Whoever said that events had to occur a long time ago to be considered historical, clearly isn't a sports fan. This week marks the 19th and 14th Anniversary of the Colorado Avalanche's two Stanley Cups (and certainly not their last, in this devoted fan’s estimation).

In their inaugural season, the Colorado Avalanche defeated the Florida Panthers in a four-game sweep. The final game, on June 11, 1996, would progress into the wee hours of the following morning, when Uwe Krupp eventually scored the game-winning goal in triple overtime, giving the Avs a 1-0 victory, and their first Stanley Cup.  In order to get to the finals the Avalanche defeated the Detroit Red Wings in the Conference Finals, in what would be the start of one of the great rivalries in hockey.

It would be five years later that the Avalanche would return to the Finals, but this time against the New Jersey Devils. Thanks to winning the President’s Trophy, the Avs were awarded home ice, which played an enormous factor when the series went to the final dramatic Game 7 on June 9, 2001. Thankfully, for the sake of every fan’s mental health, this game didn’t go into 3OT, but was a clean 3-1 win by the Avalanche.

This upcoming season will be the 20th Anniversary of the Colorado Avalanche coming to the Mile High City. The Avalanche will also host the notorious Red Wings in the outdoor Stadium Series in February of 2016 at Coors Field. While the Avs have yet to make a solid playoff push in quite some time, with promising young athletes like Nathan MacKinnon, and ever-spirited coach, Patrick Roy, the Avalanche are bound to start turning some heads.

Visit the Stephen H. Hart Library and Research Center to see the collection of Colorado Avalanche artifacts that include placards, posters and apparel. Or if the Broncos are more of your forte, come try on the famous Bronco Barrel Man’s barrel in the Denver A to Z exhibit.