22 May 1997: Colorado Avalanche head coach Marc Crawford (center) yells during a playoff game against the Detroit Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan. The Red Wings won the game, 6-0. Mandatory Credit: Jason Wise /Allsport
“Heavy is the head that wears the crown” is a Shakespearean quote that best can describe 1996-97 for the defending Stanley Cup Champion Colorado Avalanche.
In this new series titled “Why Not Us”, we will take a retrospective look at the individual seasons in Colorado Avalanche history in which they didn’t win the Stanley Cup. Through this series, I wanted to give a little more appreciation and notoriety to the players, storylines, and seasons that we may have forgotten to prepare ourselves for the 25th anniversary of the Avalanche relocation.