Milestone No. 14: The Avs-Red Wings rivalry turns into a bloodbath
Mar 25, 2025, 7:09 AM
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!
***
A few ingredients are must-haves for something to turn into a rivalry. It takes two great teams, with talent-laden rosters. It takes high-stakes games, preferably in the postseason. And it takes some extracurricular activities, with things escalating beyond simply the X’s and O’s of the game.
During the first decade in which the Avalanche were in Colorado, they developed a rivalry with the Red Wings that checked all of those boxes. It made for some of the most-dramatic hockey games the NHL has ever seen.
From 1996-2002, Colorado and Detroit faced off in the playoffs five times. During that same stretch, the teams combined to win five Stanley Cups. They were two of the best franchises in the NHL, playing emotionally charged games on the biggest stage, resulting in some on-ice drama that will never be forgotten.
It all got started in the ’96 playoffs. The Avs won the first two games in Detroit, taking a commanding 2-0 lead in the series. In Game 3, the Red Wings were looking to claw their way back into things; that led to a play where Vyacheslav Kozlov slammed Adam Foote’s face into the glass, causing a large cut on the Colorado defenseman’s forehead. That angered Foote’s teammates, especially Claude Lemieux; one of the most-hated players in the NHL was looking for revenge.
He found it in Game 6. Lemieux made a beeline toward Detroit’s Kris Draper, as the center was trying to clear the puck in front of the Avalanche’s bench. The two collided, with Lemieux slamming Draper’s face into the dasher boards at full speed, a hit that sent the Red Wings player to the hospital with a broken jaw, shattered cheek and orbital bone that would ultimately require reconstructive surgery.
Colorado won the game to win the series, but the bad blood between the two teams was just getting started. After the game, Dino Ciccarelli was angry with Lemieux.
“I can’t believe I shook his freakin’ hand right after the game,” the Red Wings forward said.” “That pisses me right off.”
He wasn’t alone. Red Wings owner Mike Ilitch wanted criminal charges filed against Lemieux.
That set the stage for future altercations. Every time the two teams got together, it was a powder keg ready to explode.
The next season, Detroit was gunning for Lemieux. But the Avs star didn’t play in the first two matchups and Colorado manipulated the line changes in the third game to avoid confrontations. That wasn’t the case in the final showdown during the regular season, however.
On March 26, 1997, the two teams met at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit. And things got wild.
The Detroit News printed a “Wanted” poster of Lemieux in the paper, with a headline reading “A Time for Revenge.” It didn’t take long for that to happen.
Before the end of the first period, Darren McCarty found Lemieux. He punched the Avalanche’s marked man in the temple, forcing Lemieux to the ice. But the referees didn’t stop the fight; they let McCarty continued to wail away, as the crowd roared with approval. That set off a chain of events.
Patrick Roy skated to his teammate’s defense, but was stopped by Brendan Shanahan. After the Avalanche’s goaltender dispensed of one Red Wing, he was met by his counterpart on the other side; Red Wings goaltender Mike Vernon skated to center ice to rumble.
The brawls didn’t end there. The second period was marred with several fights, as well.
Things continued into the playoffs, where the two teams met in the Western Conference Finals. This time, it was the two coaches getting into it, as Marc Crawford and Scotty Bowman exchanged heated words.
The next season, Lemieux and McCarty exchanged punches just after the puck dropped in the first period. A year later, Roy and Detroit goaltender Chris Osgood exchanged punches.
It always seemed to be something, as the two teams had a legitimate dislike for each other. Showdowns in the postseason only added to the tension.
The Avalanche beat the Red Wings in the playoffs in 1996, ’99 and 2000. Colorado lost to Detroit in 1997 and 2002.
Great players. Great teams. Great games. And true animosity. Add it all up and it created one of the best rivalries in all of sports, a seven-year bloodbath between the Avalanche and the Red Wings that no one will ever forget.
***
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
16: The Avalanche win the Stanley Cup in 1996
15: The Broncos nearly decade-long quarterback carousel
***
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.
