Through the first half of the 2025–26 season, the Colorado Eagles looked like contenders. Talk of winning the Calder Cup Championship didn’t seem outlandish. From October through the end of December, they ranked at the top of the Pacific Division and in the top three of the Western Conference.
While technically both things are still true, the details matter. Since January 1, the Eagles are 13–8–4–3. They’ve fallen from first place in the division with a comfortable lead and multiple games in hand to second place, trailing four points behind the first-place Ontario Reign (LAK). More importantly, they have only a two-point lead on the third-place San Jose Barracuda (SJS), who hold a game in hand over Colorado. The Bakersfield Condors (EDM) are only two points behind that.
The last few weeks of the season are going to be critical. This isn’t just about seeding, although that matters too. The most important thing is to be ready for the playoffs. And right now, the Eagles look anything but ready.
What’s led to this sudden decline?
In one of my recent features, I discussed injuries and special teams struggles. Both are still issues. Last weekend, the Eagles had seven starters out because of injuries. That’s more than one-third of their normal lineup missing. As for special teams, I won’t focus on it too much since it’s been discussed in past posts and in just about any Eagles game recap over the last few weeks. But they are this team’s Achille’s heel. I think, however, that they are a symptom of a much larger problem.
Is Coach Letestu the real problem?
As mentioned in the intro, the Eagles are 13–8–4–3 since January 1. Of those thirteen wins, one was in overtime, and one was in a shootout. That means the Eagles have lost an astounding 78% of their 2026 games that went beyond regulation. Stats like that will end a playoff run in a hurry.
Those statistics include six different losses where the Eagles led at the second intermission but surrendered the lead in the third period, often in the game’s final minutes. In five of six losses, the Eagles scored no power-play goals. In four of six, they lost the lead because of reckless penalties that resulted in power-play goals for the other team.
This loss of discipline has become endemic. On top of the six games with lost leads, two additional losses directly resulted from sloppy penalties: the 2–4 loss to Henderson on February 28, and the 0–4 loss to Abbotsford on March 7.
And finally, in the Eagles’ 4–3 shootout victory against Henderson on March 1, all three Henderson goals were on the power play. They gave Henderson another power play during overtime. Luckily, the Eagles killed that penalty and eventually secured a victory in a shootout, but it never should have gone into overtime. If the Eagles had only stayed out of the box, they would have won that game easily.
All of this — inability to win in overtime, lost leads, way too many penalties, and special teams that can only be described as a dumpster fire — points to coaching in my opinion.
Still, there’s ample evidence that the coaches aren’t the problem.
What about the goalies?
The Eagles have three goalies in rotation: Trent Miner, twenty-four-year-old rookie Isak Posch, and twenty-seven-year-old Kyle Keyser. Since the start of the season, Miner has been the starter and Posch the second, with Keyser being sent to the ECHL. But results speak for themselves. It’s clear the wrong goalie is currently languishing in the ECHL, while the goalie who needs the most coaching and development (arguably the primary reason the ECHL exists) is floundering with the Eagles and costing them one game after another.
To be fair, Posch started out strong. Through December 31, he had a record of 13–1–3. The AHL also named him to the All-Star team. But since January, he’s 4–8–0. In the last section, I mentioned the Eagles had six recent games in which they led at the second intermission but ended up allowing a comeback and losing the game. Four six happened with Posch in net.
The following table shows wins and losses for each goalie since January 1, 2026.
Note: This graphic only includes games where the same goalie played all three period. In the January 24 loss to Ontario, Miner started in net. He allowed two goals on seven shots in the first period but left at intermission due to an injury. Keyser played the remainder of the game, allowing two goals on fifteen shots. For the sake of simplicity, this game was not included in the graphic above.
Here are the official AHL stats for all three goalies for the entire season.
Experience matters
My point is not to criticize Posch. He’s young. This is his first year playing the extended and grueling schedule of professional hockey. Coach Letestu himself commented that rookie goalies often hit a wall at this point in their first year. This is all the more reason Posch would be better served in the ECHL, which has proven to be a fantastic way to develop goalies. Let him get games in and build his confidence against less skilled players. The Eagles still have the option to bring him up if needed, and by next season, he’d likely be ready for another shot at the AHL level.
On the other hand, Keyser already has AHL experience.
He’s been playing professional hockey for seven years now and is used to the workload. He’s proven this year that he’s ready for a larger role in the AHL.
Is still comes down to coaching or above that
The thing is, having goalies in the wrong leagues isn’t necessarily a “goalie problem.” It’s a coach problem. In this case, I don’t think the blame lies with Coach Letestu or any of the Eagles staff. I suspect the order to keep Posch in the AHL and send Keyser down probably comes from somebody higher in the Avalanche organization. But looking at the numbers, it’s obvious this is the wrong choice for the team, and it’s the wrong choice for Posch.
Conclusion
The Eagles are in a Pacific Division dogfight heading into the playoffs. Foremost, they either need to commit a lot fewer penalties, or they need to get their penalty kill back on track. (Obviously, fixing both problems would be even better.) They need to find a way to finish games rather than giving up leads. And finally, they need a change in net. Having Keyser in the AHL gives the Eagles the best chance of winning, and having Posch in the ECHL would give the young rookie some much-needed confidence.
