Avalanche's Explosive Opening Win Came With One Big Warning Sign
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The Colorado Avalanche and their fans couldn’t have ask for much more offensively in their first game of the 2026-27 season.
Eight goals, four power-play goals and thirteen different players with at least one point. That’s impressive.
Nathan MacKinnon didn’t disappoint, either. He scored two goals and punished the Kings defenseman Brandt Clark in the third period.
Colorado’s 8-4 victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday night was a record-setter. Eight goals in a season opener is a record. It also made a statement. Colorado is going to be very difficult to contain this year.
It wasn’t perfect, though. Not even close. The best part about that statement is that both the players and the coach aren’t settling for winning. They want to be dominant and take care of business.
"It wasn't a perfect game, but entertaining," MacKinnon said afterward. "We played hard. We got some stuff to clean up, but you score eight, you're probably going to win. So, we'll take it."
Overall, that’s a pretty good summary of the game.
Here are three things that stood out besides the scoreboard.
Avalanche Power Play Was Impressive
If there was one area Colorado desperately needed to improve, it was the power play.
Numbers don’t lie, right? In the 2025-26 season, the Avalanche were ranked 27th in the NHL when they finished with a disappointing 17.1% success rate.
One game doesn’t prove that they fixed that, but it was encouraging. During the season opener, the team scored four goals in five opportunities.
Brock Nelson opened the scoring on a power-play goal in the first period. Then MacKinnon converted on a five-on-three just 23 seconds into the second period.
Atturi Lehkonen took care of business, scoring two more power-play goals later in the game.
It is also worth noting where the production came from. Colorado’s second unit was responsible for three of the four power-play goals.
If the Avs can get legitimate production from two units this year, that weakness just turned into a strength.
After the game, coach Jared Bednar seemed to like what he saw.
"Both units looked dangerous at times," Bednar said. "So yeah, again, lots to like and lots to work on."
One Big Warning Sign
The Avalanche power play scored four goals, but it also allowed two.
That’s the part of the win Colorado can’t ignore.
Joel Armia scored shorthanded just 1:28 into the second period, which cut Colorado’s lead to 3-2. Trevor Moore added another shorthanded goal late in the period.
Giving up two shorthanded goals in one game is concerning.
The larger issue though may be how easily Los Angeles generated dangerous chances in transition through the game.
Bednar was quick to point that out, as well.
"The rush coverage? Woof. It was rough," Bednar said. "Guys just still a little bit in shinny mode, not enough talk, but all fixable. All fixable."
That’s important.
Colorado’s offense simply overwhelmed Los Angeles. But don’t be fooled. The Avalanche won’t be able to score eight every night, particularly when they meet some of the NHL’s best teams.
The good news? This was Game 1 of an 84-game season.
There’s plenty of time to fine-tune this organization, and Bednar will get it done.
Avalanche Depth Better Than Expected
MacKinnon’s domination isn’t a surprise.
Neither is seeing Cale Makar contributing.
What should excite the people supporting this team is everything else that was happening around their superstars.
Thirteen Avalanche players recorded at least one point last night. Eight players finished with multiple points.
Nelson had three. Schwartz, Nazem Kadri, Makar and Toews each had two assists. Parker Kelly finished up Game 1 with a goal and an assist, while Nicolas Roy also scored in his first season opener with Colorado.
Oh yeah. Gabriel Landeskog scored, as well.
The roster concern of just having 11 forwards didn’t seem so concerning watching the offense.
Opening Night was an encouraging answer to whether this team had enough power around its superstars.
This is likely exactly where Colorado wanted to be after the first night of action.
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Laura Lambert resides in Wiggins, Colo. with her husband, Ricky and two sons, Brayden and Boedy. She attended the University of Northern Colorado while studying economics. She is an accomplished rodeo athlete and barrel horse trainer along with being a life-long sports fan. Over the years, Laura has been active in journalism in a variety of roles. While continuing to cover western sports and country music, she is currently enjoying expanding her reach into multiple sports including MLB, NHL, NCAA and WNBA. Laura covers the Miami Marlins, Houston Astros, Texas Rangers, Detroit Tigers, Colorado Rockies, Toronto Blue Jays, Colorado Avalanche and Rodeo for On SI. You can reach her at lauralambertmedia@gmail.com