Colorado Avalanche News

Home

Quizzes

Newsletter

Avalanche Must Build on Devon Toews’ Offensive Bounce-Back

Devon Toews (7) Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Avalanche Must Build on Devon Toews’ Offensive Bounce-Back

Originally posted on Colorado Avalanche On SI
By Stefano Rubino | Last updated Nov 12, 2026 1:26 PM ET

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Last season, we saw a team that broke multiple records and saw many players achieve personal records. Martin Necas scored over 100 points, Parker Kelly scored over 20 goals, and Nathan MacKinnon won the Rocket Richard Trophy, all despite the team’s power play being one of the worst in the league.

It was quite a disappointing season for Devon Toews. After finishing the 2024-25 season with 10 goals and 34 assists for 44 points, looking at what others have achieved last season, surely he was in the same boat as others? No.

Finishing the season with just three goals and 21 assists for 24 points, Toews was noticeable at times throughout last season, not just for his offensive work but for his defensive work. He only played 68 games, dealing with some minor injuries, but it was concerning to see what, at the time, could be regression from him.

This was a defenseman who, paired with Cale Makar from the 2021-22 season to the 2023-24 season, finished with over 50 points in each of those seasons and was arguably the best defenseman pairing in the league from both an offensive and defensive standpoint.

Though there were some flashes, not all hope was lost with Toews when he came into the team's postseason run last year. In the 13 games he played, he scored two goals and nine assists for 11 points. That's good for fourth in points scored and second in assists.

Obviously, they would end up losing in the Conference Finals to the Vegas Golden Knights, and you say a major issue was that many players were badly hurt, like Makar and MacKinnon, but it showed that style of game wasn’t gone; he just needed more chances and to be more confident.

Despite the rocky start to this season, with all of the imperfections of the special teams, Toews’ game right now is a major factor in why they have 11 wins this season, despite all of the oddities and things going wrong.

Showing His Importance To The Team

IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

When you ask who the most important player on the team is, many names come up before Toews. Makar, MacKinnon, Necas, but with what he is doing on the ice, there could be an argument that this season he might be the most important player on the team.

Obviously, the big three mentioned before need to perform and likely will if the team wants to win another Stanley Cup, but if they can do what they normally do, with the addition of what we're seeing from Toews, this could be a game changer they were missing last season.

With six goals and 12 assists for 18 points in 19 games, he's tied for fourth in assists and points on the team. Among defensemen in the NHL, he is tied for ninth. He's back to his strong defensive form but is also helping lead the offense.

Asked about Toews' offense returning this season.

"It's just him getting assertive," Bednar said. "We talked about that last year at times. I think the game can come really easy to Devon. I hate to say that but it's because of his brain, his skating, his stick, his sense. Then… https://t.co/BPPp3iLs2v
— Evan Rawal (@evanrawal) October 24, 2026

With a 57.64% XGF%, he is first on the team, meaning that they are outscoring their opponent 24-9 when he is on the ice. He leads the team in On-Ice Goals % at 68.1%. Even with an Off-Ice Expected Goals % of 57.2%, higher than guys like Brock Nelson and Artturi Lehkonen.

With an On-Ice Goal Differential of 17, it's clear that when Toews is on the ice, good things are happening, and it not only elevates the 5-on-5 play but also brings another element to the power play. If the first unit can’t get anything going, they can quarterback the second one and see if they can generate some offense.

Having played less than a quarter of the season and being second in the Central Division, there is still plenty of time for this Avalanche team to iron out some quirks they're dealing with, and with the support Toews is bringing, it can help elevate this team to another level for another deep playoff run.

This article first appeared on Colorado Avalanche On SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: