The Colorado Avalanche earned “valuable playoff experience” this year. However, what did they really learn, and how valuable is it? After all, star center Nathan MacKinnon remarked that his experience with the playoffs four years ago didn’t seem all that helpful in approaching this year’s playoffs.
Of course, the two experiences were radically different. Colorado went into the 2014 playoffs with 112 points and a Central Division title. They squeaked into this year’s playoffs with 95 points, which was good for the final wild card spot.
That said, it certainly seems true that teams that make the playoffs regularly do so not because they’re all that much better than the other teams but because they know how to make the playoffs.