Avalanche Leading the West Thanks To Nathan MacKinnon

The best team in hockey resides a mile high above sea level. Its leader, Nathan MacKinnon, has been on an absolute tear to start the season and is a major reason why the Colorado Avalanche are not just on top of the Western Conference, but also off to a start that has them at the pinnacle of the NHL.

MacKinnon’s superstardom has been well documented throughout his illustrious career in Colorado. He won the Calder Trophy following an amazing rookie campaign and has continued to exhibit that excellence to this day, with his 14 goals and 29 points leading the NHL. What’s even better — at least from a team perspective — is that the Avalanche are the best in the West and could be staring down the barrel of an extraordinary season. And it’s all possible because of MacKinnon’s greatness.

No One’s Scoring Like MacKinnon Right Now

MacKinnon’s 14 goals lead the league at the moment, and that doesn’t appear to be changing anytime soon. In his last five games, the 30-year-old from Nova Scotia has scored five goals and racked up 11 points. Zoom in even further and look at just his last two contests, and the stats get even more impressive, as he’s scored four goals and notched nine points over the past two nights against the Edmonton Oilers and the Vancouver Canucks. Both games resulted in wins for the Avalanche, with the victory over Edmonton being a dominant 9-1 finish.

Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanch — Nov 9, 2025; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon (29) celebrates his first goal of the game against the Vancouver Canucks in the first period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images | Bob Frid-Imagn Images

This isn’t a surprise to anybody familiar with MacKinnon’s abilities on the ice. He’s consistently been near the top of the crop when it comes to scoring goals, and his excellent facilitating skills give him the ability to accumulate assists. All of this gives the Avalanche the capability to outscore opponents at a torrid rate. That’s played out so far this season, as the team’s plus-22 goal differential is the best in the NHL by a sizable margin.

He's doing this in an environment that hasn’t exactly been conducive to veteran scorers finding success. So far this season, the top point producers have been young talents like Leo Carlsson (25 points) of the Anaheim Ducks, Connor Bedard (25) of the Chicago Blackhawks, and Macklin Celebrini (24) with the San Jose Sharks. While much of the veteran core that once filled that list continues to slip down the standings, MacKinnon has held his peak form and remains dominant.

MacKinnon Continues to Make History

In Colorado’s 5-4 overtime win over the Canucks, MacKinnon continued to etch his name deeper into Avalanche history.

Nathan MacKinnon continues to make history. pic.twitter.com/04qXA6cvPv
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) November 10, 2025

With his 381st career goal, he passed Peter Stastny to move into third place on the franchise’s all-time goals list. The only two players ahead of him are Joe Sakic (625) and Michel Goulet (456). However, since both Sakic and Goulet scored most of their goals as members of the Quebec Nordiques before the franchise relocated to Denver in 1995, MacKinnon stands as the top goal scorer in Avalanche history.

What’s Next for Colorado and MacKinnon?

The Avalanche will look to keep their standing at the top of the league when they face off against the Pacific Division-leading Anaheim Ducks on Nov. 11. They’ll then take on the Buffalo Sabres on Nov. 13.

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