Jared Bednar will remain as head coach of the Avalanche despite their early exit from the Stanley Cup Playoffs. General manager Chris MacFarland reaffirmed the organization’s full confidence in Bednar.
The Avalanche finished the regular season with a 49-29-4 record and third place in the Central Division. They were eliminated by the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference First Round, losing 4-2 in Game 7. President of hockey operations Joe Sakic expressed disappointment in the outcome but highlighted the team’s belief in their roster post-trade deadline, saying, “We really liked the team we had.”
Colorado made several significant moves before the trade deadline, adding key players like forwards Brock Nelson, Charlie Coyle, and defensemen Ryan Lindgren and Erik Johnson, as well as making other trades earlier in the season to strengthen the lineup.
Bednar, who guided the Avalanche to the Stanley Cup in 2022, holds a 390-246-64 record in 700 regular-season games and a 50-35 playoff record. Despite the strong regular-season performance, the Avalanche have only won one playoff series since their 2022 championship run.
One factor in their early exit was the team’s power play performance. They converted just 13.6% of opportunities in the first round, compared to the Stars’ 30.4%.
