Colorado brings back the spine of the NHL’s best regular-season club as the Avalanche open 2026-27 on Sept. 29, but the crease will be under a bright light after Scott Wedgewood and Mackenzie Blackwood set a demanding standard a year ago.
Colorado Avalanche 2026-27 notebook: deep roster, goaltending test and new edge
The Avalanche went 55-16-11, won the Central Division and reached the Western Conference Final last season. Jared Bednar enters his 11th year behind Colorado’s bench with a lineup that remains loaded at every position, led by Rocket Richard Trophy winner Nathan MacKinnon and Norris Trophy runner-up Cale Makar.
Colorado scored an NHL-high 298 goals while giving up a League-low 197. Its underlying defensive work was equally stout: the Avalanche finished with a plus-7.6 shot differential and surrendered only 26.1 shots on goal per game.
The crease is Colorado’s biggest question
Wedgewood and Blackwood shared the William Jennings Trophy after backstopping the League’s stingiest defensive team. Wedgewood posted 31 victories, more than he managed across the two prior seasons combined while moving among Dallas, Nashville and Colorado. In at least 20 appearances, he paced NHL goaltenders with a 2.02 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage.
Blackwood missed the opening month because of injury, then settled in with a 2.51 GAA, the best mark of his eight-season NHL career. He won 23 games, his second-highest total in a season.
Colorado’s returning defensive group should continue to ease the workload, but matching the tandem’s 2025-26 production is a tall order. A drop in either goalie’s game would make the backup plan important in a hurry.
How the Avalanche stay on the playoff track
There is little mystery about Colorado’s postseason formula. MacKinnon’s 53 goals headlined a top-six forward group that has added proven finishing and younger legs. Six-time 20-goal scorer Jaden Schwartz signed with the club, while Fedor Svechkov and Zachary L’Heureux arrived from the Nashville Predators.
Makar remains the engine on the blue line, and the Avalanche can move the puck cleanly without sacrificing their own-zone structure. With the majority of last season’s high-scoring, low-conceding roster intact, a serious injury wave is the clearest threat to a 10th consecutive playoff berth.
Newcomers, youth and the next goalie up
- Colorado added L’Heureux to bring a more confrontational element to its bottom six. The 23-year-old has averaged 14.53 hits per 60 minutes through two NHL seasons. Ross Colton, traded during the offseason, had led the Avalanche over that same span at 10.17.
- President of hockey operations Joe Sakic described L’Heureux as the sort of player Colorado wanted in the postseason, citing his energy, excitement and physical presence.
- L’Heureux’s discipline will bear watching. He served three AHL suspensions totaling four games over the past two seasons and has accumulated 84 penalty minutes in 87 NHL contests.
- On May 30, goalie Ilya Nabokov signed a two-year entry-level contract. The 23-year-old is set for his first full North American season after going 68-37-14 with a 2.35 GAA, .918 save percentage and seven shutouts in 130 KHL games across three full campaigns.
- Nabokov helped Magnitogorsk capture the Gagarin Cup in 2023-24 and was voted the KHL playoff MVP as a rookie. He is expected to begin with the AHL’s Colorado club, but could move into the NHL picture if Wedgewood or Blackwood struggles.
Svechkov could fill an important short-handed role
Colorado wants to find more minutes for its younger players, and Svechkov is well positioned to benefit. The 23-year-old averaged 12:05 in 70 games with Nashville last season, but his ice time could rise if he earns work on the penalty kill.
The Avalanche lost Jack Drury and Valeri Nichushkin, who ranked among their four most-used forwards while shorthanded last season. Svechkov’s skating and awareness could help replace those minutes on a penalty kill that finished first in the NHL at 84.6 percent.
Malinski’s breakout has already started
Sam Malinski, 28, produced career bests across the board last season: 40 points in 82 games, including eight goals and 32 assists, along with 164 shots and an average of 17:37 per night. His plus-43 rating was tied for third in the League, behind Colorado teammates MacKinnon at plus-57 and Martin Necas at plus-47.
Over the past two seasons, Malinski ranks second on the Avalanche in blocked shots with 202 and second among team defensemen in hits with 103. His speed and shot volume also stood out: he recorded 94 long-range shots on goal, 116 bursts above 20 mph and 40 mid-range shots, placing him near the top of NHL defensemen in each tracking category.
He closed last regular season with 13 points, five goals and eight assists, in his final 20 games while averaging 19:44. Malinski’s fantasy average draft position sits at 140.2, but his role and finish suggest he may not remain a late-round value for long.
Projected opening lineup
| Unit | Projected players |
|---|---|
| First line | Artturi Lehkonen — Nathan MacKinnon — Martin Necas |
| Second line | Nazem Kadri — Brock Nelson — Gabriel Landeskog |
| Third line | Jaden Schwartz — Nicolas Roy — Logan O’Connor |
| Fourth line | Parker Kelly — Fedor Svechkov — Zachary L’Heureux |
| Defense pair 1 | Devon Toews — Cale Makar |
| Defense pair 2 | Brett Kulak — Sam Malinski |
| Defense pair 3 | Josh Manson — Brent Burns |
| Goaltenders | Scott Wedgewood; Mackenzie Blackwood |
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SEO title: Colorado Avalanche 2026-27 season preview: projected lineup, goalies and key additions
SEO description: The Colorado Avalanche return their high-powered core for 2026-27, with Scott Wedgewood and Mackenzie Blackwood facing a difficult repeat in goal while Zachary L’Heureux, Fedor Svechkov and Ilya Nabokov add fresh storylines.
