Nathan MacKinnon defended Jared Bednar while pointing to Carolina’s Stanley Cup triumph as inspiration for the Avalanche to stay the course without standing still.
Carolina's long-awaited Stanley Cup breakthrough has given Nathan MacKinnon a reason to believe the Colorado Avalanche shouldn't abandon what they've built.
For the better part of two years, the Avalanche have faced difficult questions after disappointing playoff exits, with each loss bringing renewed scrutiny to the direction of the franchise. Following Colorado's first-round elimination by the Dallas Stars in 2025, much of the attention centered on the decision to trade Mikko Rantanen and the consequences that followed, particularly after Rantanen helped Dallas eliminate his former team.
Last season brought a different kind of disappointment. Colorado put together a 121-point regular season, captured the Presidents' Trophy and entered the Stanley Cup Playoffs as heavy favorites. Those hopes disappeared four games into the Western Conference Final, however, when the Vegas Golden Knights swept the Avalanche.
Once again, questions followed, including whether Jared Bednar remained the right coach and whether Colorado needed to change its approach.
MacKinnon offered a different perspective Wednesday during the Avalanche's media day at Ball Arena, pointing toward the team that just finished its own long journey through postseason disappointment.
The Carolina Hurricanes have spent years coming up short under head coach Rod Brind'Amour, reaching the playoffs consistently but failing to get over the final hurdles. There were conference-final appearances, second-round exits and, most recently, a four-game sweep in the conference finals last season.
Carolina didn't respond by abandoning Brind'Amour or dramatically changing its identity. The Hurricanes stayed with their coach, stayed with their system and continued pushing forward.
This time, that patience ended with the second Stanley Cup championship in franchise history.
“I think that's just a little bit of inspiration, maybe, of our mentality that has to be,” MacKinnon told reporters. “Obviously, we had the Dallas thing last year. I'm not sure we can just make up something. Obviously, getting swept is awful. It sucks, but it doesn't feel like it's the same type of motivation as the Dallas series was.”
MacKinnon isn't dismissing Colorado's loss to Vegas or suggesting the Avalanche shouldn't examine what went wrong. Rather, he appears reluctant to let one disappointing series convince the organization that everything it has built needs to be torn apart.
That belief starts with the people inside Colorado's locker room.
“We have such an amazing group of guys,” MacKinnon said. “It's so fun to come to the rink with each other. Yeah, it's all we can really do. I don't know, I hope we win. I think we can, and we have a good chance, and just, you know, it's a long year.”
Bednar appears to share that belief, although he isn't approaching another season by simply running back the same formula and hoping for a different result.
The longtime Avalanche coach acknowledged Wednesday that he intends to evolve his approach, particularly with a veteran group that has heard many of the same messages over the years. Rather than spending as much time on analytical and opponent-specific preparation, Bednar wants to put greater emphasis on his own players and finding ways to help them continue developing.
“I do have intentions of changing my approach a little bit this year,” Bednar said. “You're always kind of sort of evolving as a coach.”
Bednar said he wants to “dial some of that back” and spend more time focusing on the Avalanche themselves, including individual players and areas where the team can improve.
That distinction is important. Staying the course doesn't have to mean refusing to change, just as making changes doesn't necessarily mean abandoning the identity that has made Colorado one of the NHL's most consistent contenders.
Bednar has spent nearly a decade behind the Avalanche bench, and he understands that coaching a veteran group requires evolution. His players know what he expects, but he also recognizes that a message can lose some of its impact when it has been repeated for years.
His goal is to find new ways to reach the same players and squeeze more out of a team that still believes it can win.
“I try to operate like I'm trying to prove myself every day,” Bednar said. “I don't care if I'm considered one of the top coaches in the league or not. The only thing that I want to make sure is that our players feel like I'm the right coach for this team.”
That may be the clearest connection between MacKinnon's belief in Bednar and Carolina's championship blueprint.
The Hurricanes didn't abandon their foundation after years of postseason frustration. They continued to believe in their coach and their identity while finding ways to improve, eventually turning that persistence into a Stanley Cup.
MacKinnon isn't suggesting Colorado is guaranteed to follow the same path. But after another painful ending, Carolina has provided the Avalanche with something they may need just as much as another tactical adjustment: perspective.
Colorado can acknowledge what went wrong against Vegas without convincing itself that everything is wrong.
It can evolve without starting over.
