The most popular question about the Colorado Avalanche entering this season is whether they will more resemble the surprise Central Division champs from two seasons ago, or the team that finished last a season ago.

"They're somewhere in between there in reality,'' said a rival Western Conference executive during training camp.

Well, that's what we'll find out this season, won't we?

"I like to think it's the team of two years ago,'' Avalanche head coach Patrick Roy answered to the same question. "Because first of all, two years ago we had no injuries. Last year we were hit hard by injuries. I think any team that loses its No. 1 goalie at the start of the year -- and everyone knows how important the start of the year is to give a kickstart to the season -- when you start you really need your No. 1 goalie. I think that affected us a lot. I would say a lot more than we wanted to admit.''

Semyon Varlamov is healthy, and the Avs hope the lessons of last year's frustrating season will help their young squad take a step forward.

"Obviously, two years ago we had 112 points, everything went right," GM Joe Sakic said during camp. "Sometimes with a younger team you might have to take a step back in order to realize what you need to do to move forward. At least I'm hoping that's the case.''

Either way, captain Gabriel Landeskog is tired of the question.

"I'm sick and tired of answering that, to be honest with you," Landeskog said. "We're tired of talking about what we've done and what happened last year. We just want to move on. I definitely think we've got some good things ahead.''

BEST NEW FACES

The Avs acquired the rights to center Carl Soderberg from Boston on at the draft and quickly signed him to an extension, and the next day dealt Ryan O'Reilly and Jamie McGinn to Buffalo in exchange for defenseman Nikita Zadorov, forward Mikhail Grigorenko, prospect J.T. Compher and Buffalo's second-round pick (31st overall).

On July 1, they signed veteran blue-liner Francois Beauchemin and winger Blake Comeau. On Sept. 9, they swapped blue-liners with the Arizona Coyotes, Brandon Gormley going to the Avs and Stefan Elliott going to the Coyotes.

Said Landeskog: "That depth is going to be crucial to our success."

The Avs needed to beef up their blue line, but it remains to be seen whether Zadrov will have an impact right away. The Avs know what they're getting in the the 35-year-old Beauchemin: a veteran leader and proven winner who will bring stability and fit nicely on the top pairing with Erik Johnson. They've also brought in forward Curtis Glencross on a pro tryout after Glencross was released from a PTO by the Toronto Maple Leafs.

BIGGEST UNKNOWNS

Where did the offense go? The Avs went from fourth in goals per game (2.99) two seasons ago to 23rd last season (2.55), and the power play went from fifth to 29th. Bounce-back seasons from Matt Duchene and Nathan MacKinnon will go a long way toward helping the offense.

"He just turned 20," Sakic said of MacKinnon, who's entering his third season. "He put on good weight this summer. He's ready."

Duchene, 24, is entering his seventh NHL season and the expectations are high he will be more consistent.

The blue line got better with Beachemin and Zadorov, but will it be good enough to improve its defensive zone coverage?

Another unknown: the impact of O'Reilly's exit. Soderberg is not on the same level, and O'Reilly's two-way game and gritty leadership will be missed. Nobody is asking Soderberg to replace him, but the former Bruin needs to give the Ave some consistent two-way play.

Michael Martin/NHLI/Getty Images

SURE THINGS

About the surest thing with the Avs is that they won't change their DNA. Both Roy and Sakic believe in a high-tempo, attacking style, and the players embrace it. Of course, it flies in the face of what the analytics suggest they should do, but we won't go there.

Another sure thing is their goalie. If he stays healthy, Varlamov covers up many of the team's defensive mistakes and gives them a chance to win every night.

"We're fortunate we've got Varly, who is one of the best in the league," defenseman Tyson Barrie said. "He wins a lot of games for us. He's usually our MVP. It helps having him back there, but we'd like to help him out a bit more this year and play more in the O-zone.''

WORLD CUP CANDIDATES

Duchene won gold with Canada at the world championships last spring, putting up 12 points in 10 games, a year after winning gold at the Olympics in Sochi. He's no sure thing for the World Cup, but he's thinking about it.

"I got to be part of two really good Team Canadas and I feel very blessed and honored to be part of those teams," Duchene said. "I'd be lying if I said the World Cup wasn't a goal for me. Whatever helps this team here is going to me help me make that team, that's my focus. If you win with this team, it will help you with the other.''

MacKinnon can't play for Canada because he's too young, so he'll have to settle for a role on the 23-and-under Team North America squad, which is fine with him.

"It's pretty cool. That would be awesome. It would be fun to knock off the big guys,'' he smiled.

Johnson has a shot at the Team USA blueline and Landeskog is a lock for Sweden, and it will be interesting if Soderberg can also crack the Swedish squad. Varlamov will challenge Sergei Bobrovsky for the top job in the Russian net, and a good season will put Zadorov on the Russian radar.

PENDING FREE AGENTS

MacKinnon and Barrie will be restricted free agents next summer, and veteran Alex Tanguay will be unrestricted. It will be interesting to see if they get MacKinnon done on a bridge deal or try to go long term. And Barrie's negotiation will be worth monitoring too, because the team's top offensive blue-liner could add to his value with a big season.

PREDICTION

The rival hockey executive at the top of this story is right. This Avs team is somewhere in between the one that shocked everyone two years ago and the one that stumbled last season. The Avs will contend for a wild-card playoff spot. They might fall short, but they'll make it interesting. Seventh in the Central Division.