m.
- Game 4: Stars @ Avalanche | Saturday, April 26 at 7:30 p.m.
- Game 5*: Avalanche @ Stars | Monday, April 28 at TBD
- Game 6*: Stars @ Avalanche | Thursday, May 1 at TBD
- Game 7*: Avalanche @ Stars | Saturday, May 3 at TBD
*if necessary