DALLAS — Andrew Cogliano has been deep into the Stanley Cup Playoffs on several occasions, including a trip to the Stanley Cup Final with the Dallas Stars and a championship run with the Colorado Avalanche.
He was on the other side when the Stars defeated the Avalanche in seven games during a second-round series in the 2020 postseason bubble, along with Joel Kiviranta. Those are just two of several connections between these two franchises, which are meeting for the seventh time in the playoffs.
Cogliano might be the most qualified guy to speak about both.
“Dallas and here are two places that I’ve been able to play that are just phenomenal organizations, from Joe (Sakic) and (Chris MacFarland) in Denver to Jim (Nill) here,” Cogliano said prior to Game 1. “He’s a special guy, runs things very well, treats people the right way. Both are great teams and have a lot of similarities with how they are run so that shouldn’t be surprising.”
The Stars rose up to meet the Avalanche and Detroit Red Wings at the top of the NHL in the late 1990s, and both franchises have returned to prominence in recent years. Dallas stopped Colorado’s advance in 2020, before losing in the Stanley Cup Final to the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Avs rebounded and won a title two years ago, something this core group of Stars is still chasing.
Dallas reached the Western Conference Final a year ago, but the emergence of Wyatt Johnston, Logan Stankoven and Thomas Harley and the arrival of Chris Tanev in a trade have cemented the Stars as one of the league’s premier teams.
It wouldn’t be that surprising if these two clubs find each other again in the playoffs in the near future, and a rivalry similar to the one a quarter-century ago develops.
“If we keep doing what we’re supposed to do and get into the playoffs, and they keep doing the same thing, then you’re going to face each other a lot,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “It’s just the way it is with the current playoff format. They’re obviously a very good team and we like to consider ourselves that. So, yep, I would assume that you’re probably going to run into each other every once in a while.”
Cogliano and Kiviranta being recent members of the Stars organization and the significant playoff history is where the connections begin in this series. Valeri Nichushkin was drafted by Dallas in 2013 and bought out by the Stars before joining the Avalanche in 2019.
This is the second time Matt Duchene has played against the Avalanche in a playoff series since being traded to Ottawa in 2017, although the first time two years ago with Nashville was a fait accompli for Colorado. He’ll certainly hear some full-throated boos from the Ball Arena crowd in Games 3 and 4.
This series could have featured Duchene against Ryan Johansen, former Nashville teammates who both moved to new Central Division clubs in the offseason. Instead, it could feature Duchene taking shifts against Casey Mittelstadt, who is part of the Duchene trade tree. The Avalanche traded Bo Byram, one of the key pieces of the return along with Samuel Girard, for Mittelstadt in March.
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It will also feature a pair of old friends who shook the foundation of the NHL a dozen years ago. Zach Parise and Ryan Suter left their previous teams to sign massive long-term contracts with the Minnesota Wild on July 4, 2012.
Both players were bought out of those deals three years ago, and Suter will line up against Parise as part of the deep, talented Stars defense corps.
“We’ve played against each other a handful of times since we were teammates,” Parise said. “We caught up after a game earlier this year. It won’t be any different. I think you become friends with a lot of guys on different teams throughout your career and nothing really changes.”
The Avalanche and the Stars, fighting for supremacy in the Central Division with an eye towards climbing to the top of the NHL mountain, is also something that might not change for the next several seasons.
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