10 Takeaways: The Avalanche’s Balanced Attack Is Fueling Their 3-0 Series Edge

That balanced attack is a large reason why Colorado has the L.A. Kings on the brink of elimination. There is no denying that.

10 Takeaways

1. The Kings are playing MacKinnon, Necas, and Makar harder than anyone else on the Avs. We saw Makar sort of break free from it a little bit on Thursday, and it was part of why he scored a beautiful goal and was drawing penalties with his speed. I’m sure we’ll eventually get that from MacKinnon.

The problem for L.A. is, even if they’ve excelled at that, their depth hasn’t quite stepped up to match the Avs’.

2. Three of the Kings’ four goals in this series were scored on the power play. It was Artemi Panarin in Games 1 and 2, followed by Adrian Kempe in Game 3 on a play that was set up by Panarin. Their only even-strength goal was scored by second-line winger Trevor Moore. They’re not getting much help from anyone else.

That was part of the reason why Andrei Kuzmenko was inserted into the lineup. The winger finished with zeros across the board in 10:30 of ice time. His addition didn’t spark anything.

3. Bednar said after the game that Josh Manson is still being reevaluated for an upper-body injury. Manson didn’t play the tail end of the first period after taking a hit along the Kings’ bench from Joel Edmundson. He later returned several minutes into the second period, was on the ice when his team surrendered a goal, took a penalty, and that was it.

The team did not rule him out during the game, instead leaving his potential return up in the air. I’m not sure if there’s anything to read into that — if it means his injury isn’t serious, if it’s a little bit of playoff gamesmanship, or if, frankly, they just don’t know yet.

Losing him would sting. There’s no doubt about that. But if there were ever a time for an injury, this might be the most ideal time. The Avs have two days off before playing Sunday afternoon. Perhaps that’s enough time for Manson to get back. If not, and if they win without him and complete the sweep, he’ll have ample time to rest and recover before the second round (assuming it’s not a long-term injury).

Even if Colorado falls in Game 4, it’ll be another two days off before Game 5 at Ball Arena on Wednesday.

4. Speaking of extra time to rest, I wonder what a week between games could do for Kadri. The Avalanche’s third-line center hasn’t taken a single faceoff in the playoffs. He’s left that to Landeskog and Roy whenever his line is out there.

Kadri missed the last part of the regular season after blocking a shot with his hand. Even when he returned to prepare for the postseason, he’s had two fingers taped together. That’s likely what has been keeping him from taking draws, and why he’s not quite playing with that same jam we’re used to right now.

The playoffs are long. Any time off is a good thing. As Landeskog always used to say in 2022: Rest is a weapon.

5. When I saw Kadri’s taped-up fingers in the dressing room at Family Sports last week, I asked him how he felt skating with that. He smiled and responded with, “Well, I’ve played through worse.”

We all know what he was talking about.

6. Ross Colton finally entered the series after sitting the first two games. He took line rushes pregame and started the night with Brock Nelson and Valeri Nichushkin. But it looked like Bednar was pretty noncommittal with him keeping that spot permanently. At times, Parker Kelly still played with the second line. We even saw Landeskog play there.

Aside from Manson’s limited ice time because of an injury, Colton finished with a team-low 8:22. He played more minute at 5-on-5 than Jack Drury and Parker Kelly, but those guys also kill penalties.

7. My favorite stat of the night came from Natural Stat Trick.

The Los Angeles Kings were trailing for the entire 20 minutes of the third period. It was 2-1 coming in, 3-1 when Lehkonen scored shorthanded, and back to 3-2 when Kempe scored on the power play. Despite all of that, they had just two scoring chances and one high-danger at 5-on-5 in that entire period.

To put that into perspective, they had 10 and 9, respectively, through the first two periods, before Colorado locked it down in the third.

This is why the Avalanche were 41-0-0 in the regular season when leading at the second intermission. This is why they’re already 2-0 in that same category in the postseason. This is the maturity of the club, and the message of committing to defense from Bednar that trickles down to the core and right through the lineup.

8. Still no playoff goals for the Avalanche in three games. They are 0-for-8.

No power-play goals, but the game-winner from Lehkonen on Thursday was scored shorthanded. That’s the 2025-26 season in a nutshell.

9. Hat tip to Scott Wedgewood, who continues to be the reason why all of this is possible. Why it’s fine that the stars haven’t scored yet, and the power play is still a work in progress. Why Colorado is winning games by one goal and is on the verge of sweeping the Los Angeles Kings.

He has been incredibly fun this year.

10. I always love the inner battle of a series when it comes to the home team getting last change. To start Games 1 and 2 at Ball Arena, D.J. Smith sent out the Quinton Byfield line, and Bednar countered with Nelson’s line.

In Game 3 in Los Angeles, Bednar got started with MacKinnon, Necas, and Lehkonen, but Smith sent out the Byfield line. And throughout at least the first period, Byfield was consistently playing against MacKinnon. It looks like Smith went into home-ice advantage with a strategy to get the Anze Kopitar line away from MacKinnon to see if it sparks some offense at 5-on-5.

It didn’t work.

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