Breaking Down Avalanche's Remaining Schedule -- And Their Chances At Rising In Hyper-Competitive Central Division
The Colorado Avalanche have been one of the NHL's toughest teams of late, going 10-3-1 since Jan. 28. That stretch of hockey has allowed the Avs to vault over the Minnesota Wild for third place in the incredibly-competitive Central Divsion. And if the Avalanche are going to catch the Dallas Stars for second spot in the Central, they're going to have to be almost as good, if not better. But let's break down their remaining 16 games and project how well they'll be doing.
According to the very useful Tankathon web site, the Avs have the NHL's 11th-toughest remaining schedule. Starting Friday in Calgary, Colorado has nine straight games against either teams who are in serious contention for a playoff spot, or who already occupy a playoff spot -- the Flames (twice), Dallas, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Detroit, Los Angeles, and St. Louis. After that, they've got Chicago, Columbus, the Blues, Golden Knights, Canucks, Kings, and Ducks. So if they can play well in those first nine games, the Avalanche's remaining seven games should be considerably easier.
Getting into second spot in the Central is important for the Avs in many ways -- most notably, in terms of their home and road record. When they're playing in Denver, the Avalanche are an impressive 22-10-2 this season. But away from home, the Avs are only 17-14-1. Nine of their remaining 16 games are on the road, and that means Colorado needs to be better than that in order to challenge the Stars for second place and home-ice advantage in Round One of the post-season this spring.
Either way, it certainly seems like the Avs are destined for a first-round showdown with Dallas. And considering their season series record against the Stars is 1-1-0 -- with a less-talented squad than the Avalanche are after this season's trade deadline -- Colorado should feel confident they can hang with Dallas and get at least to the second round for the sixth time in the past seven seasons. The Avs did lose to the Stars in the second round of last season's playoffs, but this is a much stronger Colorado team we're talking about this season.
The Avalanche have arguably the deepest defense corps in the NHL, a strong goaltending tandem, and legitimate superstars in Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar. Most teams do not have that combination of depth and elite skill.
It took them a while to get up to speed this season, but as it stands right now, the Avs are as dangerous as any team in the league -- and they could wind up winning their second Stanley Cup in the past four years. Time will tell how they fare this season, but the Avalanche look like they can do a whole lot of damage the rest of the regular-season and the post-season.
-
March Madness: Breaking down the race for NCAA men's tournament No. 1 seeds
Auburn remains the clear-cut No. 1 overall seed and Duke seems like a lock, but the other two spots are up for grabs heading into conference tournament week.Yahoo Sports - 3d -
Yankees lose Gerrit Cole + NL Central preview: why Pirates fans should be angrier than ever
Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman react to the news that Gerrit Cole will miss the 2025 MLB season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Jake and Jordan then preview the entire NL Central. They break ...Yahoo Sports - 1d -
NL Central season preview: Will the Cubs break through? How good are the Reds and Pirates? And what are the Cardinals doing?
Let's take a look at the season forecast for the five teams in the National League Central.Yahoo Sports - 1d -
Pickett says he will get chance to be Browns' QB1
The Browns' quarterback situation remains unsettled with few starting options available in free agency, but new addition Kenny Pickett said he has been told he will get the chance to compete to be ...ESPN - 14h -
Dent, Northern Illinois beat Central Michigan 83-81 in double OT
James Dent Jr. scored 36 points to lead the Northern Illinois Huskies, including the game-winning jump shot with one second remaining in double overtime, and the Huskies defeated the Central ...ABC News - 6d -
What to know about pro-Palestinian activist's deportation case
Pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil will remain in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Louisiana for now. CBS News correspondent Lilia Luciano breaks it down.CBS News - 1d -
Cavaliers rally from 18-point deficit, clinch Central Division with 109-104 win over Nets
Darius Garland scored 18 of his 30 points in the fourth quarter, lifting a Cavs team without Donovan Mitchell, De'Andre Hunter or Ty Jerome.Yahoo Sports - 1d -
Breaking down the latest space launch mishaps
You may have noticed all the troubling launch and landing mishaps affecting private space missions lately, from two explosions of a SpaceX Starship to lunar landers that can't stay upright. Bill ...CBS News - 6d -
Breaking down the U.S.-Ukraine peace talks
U.S. and Ukrainian officials are set to hold talks this week in Saudi Arabia about ending the war between Ukraine and Russia. CBS News senior foreign correspondent Holly Williams reports on the ...CBS News - 3d
More from Yahoo Sports
-
27 days until the Masters: Looking back at the 1998 Masters, O'Meara's brilliant finish
Mark O'Meara birdies the 17th and 18th hole to win his lone Masters title by one shot.Yahoo Sports - 13m -
2 trades highlight 49ers post-free agency mock draft
The San Francisco 49ers use the trade market to make six picks in a three-round NFL mock draft after the first big free agency wave.Yahoo Sports - 13m -
Mike Macdonald: Sam Darnold's best days are ahead of him
The Seahawks think Darnold is still an ascending player.Yahoo Sports - 17m -
Latest composite 2025 NFL mock draft
Breakdown of the first round of the 2025 NFL draft using a composite of four mock drafts to see latest mock trends.Yahoo Sports - 22m -
Dalton Knecht by the numbers for Lakers at Milwaukee
A look at former Vol Dalton Knecht's performance for Los Angeles at Milwaukee.Yahoo Sports - 27m
More in Sports
-
27 days until the Masters: Looking back at the 1998 Masters, O'Meara's brilliant finish
Mark O'Meara birdies the 17th and 18th hole to win his lone Masters title by one shot.Yahoo Sports - 13m -
2 trades highlight 49ers post-free agency mock draft
The San Francisco 49ers use the trade market to make six picks in a three-round NFL mock draft after the first big free agency wave.Yahoo Sports - 13m -
Mike Macdonald: Sam Darnold's best days are ahead of him
The Seahawks think Darnold is still an ascending player.Yahoo Sports - 17m -
Latest composite 2025 NFL mock draft
Breakdown of the first round of the 2025 NFL draft using a composite of four mock drafts to see latest mock trends.Yahoo Sports - 22m -
Dalton Knecht by the numbers for Lakers at Milwaukee
A look at former Vol Dalton Knecht's performance for Los Angeles at Milwaukee.Yahoo Sports - 27m