The 29-year-old forward, who was part of the Avalanche’s Stanley Cup win in 2021-22, is off to a good start this postseason with his goal, and has 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in 39 career postseason games, including six points (two goals, four assists) in seven games in last year’s first round.
“He’s a hard worker, he’s tenacious,” Wedgewood said. “My favorite thing is, there’s a play and he’s on the back side of a guy, guy feels he has a step and he’ll strip you from behind.
“So, obviously we missed him through what, 70 percent of the season? He’s a big part of that room so his presence was missed. It’s fun to have him back in there chirping with the guys and just bringing that energy that he always brings on the ice. Big moment like that, he scores a goal, puts us up two and kind of eases the pressure. Love him in my D zone, blocking-shot guy, gets up to the points quick, deters them from throwing pucks on net.”
So, what makes O’Connor’s game so good for the playoffs?
“He's a really hard worker,” Drury said. “He's so fast, he's always in the right spots. The last five games before the end of the year, he was really finding his stride, and it's great to see him at the top of his game right now.”
The undrafted O’Connor has been with the Avalanche since he signed as a free agent with them in July 23, 2018. He signed a six-year contract with them on Sept. 23, 2024. Avalanche coach Jared Bednar has seen the strides O’Connor’s made throughout his career.
“It's just growth in his game, overall confidence,” Bednar said. “Playing on the line he plays on (fourth), it's got a real strong identity. They’re a tightly knit group of three players that we have that rely on one another for their success. He'll go through stretches where he creates a bunch of chances and doesn't score easy. I don't think he's a guy that scores real easy, that he has to work at, and he has to continue to create volume. Then sometimes they go in for him, and they may go in for him in bunches, but it's just growth.”
One of the Avalanche’s biggest assets is their depth, four lines’ worth of players who can contribute in a lot of ways. O’Connor is one of those gritty, determined bottom-six forwards who’s good at scoring the clutch goal.
“We try to teach our guys to defend the right way first, it's a non-negotiable on our team. It's an area of our game where I feel like we've gotten better year over year. And then how can we expand all those players to help us even more offensively? He's a guy that has -- it's no different than some of the things we've been talking about with (defenseman) Sam Malinski – a guy that has ability offensively and is committed to the defensive side of things,” Bednar said. “He's gotten better, and now he's seen his offense and the confidence he's getting from that is helping our team win on a nightly basis.”
