MacKinnon, Avalanche prepared for long series against Golden Knights in West Final

DENVER –- Nathan MacKinnon looks at the Vegas Golden Knights and sees trouble.

The Colorado Avalanche alternate captain says he expects a dogfight when his team meets the Golden Knights in the Western Conference Final, which begins with Game 1 at Ball Arena on Wednesday (8 p.m. ET; ESPN, SN, TVAS, CBC).

“I just can't see this being a short series,” MacKinnon said after practice Tuesday. “It's going to be tough, and we're ready for a seven-gamer here.”

These teams are the cream of the crop in the Western Conference. The Vegas Golden Knights won the Stanley Cup in 2023, a season after the Colorado Avalanche. They are the most recent teams from the West to win with the Florida Panthers winning in each of the past two seasons.

Each has found bitter disappointment since climbing the mountain. Colorado lost in the first round, to the Seattle Kraken, the year after winning the Cup. A bitter second-round loss to the rival Dallas Stars followed in 2024. Last season, it was a seven-game loss to the Stars in the first round.

For the Golden Knights, they lost in the first round, to Dallas, the year after winning the Cup. Last season, the Edmonton Oilers defeated them in the second round.

MacKinnon says those experiences of long runs and bitter disappointments shape a team and harden it.

“I mean, they've done it recently, just the year after us, so they have a lot of guys who knows what it takes," he said.

The battle between MacKinnon and Jack Eichel is going to be front and center when the story of this series is told.

These two players have been going head-to-head in the NHL since Eichel joined the Buffalo Sabres after being taken No. 2 in the 2015 NHL Draft. MacKinnon was taken No. 1 by the Avalanche two seasons earlier.

Internationally, they have also had memorable battles, most recently in the 2026 Winter Olympics, where Eichel’s Team USA defeated MacKinnon’s Team Canada in overtime of the gold-medal game.

The admiration and respect they have for each other is evident in the scouting report each provided on the other on Tuesday.

“(Jack) is one of the best players in the League; going to be extremely challenging,” MacKinnon said after practice at Ball Arena. “He's a two-way force out there. Big, strong guy. Yeah, it's going to be definitely a team effort to take away time and space, but he's going to create, he's just that good. Hopefully, we can limit it.”

Nobody has yet. Eichel has 15 points (one goal, 14 assists) in 12 games in six-game victories against the Utah Mammoth and Anaheim Ducks in the first two rounds. He is tied for second in playoff scoring, three points behind teammate Mitch Marner.

MacKinnon has 13 points (seven goals, six assists), but in three fewer games. Colorado swept the Los Angeles Kings and beat the Minnesota Wild in five games last round, including an epic comeback from 3-0 down in Game 5 last Wednesday. Mackinnon tied the game 3-3 at 18:37 of the third period and defenseman Brett Kulak won it at 3:52 of overtime.

“(MacKinnon) is going to be a big challenge for our group,” Eichel said from the team hotel after arriving Tuesday afternoon. “He’s an incredible player. He poses challenges for our group with his speed and his ability to make plays at top speed.

“We have to be prepared for that. He’s obviously a competitor. It seems this time of year, he brings out his best game. We have to be prepared for managing him and play hard on him and do what we can.”

Each team is halfway to its stated goal. For each franchise, there is no playing it coy. It’s Cup-or-bust for each.

MacKinnon says he is energized by it all and ready for the challenge ahead, beginning with the Golden Knights.

“I mean it doesn't feel like a grind at all to me,” he said. “I think we're all having a lot of fun, and we've been lucky enough to have a couple breaks in between series. The grind is more like January, February, like those months, you know, we're first and then you reset, and it's just so much fun playing.

“I mean, last game was probably the most fun we've all had playing hockey. This is what we get up for, so I think everyone's feeling good right now.”

If MacKinnon is right about the length of this series, the next two weeks will demand everything from all the players on each team, many of whom have been to the final finish line of a season or won medals on the international stage.

They are ready for what lies ahead.

“I think you draw from the experiences,” Eichel said. “At the end of the day, it is a hockey game, two teams are going to compete. Usually the team that plays better wins. It is not always the case but … When you have been in situations before when it seems there is a lot at stake, I think the group that is able to put all the outside noise and everything else aside and just focus on playing hockey, I think that is a huge part of it.

“Both teams here have so many players that have played in a lot of big games. It’s hockey. At the end of the day, you have to go out and execute, be competitive and do the things that make your group have success. That is what we are going to try to do."