Milestone No. 16: The Avalanche win the Stanley Cup in 1996
Mar 20, 2025, 10:35 PM
The Fan is turning 30! For three decades, the station has been covering Denver sports, serving as a media outlet of record for the biggest events over the past 30 years.
There have been a lot of them. From championships to MVPs, from historic seasons to improbable victories, The Fan has been there for all of them.
What were the best of the best? During a six week span, Denver Sports will chronicle the moments that stood out the most. It’s a countdown from No. 30 to No. 1, in a series called “Mile High Milestones.”
Enjoy the trip down memory lane!
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Most sports fans in Colorado hadn’t even gotten the memo yet. For the first time since the Rockies bolted for New Jersey to become the Devils, the NHL had returned to the Centennial State.
In May of 1995, shortly after being eliminated from the playoffs, the Quebec Nordiques announced that they were being sold to COMSAT Entertainment Group. Unable to remain financially viable in the league’s smallest market, which only bested Green Bay among the four major sports, the franchise’s ownership had little choice but to sell the team.
A new group swept in, purchased an upstart team that had finished with the best record in the Eastern Conference during a lockout-shortened season, and moved them to the Mile High City. Denver was known for their rabid support of professional sports, including a debut season of the Colorado Rockies that had drawn more than four million fans to watch the MLB expansion team, so it seemed like a no brainer.
The move proved to be an immediate success. Bolstered by a roster that featured young stars such as Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg and Adam Foote, and led by an energetic coach in Marc Crawford, the newly formed Colorado Avalanche got off to a hot start.
They won their first-ever game at McNichols Arena, beating the Red Wings by a score of 3-2. That was a sign of things to come.
The Avs opened the season with a 15-4-4 mark as the end of November approached, but a three-game losing streak seemed to bring the momentum to a standstill. That’s when Pierre Lacroix pulled off one of the biggest heists in pro sports history.
Colorado’s general manager sent Andrei Kovalenko, Martin Rucinsky and Jocelyn Thibault to the Canadiens in exchange for Montreal captain Mike Keane and future Hall of Fame goaltender Patrick Roy. Lacroix pounced on bad blood between Roy and Canadiens head coach Mario Tremblay, seizing the opportunity to land a difference maker.
Having an all-time great certainly proved to be just that. Roy was steady between the pipes, allowing the young team in front of him to do their thing.
The Avalanche finished the season with a 47-25-10 record, good enough for 104 points and the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference. Then, Colorado’s first taste of the Stanley Cup Playoffs was about to commence.
The Avs beat the Canucks in six games in the opening round, a feat they repeated in round two against the Blackhawks. That series featured some infamous chirping, with Roy showing his veteran savvy by talking trash to Chicago’s star, Jeremy Roenick. Unfazed by a bad game earlier in the season, the goaltender mentioned that he couldn’t hear the criticism coming his way because he had two Stanley Cup rings in his ears.
Colorado advanced to the Western Conference Finals, where they’d face the best team in the NHL. Detroit had a staggering 131 points in the regular season, making them the prohibitive favorite to win the Cup.
But the Avalanche stole both Games 1 and 2 in Detroit to take a commanding lead in the series. They split in Denver to take a 3-1 advantage. Despite losing Game 5, Colorado returned home and closed out the series at Big Mac.
In their four wins, Roy was the difference. The goaltender gave up just five goals in the four victories.
After getting over that hurdle, the Stanley Cup Final seemed like a formality. And it proved to be one.
Colorado opened with back-to-back wins in Denver to take a 2-0 lead over Florida. An 8-1 win in Game 2 showed just how much of a mismatch the series was going to prove to be.
It didn’t get any better for the Panthers when they returned home. The Avs took a 3-0 lead with a 3-2 win and then iced the series in Game 4 with a memorable 1-0 victory in triple overtime. Uwe Krupp found the back of the net to provide the game winner, setting off a celebration across the city.
The win brought the first major sports championship to Denver. After multiple disappointments, including four Super Bowl losses, the Mile High City had finally come out on top.
Fans hardly knew what they had, but that didn’t stop them from celebrating. During their first season in Colorado, the Avalanche had won the Cup. And it was only the beginning of a magical run that would span nearly the next decade.
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THE COUNTDOWN
30: Ubaldo Jimenez has a magical season
29: Todd Helton get enshrined in Cooperstown
28: Valeri Nichushkin goes missing in the postseason – twice!
27: The Avalanche win their second Stanley Cup
26: The Nuggets come back from two 3-1 deficits in the bubble
25: The seemingly never-ending Broncos ownership saga
24: Hurricane Josh hits the Mile High City
23: The Rockies trade Nolan Arenado to the Cardinals
22: The Nuggets reach the Western Conference Finals in 2009
21: John Elway gets enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame
20: The Avalanche hoist third Stanley Cup in franchise history
19: The Avalanche acquire Patrick Roy from the Canadiens
18: The Broncos produce the greatest offensive season in NFL history
17: John Elway joins the Broncos front office to right the ship
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Wanna hear more about this Mile High Milestone? Tune into “The Rundown” at noon or check out the show on YouTube to hear Richie Carni and a special guest take a walk down memory lane.
