It really picks us up as a team.”Īvalanche captain Joe Sakic - now executive vice president of hockey operations for the Avs - said the Red Wings caught them off guard in the beginning. … That’s really a great motivational factor, especially when the guys are tired. Right-winger Owen Nolan told The Gazette out of Quebec that, "We had good fans in Quebec, but it’s like night and day as far as the loudness. The players expressed their excitement with the media as well. “If goalie Stephane Fiset doesn’t fade in the playoffs like he did last season, the team is a Stanley Cup threat," a reporter with The Montana Standard wrote. Newspaper headlines boasted the Avs' win: "Red Wings buried by Avalanche," "Avalanche thunders into season in Denver," "Avalanche slides to 3-2 win with Kamensky goal in third." It "turned out to be a successful one for the boisterous fans and the Avalanche players," the AP wrote the following day.
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READ MORE: Commerce City boy trains in his full goalie gear while watching Avalanche gamesįollowing the Avs' win that evening, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman helped hoist a banner at the McNichols Sports Arena in Denver to signal hockey's successful return to Colorado.
The first penalty in Avalanche history was handed down to Claude Lemieux for high sticking 42 seconds into that game, according to the AP. I knew we had lots of time to score, so I just wanted to keep us close and give us a chance to win.” "That’s my job, just to keep the team in the game. “After the first goal, I knew I had to shut the door," Fiset told the AP. The puck found the net behind Avs goalie Stephane Fiset within the first two minutes of the game, but he was “nearly flawless after that, stopping 30 shots," according to the AP. 7, 1995 (Joe Mahoney/Associated Press photo) Defenseman Craig Wolanin scored the second goal, the AP reported.
In its first regular season game ever, the Avalanche won 3-2 against the Detroit Red Wings in front of a sold-out arena, with left wing Valeri Kamensky scoring two goals, including one around the 10-minute mark and another with less than four minutes left in the game. Fireworks exploded in the air to celebrate, according to The Associated Press. 6, 1995, the Avs put on their new uniforms and skated out onto the ice at the McNichols Sports Arena in Denver - which was demolished and rebuilt into the Pepsi Center in 2000 and renamed in 2020 to Ball Arena - for their first game. This brought renewed excitement to the City of Denver and Coloradans who had been without a home team to cheer for since the Colorado Rockies hockey team was relocated to become the New Jersey Devils in 1982.Īfter the move was announced, more than 12,000 season tickets were sold within 37 days, according to the NHL. The deal was finalized on July 1 and after the Nordiques relocated to Denver, the franchise was officially named the Colorado Avalanche about a month later, according to the NHL. The Quebec Nordiques were very much a “bottom-feeding team" and Comsat Entertainment (now Ascent Entertainment) purchased them on May 25, 1995. The Avs made their way to Denver via financial difficulties in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. DENVER - The Colorado Avalanche's first-ever game in 1995 started and ended with a boom, kicking off a season that ended with Lord Stanley's Cup in the hands of Denver's brand-new hockey team.
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