Avs Core Decided to Stay Together and Were Rewarded

Colorado's core won together after losing together. And that was the sweetest part.

There are a lot of things I remember about the night of June 26, 2022 as the Colorado Avalanche celebrated their third Stanley Cup in franchise history.

In the middle of the on-ice chaos, Erik Johnson, Gabe Landeskog, Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, and J.T. Compher gathered for a photo together. Four of those five had worn letters for the Avalanche at some point, EJ even relinquishing his “A” to Rantanen while dealing with serious leg and head injuries.

It’s a simple photo. But it tells an important story. Those five guys stuck with each other.

They were the remaining players from the 2016-17 Avalanche team—the one that managed just 48 points in 82 games. Twenty-two wins. A season so bad that this year’s team has already surpassed that win total with 51 fewer games played.