Avalanche Regular Season Flashback: Forwards

Take a look back at how each forward of the Colorado Avalanche did during the regular season.

ANDREW COGLIANO

Veteran winger Andrew Cogliano finished his 16th NHL season with 19 points (10G, 9A) in 79 games. The 35-year-old eclipsed the impressive 1,200-game milestone on March 7 vs. San Jose. Cogliano was a fixture on Colorado's penalty kill, where he averaged 1:54 minutes per night. The Toronto, Ontario, native finished second among Avalanche forwards with 54 blocked shots.

J.T. COMPHER

Finishing up his seventh year with Colorado, Compher set a career-high with 52 points (17g/35a) while appearing in all 82 games for the first time. The Northbrook, Illinois native finished fourth on the team in points and dominated the face-off dot, recording the eighth-most wins (813) in the NHL. He tallied the most faceoffs taken (1,665) and wins by an Avalanche player since Paul Stastny in 2009-10 (1,703 total, 851 won). The 28-year-old led all-Avalanche forwards in blocked shots (82) and shorthanded time-on-ice (2:08 per game). His 82 blocks were the sixth-most in the NHL.

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LARS ELLER

Acquired via trade from Washington on March 1, 2023, Eller quickly became a staple on the penalty kill due to his faceoff-winning capability and will to sacrifice his body from the barrage of shots that came his way. The Rodovre, Denmark native recorded seven points (3G, 4A) in 24 contests in an Avalanche sweater. The 14-year veteran appeared in a career-high 84 games combined with Colorado and Washington, tied for the second most contests in the NHL (Tyson Barrie 85).

DARREN HELM

The 36-year-old veteran forward appeared in just 11 games due to injury.

ARTTURI LEHKONEN

The 27-year-old set career highs in goals (21), assists (30), points (51) and power-play goals (8) in 64 games played this season. Lehkonen also notched a career-best 14% shooting percentage and remained a valuable man-advantage skater for the Avs, tallying the fourth-most power-play points (20P - 8G, 12A) on the team. The Piikio, Finland natives' grit and ability to step up when the team was plagued with injuries earned him just over four minutes more of playing time per game compared to last season. In his seventh season in the NHL, Lehkonen recorded his 200th career point on March 1 vs. New Jersey.

NATHAN MACKINNON

· Despite missing 11 games, MacKinnon had a career year in several statistical categories and broke multiple Avalanche records along the way

· Finished fifth in league scoring with a career-high 111 points (42G, 69A) in 71 games

· His 71 games were the fewest by a player who finished among the top-5 in scoring during an 82-game season since Jaromir Jagr (79 points in 69 contests) in 2001-02

· MacKinnon's 1.56 points-per-game average was third in the league and the highest mark in Avalanche history, topping Joe Sakic's 1.46 from 1995-96

· His 69 assists were the most by a Colorado skater since Peter Forsberg (77) in 2002-03

· Finished second in the league with 366 shots, breaking his own franchise record of 365 set in 2018-19

· Ranked third in the NHL with 36 multi-point games, the most in Colorado history (Sakic had 35 in 1995-96)

· Was second in the league in road scoring with 63 points (23g/40a) in 38 away contests, the most ever by an Avalanche player

· The 27-year-old was selected to his sixth consecutive NHL All-Star Game, tied for the second-longest streak in club history

· Recorded a 19-game HOME point streak (15g/17a) from Jan 2-March 24, the second longest in franchise history behind only Joe Sakic's 23-game home scoring stretch to end the 2000-01 campaign

· The 10-year vet appeared in his 700th NHL game on March 27 at Anaheim

· Reached the 90-point mark for the fourth time in his career, tying Forsberg and Sakic for the most such campaigns in Avalanche history

· Hit the 50-point mark for the eighth consecutive season and ninth time in his career

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DENIS MALGIN

Acquired by Colorado on Dec. 19, the 26-year-old tallied 17 points (11G, 6A) in 42 games with the Avalanche. Previously with Toronto to start the 2022-23 season, Malgin set career highs in goals (13) and games played (65) this season with the Maple Leafs and Colorado. The skilled depth forward stepped up in the team's final 30 games to close out the regular season, where he notched all 11 of his goals. Malgin skated in his 200th NHL game on Nov. 5 vs. Boston.

