Avalanche of early goals helps Colorado cap an energetic opening night

It was like they didn’t miss a beat.

The defending Stanley Cup champion Avalanche looked good against the Blackhawks to open the 2022-23 season on Wednesday night at Ball Arena, prevailing by a final score of 5-2. They outshot Chicago 35-17.

The Avs scored two goals in the first period and two more in the second before adding one more in the third. Artturi Lehkonen and Valeri Nichushkin led the way, each scoring a pair of Power Play goals, and the Avalanche earned an easy two points to start a new campaign. Andrew Cogliano also got in on the fun, finding the back of the net to start the scoring.

Kicking off the evening was incredible pregame ceremony, as the Avalanche welcomed Blink-182’s Mark Hoppus for an “All The Small Things” sing-along and video, followed by an amazing moment raising the championship banner. The crowd was juiced from the start, and the Avs gave them plenty to cheer about. Here are some of the highlights.

First! Of! The! Season!#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/liSPuB9ob7

— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) October 13, 2022

Boys are feeling the Ball Arena energy! #GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/qRJZtHadta

— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) October 13, 2022

Say it with us:

Good stick, Lehky!#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/nLPfFFijSv

— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) October 13, 2022

Valeri Nichushkin with the 4th Colorado PPG of the evening, his second of the night!#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/jhLavAfgPF

— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) October 13, 2022

Now, the real fun begins. We get to watch this team another 81 times (Altitude / Comcast debacle aside), and they look poised to make another Cup run.

Buckle up, because hockey is back. And once again, the Avalanche appear to be really good. You can’t win ’em all unless you win the first one.

***

Related

Cale Makar voted NHL’s best defenseman a fifth year in a rowAvalanche name new head coach for AHL affiliate EaglesFive most important Avalanche games during the 2026-27 seasonNHL drops schedule for 2026-27 Avalanche seasonFirst Avalanche game of 2026-27 season announced, it’s in SeptemberAvs make three more depth signings, including forward with 477 NHL games