After much speculation about wanting out of Colorado, the Avalanche traded Duchene to the Ottawa Senators in a three-team trade on November 5, 2017. From Ottawa, the Avalanche acquired Andrew Hammond, Shane Bowers a 2018 first-round pick and a 2019 third-round pick. Additionally, the Avalanche acquired Samuel Girard, Vladislav Kamenev and a 2018 second-round pick from the Predators. The Avalanche had a ten-game win streak from January 2 to 22. During that stretch, the Avalanche outscored their opponents 41–16. Offensively, the Avalanche were led by Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen. MacKinnon finished fifth in league scoring with 97 points, while Rantanen scored 84 points in his sophomore season. The Avalanche qualified for the playoffs in their final game of the regular season, defeating the Blues, who they were battling with for the final wild-card spot, 5–2. The team finished with 95 points, a 47-point increase from their previous season. The Avalanche matched up with the league-leading Predators in the first round. After finding themselves down 3–1, the Avalanche rallied to win Game 5 2–1 after scoring two goals late in the third period. With Varlamov and Jonathan Bernier both out with injuries, Hammond started the game and made a career-high 44 saves. However, the Predators blanked the Avalanche 5–0 in Game 6 to win the series.