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BEN MEYERS

In his first full season in professional hockey, Meyers produced four goals in 39 games including a stretch of 25 straight-contests from Dec. 7-Jan. 28. With the Colorado Eagles (AHL), Meyers tallied 24 points (6g/18a) in 30 games for the Colorado Eagles and notched points in 11 of his last 13 contests for the Eagles, totaling 15 points (3g/12a) during that stretch. Meyers recorded his first career multi-goal game on April 6 at San Jose.

ALEX NEWHOOK

Drafted by Colorado in 2019, the second-year forward tallied 14 goals this season, one more than his rookie campaign total from a year ago, and finished tied for fourth on the club in game-winning goals (3). Newhook notched his first career multi-goal effort in his 100th NHL game on Dec. 5 at Philadelphia.

VALERI NICHUSHKIN

The 28-year-old finished up his 2022-23 campaign with 47 points (17G, 30A) in 53 games, setting a new personal best in assists with 30. The Chelyabinsk, Russia, native was a key factor in Colorado's power-play success this past season, notching a career-high 10 goals on the man advantage.

MATT NIETO

Acquired by Colorado on Jan. 25 via the San Jose Sharks, Nieto appeared in a career-high 81 games between the Sharks and Avalanche, notching 24 points (12G, 12A). The Long Beach, California, native recorded nine points (4G, 5A) with a +7 rating in 36 outings with Colorado. Nieto reached the 600th NHL game milestone on Dec. 20 vs Calgary, the second California-born player to reach 600 NHL games (Brooks Orpik 1,035) in league history.

LOGAN O'CONNOR

Finishing up his fifth year in Colorado, O'Connor set career highs in goals (9), assists (17), points (26) and games played (82). The Missouri City, Texas, native was one of four Avalanche players to skate in every game. O'Connor was a vital component to the Colorado penalty kill, where he

averaged the third-most short-handed minutes per game (1:48) among Avalanche forwards and led the club in shorthanded goals (2) and points (3). The 26-year-old finished second on the team in hits with 116 and appeared in his 200th NHL game on April 4 at San Jose.

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MIKKO RANTANEN

· The 26-year-old had a career year in 2022-23 and broke many Avalanche records along the way.

· Rantanen finished third in the NHL with a career-high 55 goals, breaking the Avalanche single-season tally of 54 set by Joe Sakic in 2000-01 and was just two shy of the franchise mark set by Michel Goulet (1982-83).

· Surpassed the 100-point mark for the first time in his career and finished eighth in the NHL with 105 points (55G, 50A).

· The Nousiainen, Finland, native was the third Finnish-born player in NHL history to notch 50 tallies in a season, joining Jari Kurri (four times) and Teemu Selane (three).

· Registered 42 of his goals at even strength, which ranked second in the NHL and was one shy of breaking Goulet's franchise record set in 1982-83 and 1983-84.

· Rantanen averaged 22:13 of ice time per game, third among NHL forwards.

· Rantanen was the first Avalanche player to record three hat tricks in a single season and finished tied for second in the league in multi-goal games (11) and 4-point games (10).

· Participated in his second career NHL All-Star Game on Feb. 4 in Fort Lauderdale.

· Was the fastest Avalanche player to reach the 20-goal mark (28 games, Dec. 15), 30-goal mark (43 games, Jan. 18) and 40-goal plateau (58 games, Feb. 27).

· Shared the team lead with MacKinnon of nine game-winning goals, which was a new personal best for Rantanen.

· Had the most goals ever by an Avalanche player at the halfway mark (29 through 41 contests) and at the AllStar Break (34).

· Scored his 200th NHL goal on Feb. 18 at St. Louis.

EVAN RODRIGUES

Evan Rodrigues: Signed as a free agent with Colorado prior to the 2022-23 season, Rodrigues notched 39 points (16G, 23A) in 69 games in an Avalanche sweater. The 29-year-old finished seventh on the club in goals (16) and fifth in power play tallies (6). His six man-advantage goals ranked fifth on the team.