The post 7 Trade Targets That Could Solve the Avalanche’s 3C Hole (+) appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

The post 6 Trade Targets That Could Solve the Avalanche’s 2C Hole (+) appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

After a perfect 3-0-0 road trip, the Avs returned to Ball Arena and continued their winning ways. The 5-4 victory over Ottawa, which was highlighted by the first goals of the season for Nikolai Kovalenko, Josh Manson, and Logan O’Connor, was the first of three straight games at home in four nights.

It also began a stretch of 8-of-1o at Ball Arena.

The best part about a homestand is how much time players are willing to give you to chat in the dressing room — especially following a practice. My colleague Colleen Flynn gathered quite a few great quotes on Saturday when the Avalanche returned to practice following the road trip. It’s available to CHN subscribers here.

Around The NHL

Philly Hockey Now: The Flyers have done a great lately of getting guys out of Russia. And it seems like every one of them has a different situation. First, it was Ivan Fedotov, the goaltender that was expected to join them years ago before having issues with the Russian government. He joined Philadelphia in early 2024 and remains one of their top two goalies this season.

Then, it was Matvei Michkov, the prized prospect that they drafted in 2023. The young forward wasn’t expected to make the leap to the NHL this quickly but they worked hard to get him here and he’s been an excellent story in the earlygoing. And now it’s another goalie, Aleksei Kolosov. He made the jump to North America recently and started in the AHL. HE was called up and made his NHL debut on Sunday.

Kolosov made 20 saves in a 4-3 loss to the Montreal Canadiens.

Detroit Hockey Now: The Red Wings fell 4-3 to the Edmonton Oilers in overtime on Sunday. One of the positives from that game, and in the early parts of the season, is the production of Andrew Copp. Kevin Allen has more on the center here.

Ottawa: Shane Pinto did not play against the Avalanche on Sunday. It was announced that he’s week-to-week with an undisclosed injury.

The post Deen’s Daily: Avalanche Keep Winning; Kolosov Debuts; Copp’s Production appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

Shane Pinto’s ban from the NHL last year for 41 games made headlines because it was the first betting-related suspension the league had been forced to make. On the Empty Netters podcast the other day, Pinto explained exactly what he did that caused him to get suspended for half the season.

Colorado Hockey Now

What does Ilya Nabokov need in order to have a career similar to Sergei Bobrovsky? His KHL coach chimes in.

News And Rumors

ESPN: Ryan Clark went through all the rookies that might make an impact in the NHL next season and came up with 12 candidates for the Calder Trophy, as well as some honorable mentions. One of the 12 mentioned? Nikolai Kovalenko.

No one is higher on Kovalenko than me, but even that would surprise me. The injuries in Colorado should mean he gets a look in the top six when training camp rolls around, but I have a hard time seeing him beating out the likes of Celebrini, Smith, or Stankoven. If he does end up having a season that puts him in the Calder conversation, then times will be good for the Avalanche. Kovalenko returned to the US over a week ago and has been training in Miami, where a lot of Russian NHL players train, so he’s ready to make an impact next season.

Empty Netters: He was the first, but I’m sure he won’t be the last. Shane Pinto was suspended for gambling last year, and on the Empty Netters podcast, he explained what led to him getting suspended.

“I had my buddies, because I was in Canada, just place bets for me in America,” he said during an appearance on the Empty Netters podcast. “I wasn’t a Canadian citizen so I couldn’t really use a Canadian sportsbook…That’s proxy betting, so that’s obviously a big no-no. It was an illegal act so, obviously, it was a pretty big deal.

“So that’s why we didn’t want to fight (the suspension) and we just kinda accepted it.”

The league didn’t find evidence that Pinto gambled on NHL games, but I’m sure we’ll see some more suspensions like this in the future with how prevalent gambling has become in sports. Here’s a link to the entire podcast…

NHL.com: Evgeny Kuznetsov appears to be headed back to the KHL, as he and the Hurricanes mutually agreed to terminate the contract of the 32 year old forward. He’s rumored to be getting a four-year contract with SKA back home. I guess this is the end for Kuznetsov in the NHL.

For the folks asking if this could happen with the Avalanche and Nichushkin, there’s about a $27 million difference between what Kuznetsov had left and what Nichushkin has left on his deal. Maybe Val goes back, but I can’t see him walking away from that much money.

