Deen’s Daily: Jared Bednar’s Incredible Season; Robertson Out; Playoffs Begin Tonight!

The playoffs are finally here. The Avs play tonight and they’ll face a Dallas Stars team suddenly missing a top-line forward. Also, an in-depth look at Jared Bednar’s season with the Avs.

All that and more on this edition of Deen’s Daily — April 19.

Colorado Hockey Now

The Avalanche are in Dallas, and I’m here too. Hope you’re all ready for a (hopefully) long playoff run.

Catch my full Round 1 series preview here.

Also, Colleen Flynn put a lot of time into this piece on Jared Bednar and his season behind the bench. Give it a read and let her know what you think in the comments section.

Donate To The CHN Playoff Travel Fund: VENMO or PAYPAL

Around The NHL

St. Louis Blues at Winnipeg Jets: The only other game tonight will take place right before the Avs and Stars drop the puck. The Jets are looking to rebound from their five-game series loss to Colorado last year while St. Louis is back in the playoffs for the first time since the Avs eliminated them in six games in 2022.

I will say, I’m excited to see Connor Hellebuyck and Jordan Binnington go up against each other after the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Jason Robertson: The Stars suffered a massive blow in their last regular-season game. Top-line left winger Jason Robertson suffered a knee injury and is out week-to-week. He won’t play in Game 1 tonight and probably won’t be seen for Games 2 or 3 either. It’s the playoffs, so we probably won’t get a clear picture of his status until the morning of each game.

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: The Pens postmortem you don’t want to miss. Also, Sidney Crosby talks about his regrets from the season.

Montreal Hockey Now: Top five storylines, X-factors from the Habs’ first-round series against the top seed in the Eastern Conference.

Florida Hockey Now: The Panthers and Lightning won’t kick off their series until Tuesday. Florida will play that game without one of its depth forwards, who was suspended for one game.

Ottawa Hockey Now: Preview the Battle of Ontario. Outside of the Avs and Stars, this series is my go-to and I couldn’t be more excited to watch these teams go at it. The last time they faced each in the postseason was in 2004. I was in fifth grade and lived in Toronto at the time. Watching that series was one of my favorite childhood hockey memories.

Vegas Hockey Now: Three Golden Knights who need to up their game in the postseason. Vegas is set to take on the Minnesota Wild in Round 1.