The Colorado Avalanche are down 3-0 to the Vegas Golden Knights in the Western Conference Finals. If/When they are eliminated from the playoffs, does a change behind the bench need to be made, and could the replacement be closer than they think?
The Colorado Avalanche are coming off a disaster of a Game 3 loss, blowing a 3-0 lead they built heading into the second period to lose 5-3, and are now down 3-0 in the Western Conference Finals against the Vegas Golden Knights.
All over social media, fans of the team are upset, and rightfully so. After the first two rounds, while at times execution wasn't perfect, this team looked ready to take on anyone on their path to the Stanley Cup Final. Now we're seeing a collapse like no other, and the chances of a 3-0 comeback with Cale Makar not fully healthy and Nathan MacKinnon favoring an injured knee have drastically diminished.
If this is a matter if/when the Avalanche lose, where does the team go from here? The roster is as good as it's ever been, scoring from top to bottom, and goaltending at a great price. If there had to be a change, would we look at it from behind the bench?
Next Coach Waiting Just Down The Road?
Here is where the rumors start to speculate. If Joe Sakic and Chris MacFarland were to move on from Jared Bednar and other members of the coaching staff, their first intention would be to talk with University of Denver head coach David Carle. The report comes from David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period on the show, The Sheet, talking with Jeff Marek. This is what he had to say on the topic:
“I think the trajectory is, when Colorado makes that [coaching] change in however many years down the road, that he's their guy - The Sheet (5/22).”
Carle has been a topic of discussion among many teams looking for a new NHL head coach, given what he has done with the University of Denver team in the NCAA. He has been their head coach since the 2018-19 season, and in his eight seasons with the team, he has won the NCAA Championship four times: once as an assistant coach to Jim Montgomery in 2017, and three times as a head coach (2022, 2024, and 2026).
He’s helped Team USA win back-to-back gold medals in the IIHF World Junior Championships. The systems he implements in teams are fast-paced, offensive-style. He makes coaching adjustments quickly, decisively, and, most importantly, effectively; he makes moves not just for their own sake but for a reason.
Drawing Interest From Across The League
The one “drawback” that Carle has is that his talents are being recognized league-wide; interest has risen in the past couple of seasons in whether he is interested in joining teams as they make coaching decisions.
Just last season, the Chicago Blackhawks were looking for a new head coach before they signed Jeff Blashill, and according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, Carle withdrew his consideration from the Blackhawks, who were in an “aggressive pursuit” of him.
Friedman on 32 Thoughts: The Podcast wondered whether Carle would step into a new coaching position and how many teams would make a run at him, but backed it up by noting how well he's doing in Denver.
"The one thing that Carle could do is he could say, look, I could coach at Denver for eleventy billion years. I’ve got a young family. I’ve got a great situation. I can comfortably live for a long time. If I’m coming out of here, somebody’s going to have to make it worth my while," Friedman said on the podcast. "I just don’t understand how after this, somebody isn’t going to make it worth his while because you could say that’s juniors, coaching NHL players is going to be a bit different. The NHL players watch this tournament. They know who can coach. They know who can’t coach. They’re going to look at this guy and they’re going to say this guy can coach.
The pressure from around the league continues into this season as the Toronto Maple Leafs, who fired Craig Berube, made contact with Carle and his team and will reportedly touch back with him again at a later date.
This does put pressure on the Avalanche: if management likes what he's doing down in the NCAA, they don’t want to lose him to a rival NHL team that can make good use of his talents. Though it raises the question of whether management wants to make a change at the head coach position.
The Right Move Or A Panic Move?
Emotions are running high within the Avalanche community, and rightfully so, for a team that looked as good, if not better, than the 2022 championship team to be down 3-0 in the Western Conference Finals, not because they're being outplayed so heavily, but because they're making so many mistakes that are costing them. Defensive breakdowns, errors in their own zone, limited production from the top guys, it has been a disaster of a series.
For a team that had little to no flaws, a Stanley Cup is expected from this team. Yes, losing Makar to start the series was brutal, and now MacKinnon is probably at 80% because of the puck off the knee. Still, with the way they played in Games 1 and 2, you could make an argument that at worst it should have been 2-1 Knights heading into Game 4, not the worst, but still manageable to fight their way back.
Ever since the 2022 championship, this team has felt heartbreak after heartbreak, and after every playoff series loss, their fingers pointed at player performance, roster construction, and the coaching staff. Past postseason teams were not as well-built as this season's, and I give management full credit. Nazem Kadri, Nicolas Roy, and Brett Kulak made the necessary changes, but did the coaching staff do enough to make the most of them?
I don’t know whether management will give Bednar another “prove it” season. Losing Alex Tanguay now proves vital, as the power play has been a key topic this entire season and hasn't looked any better in the playoffs, considering the amount of talent on both units. Management is in for another interesting offseason and is looking at how they can make an already elite team better, whether that's shaking up some players or making some major decisions to the coaching staff.
