Throughout August, I'll be counting down several storylines to watch for the Colorado Avalanche entering the 2026-27 season.
Some will fly under the radar. Others, like this one, will be impossible to ignore. Let's say they're a lot more obvious.
We'll start with one of the biggest, most obvious questions facing the Avalanche.
Can Brock Nelson finally deliver when the games matter most?
The Avalanche know exactly what they're getting from Nelson over an 82 (now 84) game season. He's one of the NHL's most dependable two-way centers — a player Jared Bednar can trust in virtually every situation. He wins faceoffs, contributes on both special teams, matches up against top competition, and consistently provides secondary scoring. There was even a stint last year where he was the hottest goal scorer in the league.
All of that is why Colorado traded for him in March 2025 and signed him to a three-year contract last summer.
But none of that will matter nearly as much if his playoff production doesn't improve. The Avalanche are judged by what they do in the postseason now, not by what they accomplish over the previous 84 games.
Through two playoffs with the Avalanche, Nelson has just seven points in 20 games. For a player expected to anchor the second line behind Nathan MacKinnon, that's simply not enough.
To put it in perspective, Casey Mittelstadt recorded nine points in just 11 playoff games with Colorado in 2024. Nelson has yet to match that total despite playing nearly twice as many postseason games for the Avalanche. It's… not great.
Colorado doesn't need Nelson to carry the offense. It has MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and Martin Necas (albeit Necas has some playoff woes to overcome, too). But it does need its No. 2 center to consistently chip in offensively, especially in the tight, low-scoring games that often decide playoff series.
The Avalanche have built a roster capable of making another deep run. Whether they actually do may depend, in part, on whether Nelson can elevate his game when the calendar turns to April.
This will certainly be something to watch next spring.
The post Storyline to Watch: Can Avalanche's Brock Nelson Deliver in the Playoffs? appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now .
