The Colorado Avalanche surprised a lot of people with their first round series win over the Minnesota Wild, but their season ended at the hands of the Detroit Red Wings in dominating fashion. Here’s a recap of the season that was in Colorado.

Normally in the playoffs, even if a sweep occurs, both teams make the series close by tight games. The Detroit Red Wings, on the other hand, absolutely dominated the Colorado Avalanche en route to a commanding four-game sweep.

It's over and done for the Colorado Avalanche. Johan Franzen's hat trick helped pace the Red Wings to a lopsided 8-2 win in Game Four, and Detroit moves on the Conference Finals after sweeping their once-mighty rivals.

With their backs against the wall, the Colorado Avalanche was in need of a miracle in Game 3. The return of Peter Forsberg to the lineup after missing the first two games of the series. That’s as good as it was going to get for Colorado, but not even Forsberg could prevent the Red Wings from taking a 3-0 series lead.

The first round of the playoffs has been very interesting, each series containing many fascinating subplots and stories. Here's Brad Kurtzberg's inside analysis and observations from the thrilling first round of the 2008 NHL playoffs.

When the Avs’ signed gritty forward Ryan Smyth last summer, it was with the expectation that he’d score big goals. Well, he did just that in Game Six, firing a one-timer past Niklas Backstrom to score the series-winning goal for Colorado.

The Minnesota Wild won their first ever Northwest Division crown this year in a very tight race that came down to just a few points at the end of the season. But will that be enough to carry them over into the playoffs? Here's a preview.

Both Peter Forsberg and Adam Foote have spent time on the sidelines with injuries since coming back to Colorado. But if the Avs hope to have success in the playoffs, they will need to rely more on than just Joe Sakic and Paul Stastny.