The Colorado Avalanche made the controversial decision to trade Mikko Rantanen. Sure, it makes sense to part with a superstar in a contract year who did not agree to an extension, but by doing so, the Avs were running a serious risk of the deal haunting them. It ended up doing so in record time, and it continues to get worse. Former Avalanche star Nazem Kadri took to X to mock the team for trading a player of Rantanen's talent.
Rule number one : You always keep the dawgs … #96
— Nazem Kadri (@43_Kadri) May 11, 2025
Kadri made it clear that the Avs simply had to keep Rantanen in town no matter what. To be honest, it's hard to disagree with him in hindsight. The Avalanche certainly already regret the trade, and again, it's only getting worse.
Nazem Kadri says what every Avalanche fan already knew
The Avalanche made the mistake of trading Rantanen, but never in their wildest dreams did they expect the deal to haunt them as quickly and as painfully as it did.
The Avalanche traded him to the Carolina Hurricanes, a team in the Eastern Conference that they'd have no part of unless they met up in the Stanley Cup Final. Rantanen's refusal to ink an extension in Carolina led to an eventual trade with the Dallas Stars, a Central Division rival. The Avalanche intentionally sent him to the Eastern Conference, but instead, he ended up back in their division with one of their biggest rivals.
As if that isn't bad enough, the Avalanche matched up against the Stars in a nightmarish first-round matchup. The Avs did what they could, but Rantanen willed the Stars to a series victory thanks in large part to a historic Game 7 performance. Rantanen wound up with five goals and 12 points in the series against his former team. To add insult to injury, Rantanen began the second round with his second consecutive hat trick, and then put up three more points in Dallas' Game 3 victory. The Stars lead the Presidents' Trophy-winning Winnipeg Jets two games to one in the best-of-seven series.
Avalanche fans knew what a disaster this trade turned out to be in record time, but hearing it from Kadri doesn't exactly ease the pain. Kadri played a huge role in the team's Stanley Cup win in the 2022 season, racking up seven goals and 15 points in the 16 playoff games he appeared in.
It comes as no surprise that the Avalanche haven't been past the second round since Kadri left in free agency, and now with Rantanen with a division rival on a long-term deal, it's anyone's best guess as to the next time the Avalanche will be able to make a deep playoff run.