Things have changed quite a bit for the Avalanche, where qualifying for the playoffs no longer is a big deal or cause for even a mini-celebration.
Winning the Stanley Cup has been the ultimate goal since training camp.
They clinched their fourth consecutive playoff berth on Thursday with a 4-2 win in St. Louis, the longest streak for the franchise since making 11 straight trips from 1995 to 2006.
The only other time the franchise reached the playoffs in four or more consecutive years was a seven-season stretch from 1981 to 1987 for the Quebec Nordiques.
The Avalanche (31-9-4, 66 points) are second in the West Division, two points behind Vegas (33-11-2) with two games in hand.
Here’s the NHL.com RECAP of Thursday’s win against the Blues.
HERE WE GO#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/tffy3xFONo
— x - Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) April 23, 2021
“We’ve been sitting in a real good position since the little run we went on,… coach Jared Bednar said Friday. "We haven’t really been talking too much about that. Our focus from Day One in training camp has been process-oriented. We’ve talked about that in length about it in developing the right habits we need and the commitment we need in order to win in the playoffs.
“I think our guys have for the most part known for a little while that if we continue to play the way we’re playing that we’d be able to get in, and it’s a little more of a longer (goal) for our team now.…
It was a milestone night for Bednar, who coached his 360th Avalanche game to pass Bob Hartley for the most games coached in Colorado history (since 1995-96). Only Michel Bergeron (634 games with the Quebec Nordiques) has coached more games in franchise history.
Bednar has a 176-145-39 career record with the Avalanche, who have won five games in a row and are a blistering 18-1-2 run in the past 21 games.
"It's been a lot of fun,… Bednar said. “I enjoy the heck out of coaching this team and these players, and when they work like this and you start seeing the results coming year after year, getting better and better every year, its highly encouraging as a coach.…
It was the team’s first game since April 14 when Devan Dubnyk made 31 saves in his Avalanche debut in a 4-3 win against the Blues after Philipp Grubauer entered the league's COVID-19 protocol.
Avalanche players, coaches and staff quarantined for five days and weren’t able to go on the ice until Wednesday after being tested . Grubauer, Mikko Rantanen and Joonas Donskoi remain on the protocol list.
Dubnyk, acquired April 10 from San Jose, made 25 saves Thursday for his second win in as many starts since the trade.
Andre Burakovsky, playing on the top line in Rantanen’s absence, scored two goals and Nathan MacKinnon had three assists, extending his point streak to 12 games. He has 21 points in the streak (seven goals, 14 assists) and an assist in seven consecutive games.
“We talked about (clinching a playoff spot) a little bit,… Dubnyk said. “It was nice to come in and get two (points) and we’re in. Obviously we were in a good spot, but it was important to punch that ticket.
“(The Blues) are fighting for a playoff spot and we were trying to clinch a playoff spot. I thought the guys responded really well and there was a ton of urgency last night.…
The Avalanche have won five in a row against the Blues since dropping a 4-1 decision to them opening night. They’ll complete the season series Saturday and Monday.