Avalanche Face GM And Coach Decisions After Vegas Sweep

The Avalanche finished the 2025-26 regular season with a 55-16-11 record to claim the Presidents’ Trophy before losing the Western Conference final in a four-game sweep to the Vegas Golden Knights.

Bednar’s Record Demands Retention

Jared Bednar has coached the Avalanche since August 2016 and guided them to the 2022 Stanley Cup. In 2025-26 his team scored the most goals and allowed the fewest in the NHL, producing the franchise’s best regular-season mark.

Bednar’s power-play and penalty-kill units ranked sixth and tenth in the playoffs respectively, while the team finished seventh in faceoff percentage. Those special-teams shortfalls contributed directly to the four-game exit.

The coach kept the lineup competitive despite injuries to Cale Makar, who missed the first two games of the series, and Nathan MacKinnon, who left Game 3 briefly.

MacKinnon recorded two assists in four games and Makar finished with zero points in two appearances after a six-game postseason points drought.

Retaining Bednar avoids disruption to a staff that already maximized a star-heavy roster during the regular season.

MacFarland Weighs External Opportunity

Chris MacFarland, one of three finalists for the Jim Gregory GM of the Year Award, holds the final roster decisions under president of hockey operations Joe Sakic. Recent reports indicate MacFarland is considering a vice-president role with the Nashville Predators.

MacFarland must decide quickly because the Avalanche enter the 2026-27 offseason with only $2.9 million in projected cap space. Pending restricted free agent Jack Drury and unrestricted free agents Brent Burns and Brett Kulak represent the primary unrestricted movement.

The organization holds just one second-round pick in 2027 and one third-round pick in 2028 across the next three drafts, leaving little draft capital for future maneuvers.

Any meaningful roster adjustment will therefore require trades rather than free-agent signings, a task MacFarland has handled successfully in the past, including the acquisition of Nazem Kadri despite a 13-team no-trade list.

Depth And Cap Constraints Shape Next Moves

Valeri Nichushkin managed only 17 goals and 49 points in 72 regular-season games, while Artturi Lehkonen, Brock Nelson and Nicolas Roy were held off the scoresheet entirely against Vegas. Those production gaps allowed the veteran Knights to dominate four straight contests.

Scott Wedgewood posted an .877 save percentage across three games, and the Avalanche ranked eighth in goals against during the playoffs. The combination of special-teams slippage and goaltending inconsistency proved decisive.

With most core players already under contract, the front office can target upgrades only through creative trades that exploit the appeal of playing alongside MacKinnon and Makar. The organization cannot accept the status quo after three rounds won in four post-2022 seasons, yet it must avoid overhauling a roster that still projects as a Central Division frontrunner.

Unless the Avalanche secure at least one second-round pick before the 2027 draft, their trade flexibility will remain limited through the 2028 offseason.