Avalanche can’t treat regular season as just another 82-game slog

The Colorado Avalanche released their 2025-26 schedule on Wednesday.

There’s some interesting details.

The team will play 18 matinee games. There’s a 20-day break for the Olympics in February. They’ll have a homestand in January that is seven games, the franchise’s longest in years.

And while schedule day is always a fun one, there’s certainly a section of the fanbase that is looking at this like another 82-game slog. Let’s face it: we’re spoiled.

The Avalanche have made the playoffs eight years in a row. They won the Stanley Cup in 2022. No one is really going to remember this regular season. It’ll be all about what happens in April, May and hopefully June. Once again, this year will be a success or failure based on the postseason.

Unfortunately, Colorado has had a lot of failures in recent years. They’ve won just one playoff series since their latest title more than three years ago. That parade no longer feels like yesterday. It’s been some time since we’ve had real postseason fun.

That’s why the players can’t have the attitude of a handful of fans. This isn’t just another grind of a regular season where simply making the dance is the goal. No, the Avalanche need to be gunning for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference.

First of all, you don’t want another 2-3 first-round matchup with the Stars. That was no fun last year, as Dallas once again got the best of Colorado. It didn’t help that Game 7 was on the road, as that building came alive once former friend Mikko Rantanen took over.

The Avalanche need to make sure the playoffs go through Ball Arena. They started every series at home in 2022 and should be looking to do it again this year.

Yes, it’s a lot to ask guys like Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar to play full-throttle every night, but 115-120 points should be the goal. That would almost certainly ensure that Denver is where each new series begins.

This past year proved that only making the playoffs isn’t good enough. It’s time for these guys to lock in, chase a Presidents’ Trophy and earn the top spot in the West.

So, don’t look at the schedule as just counting down the days until the postseason begins. Look at it as an opportunity to do something special, ensuring every advantage possible going into the playoffs.

Buckle up, the journey begins in fewer than three months.

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