Colorado's next goaltending battle won't be taking place at Ball Arena. It could be decided a few miles away in Loveland, where two very different paths to the NHL are about to collide.
Ilya Nabokov arrives as one of the organization's most intriguing prospects, having openly talked about his goal of becoming the best goalie in the world. Trent Miner, meanwhile, has spent years working his way through the Avalanche system and finally got his opportunity in the NHL last season. Now, the two will share the crease with the Colorado Eagles, and both will have plenty to prove.
Nabokov has already started making his presence felt.
Optional skates are, by definition, optional. But the 23-year-old has been showing up to plenty of them at Family Sports Center lately, and he hasn't exactly been treating them like a casual morning workout.
On Wednesday, Sean Behrens, Alex Gagne and Matthew DiMarsico each got their fair share of chances against him. Nabokov turned away most of them, repeatedly flashing the athleticism and quick glove that made him such an intriguing prospect for the Avalanche.
It was only an optional skate in August, but Nabokov is clearly taking the work seriously.
The 2026-27 season will be his first full campaign in North America, giving Colorado its first real opportunity to see how his game translates to the smaller ice and faster pace.
Nabokov isn't your typical prospect.
Colorado selected him 38th overall in the 2024 NHL Draft, making him the first goaltender taken that year. Before coming to North America, he had already won a Gagarin Cup and been named KHL playoff MVP with Metallurg Magnitogorsk.
His résumé is impressive, but his game still has something to prove.
At 6-foot-1, Nabokov is smaller than most modern NHL goaltenders. His low stance makes him even more unconventional, but it also allows him to move quickly around the crease. His athleticism, lateral movement and ability to recover have been major reasons for his success.
The question is whether those strengths will hold up against NHL-caliber shooters.
Nabokov spent his final season in Russia trying to prepare for that transition, and his numbers weren't nearly as strong as they had been the year before. His save percentage fell from .923 to .901, while his goals-against average climbed from 2.22 to 2.74.
On the surface, it looked like a step backward. There was more going on than the numbers suggested, though, as Nabokov was also working to change parts of his game before making the move to North America.
Now he'll have a full season with the Eagles to see whether those changes were worth it.
And he'll have to do it while competing with a goaltender who has plenty to prove himself.
Miner has been part of Colorado's system for several years and has spent much of that time waiting for his opportunity. He finally got one last season, and he made it count.
In January, Miner recorded a shutout in his first NHL victory, stopping all 22 shots in a 4-0 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets. That made him just the 17th goaltender in NHL history to record a shutout in his first NHL win.
Miner also made the most of his limited NHL action. He appeared in four games for Colorado, going 1-0-3 with a 2.03 GAA and .933 save percentage.
His work with the Eagles was just as encouraging. Miner went 17-8-8 during the regular season before taking his game up another level in the playoffs, posting an 11-6 record with a 1.87 GAA and .925 save percentage as Colorado reached the Western Conference Final.
Nabokov has already made it clear how high he wants to climb. In May, he said he wants to be the best goalie in the world. That's an ambitious goal, but it also sends a pretty clear message to everyone competing with him for an opportunity.
Miner is going to have to work for it.
The two goaltenders will be teammates with the Eagles, but there won't be much room for either to coast. Nabokov is trying to prove he's ready for the next step, while Miner is coming off a season that showed he may already be closer to an NHL opportunity than previously thought.
That makes the Eagles' crease more than a simple prospect development situation. It's a competition between two goaltenders with legitimate reasons to believe they belong in Colorado's future plans.
For Nabokov, a strong season would show the Avalanche that the adjustments he made in Russia are translating and that he's moving closer to an NHL opportunity.
For Miner, it's another chance to prove that what he showed last season was just the beginning.
Neither can afford to assume the job will simply be handed to him.
And the competition could have consequences well beyond the AHL.
Colorado enters the season with Mackenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood expected to handle the NHL crease. Blackwood is under contract for four more seasons, while Wedgewood is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent next summer.
That makes this season particularly important for Nabokov.
If he takes over the Eagles' crease and thrives, Colorado could have an internal option ready to challenge for an NHL job when the next opportunity opens. If Miner continues to perform at the level he showed last season, he could make that decision considerably more difficult.
That's a good problem for the Avalanche to have.
The organization would much rather have two goaltenders pushing each other than wonder where its next NHL option is coming from.
But for Nabokov and Miner, this isn't simply about helping the Eagles win games.
It's about positioning themselves for what's next.
Nabokov wants to be the best goalie in the world. Miner wants to prove he belongs in the NHL. They'll be teammates in Colorado this season, but every start will carry some weight in a competition that could shape both of their futures.
The first battle will take place with the Eagles.
And when two goaltenders are fighting for the same opportunity, there may not be room for both to come out on top.
