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“We had 48 points last year. We didn’t know how it would go with all the young guys. We’re definitely in a better spot than we hoped for.”

Or anyone could have imagined.

Photo by Matthew Stockman / Getty Images Files

Outside of the even wilder story taking place in Las Vegas, the Avs came to town Tuesday night as the surprise story of this NHL season. In the space of a couple of months, they’ve reinvented themselves as a nowhere team to a rising power that is positioned for sustained success in the ultracompetitive Western Conference.

The new Avs also came as advertised in the Canucks’ 4-3 shootout win at Rogers Arena. True the game turned midway through the second when MacKinnon left for the evening after a big-time collision with Alex Edler. But their speed, their pressure game and their four-line look were also on display as were their collection of impressive young players.

Now, the why of the Avs’ turnaround isn’t a great mystery. As MacKinnon said before the game, just look at the lineup where you see a team that’s build around youth and speed. But it’s the wholesale commitment to those ideals that have set the Avalanche apart and put them on the leading edge of a changing game.

The Canucks, as it happens, are trying to do the same thing. We’ll leave it to you to figure out who’s been more successful.

“The game’s getting faster and faster and every team is trying to play with more pace,” said Avs’ coach Jared Bednar.

“The best teams in the league play at a high pace and they execute. In order to score goals you have to outskate teams and pressure them to turn the puck over. I’d say (speed) is the most important thing.”