A Stanley Cup win will cement Sakic among Colorado’s all-timers

When it comes to Colorado sports, nobody has meant more to the city of Denver than John Elway. He’s the biggest name and led the Denver Broncos both as a player and executive to unbelievable success.

It’s not even fair to compare anyone to Elway.

Well, there actually is one person: Joe Sakic.

If the Colorado Avalanche win the Stanley Cup this season, Sakic will sit right beside Elway at the top of the Colorado Sports Mountain.

In their first season in Colorado, the Avs were Stanley Cup champions. Sakic was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy for playoff MVP and brought Colorado its first major professional title.

Sakic would again lead the Avalanche to a Stanley Cup victory in 2001 in a season which he was awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy for league MVP.

And like Elway with the Broncos, Sakic returned to the club he once played for, joining the Avalanche front office in 2010 — to much less fanfare.

In 2013, Sakic was promoted to executive vice president of hockey operations, overseeing, and making, the final decisions on the roster.

In 2013, Colorado had the No. 1-overall pick in the NHL Draft. Defenseman Seth Jones was considered by many to be the player the Avalanche should draft, especially with his Colorado ties. Jones’ father, “Popeye” Jones, played for the Denver Nuggets while Sakic was playing for the Avs. The elder Jones even had a conversation with Sakic about getting his young sons into hockey.

Instead of drafting Jones, Sakic and his team of decision makers opted for forward Nathan MacKinnon. This decision has obviously worked out, as MacKinnon is arguably the best player in the NHL.

Unlike Elway, who’s time in the Broncos front office started off red hot and then slowly disintegrated, Sakic’s time at the top of the Avalanche started off great with the drafting of MacKinnon and the hiring of Avs legend Patrick Roy to be the head coach.

Colorado had an exciting 2013-’14 season, which ended with a disappointing first-round exit at the hands of the Minnesota Wild. The Avs would miss the postseason the following three years — not exactly equal to Elway’s start, which included five straight AFC Championships, two Super Bowl appearances and Super Bowl title.

However, Sakic and the Avalanche found their way back.

It started with Roy’s abrupt resignation in 2016, after which Sakic moved quickly to hire current head coach Jared Bednar.

Colorado would return to the playoffs in 2017-’18, losing a first-round matchup to the Nashville Predators, but the 2018-‘19 season is where something special happened.

The Avalanche were largely irrelevant and bad for most of the season then made a late season run to sneak into the playoffs. Colorado made the most of its opportunity, upsetting the Calgary Flames in the first round and pushing the San Jose Sharks to seven games before losing in round two.

And in the 2019-’20 playoffs, the Avs fell victim to injuries and still nearly advanced to the Western Conference Finals.

Sakic has also overseen tough personnel decisions, such as moving on from Paul Stastny, Ryan O’Reilly and Matt Duchene. As the previous stars left, Sakic hit with the draft, selecting forward Mikko Rantanen and defenseman Cale Makar.

Like Elway, Sakic has been able to transition his success as a player to the front office. The only difference is Sakic is poised to do it better and for longer.

Sakic has done what Elway was unable to do — overcome the difficult times and return his team to prominence. Sakic has been able to steer Colorado back to the top after a three-season playoff drought. Elway was able to be a front runner but unable to rebuild.

Under Sakic, the Avalanche have set themselves up to compete for Stanley Cups for years to come. Rather than a small window, Colorado doesn’t look to be slowing down anytime soon.

It was a bumpy ride at first, but now Sakic has his team sailing smooth. Of course, the Avs need to complete the mission and win the Stanley Cup.

Sakic will always be toward the top of the Colorado sports pecking order, but if the Avalanche are able to win the Stanley Cup this season, he’ll be the first person who can truly sit next to Elway and belong there.