The real Stanley Cup title defense begins now.

The Avalanche will host the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday (8 p.m. MT, ESPN) at Ball Arena, beginning a sixth consecutive playoff push. This year, the Avs arrive with their names already on the Cup and increased confidence to double-dip. Regular season? Ho hum. Backup goalie Pavel Francouz called this the “real” hockey.

“The 82 games we just played, for me, are just preparation to get this point,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said.

Here are three keys to winning Game 1.

1. Don’t let Gruby feel at home. Philipp Grubauer is in the playoffs for the first time since 2021, when he was the starting goalie for an Avalanche team that blew a 2-0 series lead vs. Vegas. In fact, he was Colorado’s netminder for all three years of second-round misery. Now in his second season with the Kraken, Grubauer returns to Denver trying to turn around a shaky season. On a team that does him favors by limiting scoring chances, his save percentage is only .895. But if there’s reason to be wary? In 10 career playoff games at Ball Arena, Grubauer has won eight games with a.933 save percentage. Only once has he lost in regulation. Even in his two Ball Arena games this season, he was marginally better than his overall season numbers with a .905. So a word of caution against warm welcomes. The Avs need to jump on Grubauer with an early goal and give him an idea of what Colorado playoff hockey feels like from the other side.

2. Winning starts at the top of the lineup. Seattle’s forward depth trumps Colorado’s. The onus is on Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen to make a seamless transition from their respective 100-point regular seasons into the playoffs. All three meetings with the Kraken this season were decided by one goal in the third period or later. How did Seattle keep it close? For starters, MacKinnon and Rantanen combined for only six shots on goal per game in those matchups. Rantanen didn’t register a point in any of those (he went to the box twice), and MacKinnon only had one. If they figure out how to generate scoring chances against a stingy opponent, the Avalanche can win these games more comfortably.

3. Spread the love on defense. Bednar could play 11 forwards and seven defensemen if he wanted. He has at points this season even with a defensive core that wasn’t fully healthy. Now the stars are aligning with Cale Makar and Josh Manson both returning to the lineup, so it’s either play 11/7 or scratch one of Colorado’s two valued veteran blueliners — Erik Johnson or Jack Johnson. Bednar is in playoff mode, withholding lineup information, but he didn’t rule out the first option. “The game that’s right in front of us, if we feel like it’s a better option to go 11 and seven, then we would,” he said. “If we feel like it’s a better option to go with the 12 forwards and what they provide then we do that.” Regardless of how many defensemen play, though, it’s important with a healthy cast that the Avs try to maintain a balance with ice time. Don’t burn out Makar and Devon Toews too early in the playoffs.