Avalanche fans are buzzing after Jared Bednar's latest Cale Makar comments
Cale Makar and Jared Bednar may be lining up for Game 1, and that is the best news Colorado could have asked for right now.
That is the real takeaway from Bednar's latest update.
He said, «I think everyone's going to be available for Game 1, but we'll see,» when asked about the Avalanche's injured players.
That is not a full lock yet. But it is a lot stronger than the tone Colorado had around this group only a few days ago.
When your biggest concern is health heading into a conference final, even a cautious answer like that carries weight.
And Bednar did not stop there. When he was asked earlier whether Sam Malinski was trending toward being available for Game 1, his answer was simple: «yes.»
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That matters because it points to Colorado getting depth back, not just crossing fingers on one or two stars.
Jared Bednar may have just delivered the best possible update on Cale Makar
The biggest name in all of this is still Makar. Any positive injury tone around the Avalanche starts there, because he is the defenseman who changes the whole feel of the team.
So when Bednar says he thinks everyone will be available, the natural read is obvious. Colorado may be getting through this injury cloud at exactly the right time.
That is a massive swing before the puck even drops.
A team can survive being banged up for a round. It gets a lot harder once the stakes rise and every matchup gets tighter. Colorado does not want to be patching holes now.
That is why this update lands so well for the Avalanche. Instead of talking about who might be missing, they are talking about a roster that could be basically intact when Game 1 arrives.
Malinski's name matters too. He is not the headline draw Makar is, but getting another option back on the blue line helps Bednar settle pairs and keep his bench from getting stretched.
That is how these series are won. Not only with stars, but with coaches having enough healthy pieces to keep the structure clean.
Colorado still has to prove it once the series starts. Bednar left himself room with the «we'll see» line, and that is fair.
But the direction is clear now.
The Avalanche were staring at injury noise. Now they are staring at the possibility of opening Game 1 with everyone available. In May, that is not a small detail.
That is the kind of update that can change the mood around a whole series before the first shift even happens.
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YESTERDAY
MAY 16, 2026
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| G | A | PTS | ||
| Rasmus Dahlin | 1 | 4 | 5 | |
| Tage Thompson | 1 | 3 | 4 | |
| Jack Quinn | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Zach Benson | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jake Evans | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jason Zucker | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Ivan Demidov | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Konsta Helenius | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Zach Metsa | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Arber Xhekaj | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Bowen Byram | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Cole Caufield | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Lane Hutson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Michael Matheson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Ryan McLeod | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Josh Norris | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Mattias Samuelsson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Josh Anderson | - | - | - | |
| Zachary Bolduc | - | - | - | |
| Alexandre Carrier | - | - | - | |
| COMPLETE STATS | ||||