In the 2013-14 season, while the Denver Nuggets were starting to sludge their way through the Brian Shaw era, the Colorado Avalanche were making a magical turnaround after a downfall of their own. Backed by the historic goaltending of Semyon Varlamov and on the shoulders of a promising young core of forwards, the Avs went from the second-worst team in the entire NHL just one season prior to winning the Central Division and finishing with the third best record in the league the next.
Colorado started that year 13-1, and thanks to an inspirational speech by former defenseman Ray Bourque at his restaurant in Boston during that early stretch, the Avalanche players adopted “Why not us?