Breaking now...Makar will miss Game 1...more to come...
2026 Western Conference Final Preview: Vegas Golden Knights vs Colorado Avalanche
The Ek's Factors...
STORYLINES:
Two Recent Cup Champions Collide
Colorado won the Stanley Cup in 2022. Vegas won it in 2023. Neither has been back this deep since its championship run, making this a legacy checkpoint for two Western powers trying to prove their window is still open
MacKinnon vs. Marner Is the Star Duel
Nathan MacKinnon has 13 points in nine playoff games and just authored another dominant postseason stretch. Mitch Marner, in his first conference final, leads Vegas with 18 points in 12 games and has reshaped the Knights' attack.
The Tortorella Surge
Vegas changed coaches late, with John Tortorella taking over for the final eight games. The Knights went 7-0-1 to finish the regular season under him, then won two playoff rounds. Structure, urgency and buy-in are suddenly central to their identity.
The Avalanche Put the Band Back Together
Gabriel Landeskog is back in a postseason lineup, and Nazem Kadri returned at the deadline. Add MacKinnon, Makar, Toews and a deeper supporting cast, and Colorado feels closer to its championship version than it has in years.
Vegas' Unsung Scorers Are Loud
Pavel Dorofeyev leads the playoffs with nine goals, while Brett Howden has eight after scoring only 12 all regular season. If Colorado sells out to stop Eichel and Marner, Vegas has already shown it can win through its second wave.
Colorado's President's Trophy Test
The Avalanche are trying to become the rare full-season Presidents' Trophy winner to reach the Stanley Cup Final. They were the NHL's best regular-season team by record, goals for, goals against and SRS — now comes the pressure round.
EXACTLY WHAT WILL HAPPEN
Vegas has the special-teams edge, the hotter single goalie profile in Carter Hart, and enough scoring depth to make this uncomfortable. But Colorado has the broader body of evidence: the Presidents' Trophy résumé, elite goal differential, home ice, a 2-0-1 season-series edge, and an 8-1 playoff run through two rounds. The Knights will win games when Hart and the power play tilt the ice, but over a full series the Avalanche's speed, shot volume, and MacKinnon-Makar ceiling should be too much. Colorado advances to the Stanley Cup Final in six.