3 moves the Colorado Avalanche need to make after playoff elimination
The Colorado Avalanche have a wide open Stanley Cup window. Here are three moves that could help them win now.
The Colorado Avalanche had one heck of a season. They nearly won the regular season Central Division title, narrowly losing out to the St. Louis Blues. For the second straight season, the Avalanche made it to the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. But for the second straight season, they fell short in Game 7.
Let’s be clear. The Avalanche don’t need to make any significant changes. But armed with $22 million of cap space, Colorado has enough room to improve their roster.
The Avalanche shouldn’t take their apparently wide open Stanley Cup window for granted. Just look at the Winnipeg Jets. Everyone thought their window was wide open after losing to the Vegas Golden Knights in 2018. They haven’t won a postseason series since. The time for the Avalanche to win is now.
For that to happen, the Avalanche need to make some moves this offseason. Here are three moves they should make.
3. Extensions
The Avalanche have quite a few restricted free agents to deal with. Ryan Graves, Nikita Zadorov, Valeri Nichushkin, Andre Burakovsky, and Tyson Jost all need new contracts. Using Evolving Hockey‘s contract tool, those players combined are projected to sign for $16.224 million. It’s quite likely all of them will be returning, though Zadorov and Jost could be trade bait.
On top of that, Logan O’Connor, A.J. Greer, Sheldon Dries, and Hunter Miksa will need new deals, though none of them will likely won’t be regular roster players for the Avalanche. I can’t see any of them making over $1 million a year.
But the one extension the Avalanche should be worried about this season is Cale Makar. He still has a year left on his entry-level contract, but the Avalanche are eligible to sign him to a new contract this offseason. Makar is going to command a pretty penny in a year. His price is likely only going to increase from here on out. It might be best to start talking to him now about a long-term extension. If they can sign him to one, that would be a great move for the Avalanche.
2. Trade Zadorov
Nikita Zadorov is a solid NHL defenseman. But the Avalanche would be wise to shop him around this offseason. While Colorado only has four defensemen signed for next season, Graves is likely getting an extension, which makes it five. And then you have Conor Timmins and Bowen Byram, who are going to push for roster spots to start next season.
The Avalanche are flush with cap space, but Zadorov might not have a spot on Colorado’s roster. Even if he does, his cap hit likely won’t justify his role.
According to CapFriendly, Zadorov’s qualifying offer is $3.2 million. At even strength, Zadorov was their fourth most-used defenseman this season. He would have been fifth if Makar stayed healthy.
Does it really make sense to have a $3.2 million third-pairing defenseman? Probably not. It’s not the end of the world for a team like the Avalanche if they do, but they could find a similar player for cheaper, so trading Zadorov is something the Avalanche should do. It would give them a bit more flexibility with the salary cap and it would open up a spot in the lineup for Byram and Timmins.
Look for the Avalanche to try to swap Zadorov for a draft pick or a forward.
1. Make Some Upgrades
The Colorado Avalanche are in a really good spot this offseason. As I mentioned earlier, they aren’t desperate for cap space. And the Avalanche don’t have many holes to fill in. This means they can splurge on someone if they want.
If the Avalanche splurge on something this offseason, it will probably be either a goaltender or a top-six forward. Most likely the latter. Here are some options the Avalanche could look at.
Forwards
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The big name on the free agent market is Taylor Hall. It’s worth noting the Avalanche were interested in him before the Arizona Coyotes traded for him.
Hall’s a fairly polarizing player because of his lack of postseason success, but he’d make a lot of sense for the Avalanche. He wouldn’t have to be “the guy” in Colorado. Hall would bolster Colorado’s second forward line, giving them one of the best top six forward groups in the NHL. Among free agent options, Tyler Toffoli would make sense as well. So would Mike Hoffman.
As far as trade targets, it’s hard to tell who will be available, but the Avalanche will certainly have options there. A lot of teams are right up against the cap ceiling, so there will be good players available.
Goaltenders
It makes zero sense for the Colorado Avalanche to add a goaltender unless they’re a clear upgrade over Philipp Grubauer and Pavel Francouz. However, while Grubauer and Francouz are both quite capable, the Avalanche lack a true number one goalie and there will be some available this offseason.
Darcy Kuemper is the biggest name on the trade market. It would take a lot to get him, but the Avalanche saw first hand this postseason just how great he can be. He has two years left on his deal at $4.5 million annually.
Robin Lehner is the best free agent option. He’ll likely command a long-term deal, as he’s had to live with one-year deals the past two seasons. Lehner deserves a long-term deal and it wouldn’t completely surprise me if the Avalanche are the team who gives it to him.
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Anton Khudobin would be an upgrade as a tandem goalie, but he’s not a true number one goalie. The same could be said for Cam Talbot. One interesting name the Avalanche have been linked to is Matt Murray of the Pittsburgh Penguins.