It’s the hardest trophy in professional sports to win for a reason. 

For a team to lift Lord Stanley above its head in June, a lot must go right. You need good health, good players and a lot of luck. The Colorado Avalanche have the players capable of getting the job done this season.

Whether they can remains to be seen. 

Here are five things that must happen for Colorado to reign again:

1. The power play must become less predictable 

It wasn’t lack of talent with the man advantage that was Colorado’s downfall against the Stars in a playoff series last season. When your top unit contains Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar, it will rarely be a talent issue. Execution was lacking, but so was innovation. 

Dave Hakstol says you can expect “tweaks” to Colorado power play this season, but they should be taking a page out of the Edmonton Oilers playbook. Connor McDavid is always moving. Why can’t Nathan MacKinnon or Martin Necas do the same in Colorado? You can’t defend something when you don’t know where it’s coming from. If the Avalanche can add unpredictability to their power play, they can become a force to be reckoned with. 

2. Mackenzie Blackwood’s regular season play must carry over into the postseason 

It was a tale of two series for Blackwood against the Stars. The first four games, he was lights out. The final three? Not so much. There’s no denying his talent, but for the Avalanche to win it all this year, they’ll need Blackwood to take a step now that he’s got a taste of playoff action under his belt. 

3. Martin Necas must find another gear in the playoffs 

There’s no denying Necas’ talent and his regular-season production speaks for itself. His postseason production leaves you wanting a bit more, though. 

It’s gotten better in recent years, but Necas has only 35 points in 66 career playoff games. You can’t win a Stanley Cup if your most skilled winger can’t get the job done in the spring and summer. By the time the playoffs roll around, Necas might have inked a new contract. How he performs in the postseason will determine if it’s truly worth it. 

4. Another defenseman is needed 

Defense wins championships and the Avalanche have a good defense core. One more addition could make it even better.  

The reality is that teams are moving away from having multiple undersized defensemen in their top six. As of opening night Tuesday, the Avalanche have two in the Sams, Girard and Malinski. If Chris MacFarland wants to see his team go on a run, bringing in another left-handed defenseman with some size, one who can eat minutes, would give this team a leg up on the competition. Finding that defenseman is easier said than done, but an addition like that would round out this defense core perfectly. 

5. With their captain back, an attitude needs to return 

When the Avalanche won the Cup back in 2022, they weren’t a physically imposing team. There was an aura around the team, though, and a big reason why was Gabriel Landeskog. He brings a presence on the ice and in the locker room that cannot be replicated. That was already on display in the preseason when he defended Makar’s honor after the defenseman took a hit up high. 

The Avalanche are not going to beat teams down physically. They’re just not built that way. But they can’t just sit back and take it. As long as the captain is around, that won’t happen.