Do You Dine Like a Colorado Avalanche Player? Let’s Find Out.

An NHL player can burn anywhere from 1,500 to 2,500 calories in a single game. So yeah, those boys have got to eat. We asked some Colorado Avalanche players their favorite Denver restaurants at which to fuel up. Here’s where you may run into an Av carbo loading around town.

Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog know that Wash Park’s Restaurant Olivia is one of the best spots in the city for handmade pasta. From the truffle and lobster spaghetti to the curry-tinged triangoli, it’s hard to choose which shape to try. We’re guessing these guys go big with the five-course tasting menu, though, meaning no Sophie’s Choice-esque decisions over noodles.

More pasta lovers, Cale Makar and Bowen Byram said they head to North Italia in Cherry Creek most frequently. The menu features eight daily fresh pastas, plus pizzas and proteins aplenty, perfect for charging them up.

You might spy Devon Toews at RiNo’s the Greenwich, the contemporary American restaurant making fancy pizzas, grilling a killer anchovy garlic steak, and doing wonders with veggies. No word on whether or not he caps his meal with a slice of their Basque-style cheesecake—an olive oil-drizzled, caramelized beauty—but you definitely should.

Josh Manson said he likes Hillstone, an upscale chain in Cherry Creek doing everything from sushi to burgers to filet. Just leave the jerseys at home—Hillstone’s dress code prohibits team athletic attire.

Erik Johnson and Mikko Rantanen both frequent Quality Italian, where over-the-top portions of pastas and proteins rule. Be your own champion and down the colossal chicken parm pizza—a 14-inch slab of pounded, fried chicken “pizza” loaded with sauce and cheese and topped with chili honey.