Four pillars of the Avalanche franchise have been recognized as some of the league’s best players of the last 25 years. Joe Sakic, Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Patrick Roy were named to the NHL’s Quarter-Century Team for their elite play over the past 25 years. However, their illustrious careers expanding beyond the 25 years prove just how elite this group is. Since the turn of the century, the Avs have won a pair of Stanley Cup championships (2001 & 2022), and the players mentioned above are a massive reason for those victories. Not only were they the best players in the franchise’s history from each era, but among the best in league history.
Joe Sakic
From the time he made his debut in the 1988-89 season, through his final campaign in 2008-09, no player in the NHL posted more points than Sakic. In his 20-year career that included 17 seasons as the team captain, Sakic posted 1,641 points (625g/1,016a) in 1,378 regular-season games, in addition to 188 points (84g/104a) in 172 playoff contests. His 1,641 regular-season points and 188 playoff points are 10th and ninth in NHL history, respectively. Along with frequenting the scoresheet at an all-time rate, Sakic helped the Avs win two Stanley Cups (1996 & 2001) and won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1996. In 2001, along with winning the Stanley Cup, Sakic took home the Hart Memorial Trophy, Ted Lindsay Award and the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy. Additionally, Sakic made 12 All-Star Game appearances and was named to the NHL First All-Star Team three times.
Internationally, Sakic is a member of the Triple Gold Club, which includes players who have won the Stanley Cup, an Olympic gold medal and an IIHF World Championship gold medal. After winning gold at the IIHF World Championship in 1994, Sakic won the gold medal at the Olympics in 2002 and joined Rob Blake and Brendan Shanahan as the first Canadians to join the Triple Gold Club.
Nathan MacKinnon
MacKinnon is in the midst of a magnificent career and just concluded his third-consecutive season with at least 110 points. Since entering the league in the 2013-14 season, MacKinnon’s 1,015 points (367g/648a) are the third most in the NHL. In the playoffs, he’s registered 125 points (55g/70a) in 95 playoff contests. On the Avs’ run to winning the Stanley Cup in 2022, MacKinnon was tied for the league lead in goals (13), including a pair in the Stanley Cup Final.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 NHL Draft, MacKinnon has more than lived up to the lofty expectations that come with being selected in that spot. As a rookie, he won the Calder Trophy and blossomed into one of the league’s best players before winning the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy in 2020. In 2024, he won the Hart Memorial Trophy and Ted Lindsay Award. This year, he surpassed 1,000-career regular-season points and is a finalist for the Ted Lindsay Award once again.
Internationally, MacKinnon made his mark at the 4 Nations Face-Off, winning tournament MVP while helping Team Canada win the competition. With the NHL scheduled to return to the Winter Olympics in 2026, MacKinnon can join the Triple Gold Club if he adds an Olympic Gold Medal to his 2015 IIHF World Championship Gold Medal and 2022 Stanley Cup championship.
Cale Makar
A Calder Trophy. A Norris Trophy. A Conn Smythe Trophy. A Stanley Cup. That would be a phenomenal resume for a player’s entire career, but for Makar, that’s what he accomplished in his first six years in the NHL. For the fifth-consecutive season, Makar is a finalist for the Norris Trophy after posting the first 30-goal campaign from a defenseman since Mike Green in 2008-09. Additionally, with 92 points in 2024-25, Makar became the first defenseman to post consecutive 90-point campaigns since Paul Coffey from 1988-89 through 1990-91 and Al MacInnis from 1989-90 through 1990-91.
From the moment he scored in his NHL debut—Game Three of the 2019 First Round—Makar made an immediate impact with the Avs. In 395 regular-season games, he’s posted 428 points (116g/312a) along with 85 points (22g/63a) in 79 playoff contests. Makar holds the record for most goals, assists and points in a single season and a career by an Avalanche/Nordiques defenseman. If he takes home the Norris Trophy this season, he’ll become the 14th blueliner ever to win the award multiple times.
Patrick Roy
A Hockey Hall of Famer, Roy was the goaltender for the Avs’ Stanley Cup championships in 1996 and 2001. The second time he won the Stanley Cup with Colorado, he also took home the Conn Smythe Trophy. In his eight seasons with the Avalanche, Roy went 262-140-65 and posted a .918 save percentage and a 2.27 goals-against average in the regular season. Additionally, he took home the Jennings Trophy in 2002 for the fifth time in his career but his first with Colorado. In the playoffs, he raised his game, going 81-52 with a .922 save percentage and a 2.18 goals-against average.
Before joining the Avalanche in their 1995-96 inaugural season, Roy played 12 seasons with the Montreal Canadiens, posting a regular-season record of 289-175-66 along with a .904 save percentage and a 2.78 goals-against average. He won the Vezina Trophy three times (1989, 1990, 1992) and the Conn Smythe Trophy in both years he helped Montreal win the Stanley Cup in 1986 and 1993. In nine playoff appearances with the Canadiens, he went 70-42 with a .913 save percentage and a 2.46 goals-against average.
