The Stanley Cup Playoffs saw some riveting action throughout the first round. Two of the Western Conference series went the full seven games. The Dallas Stars and Winnipeg Jets ultimately moved onto the next round despite both looking dead in the water late in Game 7.

Top defenseman Miro Heiskanen and prolific forward Jason Robertson, their leading goal scorer in the regular season, missed the seven-game series against Colorado because of lower-body injuries.

In 81 career playoff games for the Avalanche, Rantanen had 101 points (34 goals, 67 assists). His last game with them was Jan. 22, but the regular season ended with him still as their third-leading scorer with 64 points (25 goals, 39 assists) in his 49 games behind Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar.