The Colorado Avalanche will play their second back-to-back of the 2025-26 season, but this time it’s a home-and-home series against perennial playoff foe the Dallas Stars. We typically see both the starter and backup netminder in these situations, and I don’t expect this week to be any different. That sets up an awkward situation for Colorado’s goalie room.
Head coach Jared Bednar may have designated Scott Wedgewood as the backup through camp and the start of the regular season. Still, MacKenzie Blackwood’s status as a starter is already in question after a tough start to the season typified by struggles against the Toronto Maple Leafs this past weekend.
There are a lot of dynamics to unpack, but let’s take a deep dive ahead of the back-to-back and get a clear picture.
Follow the Money
If you are a Colorado Avalanche fan, you want MacKenzie Blackwood to find his groove for one clear reason. If the Avalanche decide he isn’t the starter, his value and current price tag don’t really jive.
Kevin Weekes dropped Blackwood’s name as a potential trade target for the New York Rangers. Still, the Rangers need a starter themselves after Igor Shesterkin’s unfortunate season-ending injury. If Blackwood struggles enough to lose his starting role, the Avalanche will take an L on his contract when every penny counts.
Blackwood’s cap hit is cheap and appropriate (if he can prove he’s a starter) relative to other NHL starters, but if he keeps struggling. Colorado moves on from him, any team seeking MacKenzie’s services could point to his shortcomings and offer less in return.
Blackwood’s contract still hits the books at a $5.25 million AAV this season, but he also received a $1 million bonus for 2026-27 sometime around July 1st. His AAV is the 24th-highest among goalies, and he already received the bonus. If he were to be dealt, however, the remaining cap hit would be prorated based on how many days are left in the season, so it’s not entirely unlikely that a team would pay the premium for a short-term solution. Still, the long-term implications of a contract signed through the 2029-30 season might scare them off.
On the flip side, Scott Wedgewood’s one-year contract is expiring, so if he were named starter after a Blackwood trade (and delivered cup success), he could command a starter-level price, likely at or above Blackwood’s current AAV, but on what could be the last deal of his career at age 35.
Then there’s the possibility of letting Wedgewood get his money on the open market, leaving the Avalanche with just Ilya Nabokov in net. I know fans are clamoring for that to happen at some point, but I don’t know that it’s a “the sooner the better sort of situation.”
People Don’t Forget
Scott Wedgewood was Colorado’s starting goalie in 2025-26, and his starts in Colorado’s biggest regular-season and playoff games prove it. They say you can tell who a coach views as the starter by that, and time and time again Bednar went with Wedgewood, and the veteran journeyman delivered, leading the club to its winningest regular season in franchise history. Of course, Scott also got the net in key playoff fixtures before the Avalanche were eliminated, and most agree the netminders were the reason for Colorado’s untimely exit.
This season, we’ve seen Bednar go with Blackwood in the lone divisional matchup, and we await his decision ahead of the road game against the Dallas Stars. If Bednar goes with Blackwood and things don’t go to plan, it will accelerate the narrative that Scott should still be in the starter’s crease, especially if he has a good showing the following night on home ice.
Home Cooking or Road Warrior
On the subject of home or away against your fiercest division rival and with the concept of Bednar starting his best keeper in games that matter most or pose a greater challenge, Bednar will show his hand a bit tomorrow. If we see Blackwood in net again, that’s a sign that he trusts MacKenzie and views Tuesday’s road quest as a good bounce-back, prove-it sort of matchup.
If he goes with Wedgewood and saves Blackwood for the second game on home ice, he may be indicating that his confidence in Blackwood is already wavering.
Then there’s the part where the group in front of the goalie will likely be a bit worn down on night two, creating an environment that could demand more from whoever gets the squad.
What’s more challenging? A road game vs. the Stars, or a home-cooked meal behind a weathered group? It’s hard to say, but either way, the group in front of the netminders needs to be better for us to draw any real conclusions.
Lessons in Lapses
Colorado’s loss to Toronto wasn’t just a goalie problem, and we need to make that abundantly clear. Obviously, you want your goalie to make saves on a night with defensive lapses, but leaving all-star talent net-front and alone sure isn’t the model for success.
Jared Bednar said almost exactly that, saying he would have had a stop or two from Blackwood, but he couldn’t blame MacKenzie for any of the six goals against.
Hopefully the punishment for losing sight of the details is enough to provide quality learning material for a Colorado Avalanche blue line that’s been slightly underwhelming outside the top pair.
Judge and Jury
The next couple of days and games could go really well for the Avalanche, in which case this debate will be pushed aside for a bit, but I promise we will be talking about the goalie room for most of the season; whether it’s in a good or bad vein remains to be seen.
Moreover, if the backend continues to struggle and the goalies don’t, I’d expect more trade rumors to swirl, as many will look at Colorado’s goalies as potential trade pieces.
Ultimately, GM Joe Sakic will judge performance, and that will dictate how the Avalanche proceed. Fans will form an opinion and will likely make sure everyone knows it on social media, but don’t expect that to seep into the decision-making.
Let us know what you see happening this week and in the future with Colorado’s netminders in the comments!
