Avalanche Facing Precarious Situation in Net

On the surface, it is also hard to be critical of the kind of season Mackenzie Blackwood had. He went 23-10-2 with a .904 save percentage and 2.51 goals against average, far from lacking when spelling Wedgewood.

Waiting in the wings is prospect Ilya Nabokov. The first goalie taken in the 2024 NHL Draft, Nabokov has been fantastic in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). He won KHL Rookie of the Year honors and became the youngest goalie to win playoff MVP. He is the clear heir apparent at some point down the line.

Questions Galore

While the Avalanche have one of the top defenses in the NHL, there is reason to wonder if what they have in net is sustainable. With such small margin for error, they need to get the most out of guys like Wedgewood in order to succeed. That said, Wedgewood just turned 34 and has never had a season like he just had. Was this an anomaly or is he having a late-career surge?

Blackwood is another story. The Avalanche gave him a hefty contract extension thinking he would be the man in their crease. He’s had flashes but hasn’t managed to find consistency to his game that would lock down the starting job. Can he find that either this season or next?

Finally, there is Nabokov. The young netminder has had success in the KHL. He will share starting duties with Trent Miner in the American Hockey League (AHL) for the Colorado Eagles. But realistically, is there a path to the NHL within the next handful of seasons?

This Season Will Give Us a Good Look at the Immediate Future

This season will give us a better idea of what the future holds for the Avalanche. Blackwood and Wedgewood will no doubt share duties again, with the hope that the former can grab control of the crease. Nabokov will be given a chance to succeed and develop at his own pace in the AHL as well.

The Avalanche are firmly contenders now and into the foreseeable future, but the window is slowly inching closed. The core is getting older – Nathan MacKinnon is 31, Gabriel Landeskog will soon be 34, Nazem Kadri is about to turn 36, Artturi Lehkonen just turned 31, Brock Nelson and Josh Manson are about to turn 35, and Devon Toews is 32. Cale Makar and Sam Malinski are approaching 30 as well.

The last thing the Avalanche need is for this prime contention window to be slammed shut by inconsistency in goal. They have the pieces to be successful both now and into the future. If Blackwood can grab the starting job and pave the way for Nabokov, the Avalanche could contend for the better part of the next decade. If they fall short, it could be one of the great “what if” cases in Avalanche history.