Philly Hockey Now: What if the Flyers had just never traded Cutter Gauthier?

Montreal Hockey Now: Kuznetsov joining SKA would mean another forward on the depth chart in front of Ivan Demidov.

The post Evan’s NHL Daily: Kovalenko For Calder, Pinto Talks Gambling Suspension appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

With the Colorado Avalanche, we took a look back at their loss to the Penguins, although the less said about that game, the better.

All that and more in this Saturday edition of Evan’s Daily.

Colorado Hockey Now

Did anyone play well against the Penguins? I would say there was maybe one player on the Avalanche who was okay, but even that might be pushing it.

Colorado wasn’t just sloppy at 5v5. It carried over to the powerplay, and a late powerplay in the first period was their chance to turn things around. That didn’t happen. (+).

Soon to be Avalanche forward Nikolai Kovalenko is nearing a return in the KHL from his injury.

The Pinto Suspension

Something like this was bound to happen eventually. I know everyone on the Avalanche had to sit through a meeting in camp about the do’s and don’ts of gambling, so you know every NHL team had to do the same. These players are aware of what they can and cannot do when it comes to sports gambling.

At this point, it’s come out that Shane Pinto was not gambling on NHL games, so that’s why some people think the punishment is a little harsh. It’s also come out that the 41 game suspension Pinto received was the result of a negotiated settlement, as opposed to a disciplinary hearing.

That, to me, says all you need to know. The fact that they chose to negotiate a settlement says that he knows he messed up. His statement more or less indicated that. The settlement included a confidentiality clause as well, which would not have been the case had it gone through a disciplinary hearing. That’s why there’s so much mystery around what happened.

According to The Athletic, he was in touch with a third-party proxy, so while he didn’t directly bet on NHL games, a whole lot of things could have been going on there. The actual reason for the suspension will likely never come out, but if he negotiated the suspension, he knows he did something he shouldn’t have been doing.

The NHL, like every other league, are sponsored by all these gambling companies. The Ottawa Senators were actually the first NHL team to put a gambling advertisement on their helmet. It’s always going to be a strange look when these leagues make money on this stuff, but players get in trouble for doing it. That being said, the rules were put in place, and the players know the rules.

Pinto is the first, but just as we’ve seen in the NFL, he won’t be the last.

This doesn’t help the Senators in any way. They’re off to a rough start, have no cap room, and even if they can get him signed, won’t have Pinto for half the season. They’re in a tough spot. Maybe Patrick Roy will come to the rescue…

Around The NHL

The Edmonton Oilers are in trouble early in the year, and are without Connor McDavid at the moment, but they’re not the only Alberta squad that’s a mess.

The Calgary Flames don’t have Darryl Sutter to blame anymore for their troubles. They stink, and the players were pretty honest after their last game, a game where they were booed off the ice.

“I just want to apologize to our fans,” Nikita Zadorov said. “We’re playing like s— right now.”

You can always count on Z for some honesty.

The Flames are currently negotiating extensions for Elias Lindholm and Noah Hanifin. I’m not quite sure why. It’s clear they need to tear some things down and rebuild a little. They’re stuck with the Huberdeau and Kadri (one point in eight games) contracts, but they can at least trade those other two for some nice pieces.  If I was Craig Conroy, I’d be doing anything I can to trade these guys on expiring contracts. It’s clear the core doesn’t have it, so move on and get what you can for the future.

Edmonton and Calgary have combined for three wins on the season. Nobody was picking the Flames to win the Stanley Cup, though.

National Hockey Now

The San Jose Sharks are absolutely the worst team in the NHL, but that might be a good thing for them in the long run.

There are no more unbeaten teams in the league, as the Vegas Golden Knights fell in overtime on Friday.

Nico Hischier took multiple massive hits on Friday night, and left the game for precautionary reasons.

The post Evan’s NHL Daily: That Pinto Suspension, Trouble In Alberta appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

CHN sends our thoughts to Chris, his family, and everyone affected.

On Saturday night, Pearl Jam lead singer Eddie Vedder dedicated a song to the family in a touching tribute.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Jeff Pearlman (@jeff_pearlman)

Colorado Hockey Now

A look at the stock report from training camp fro the Colorado Avalanche, as some players have seen their stock rise, and some have seen their stock go the other way, maybe for reasons they can’t control.

On Sunday, the Avalanche host another preseason game, and we’ll take a look at the only big battle the team has in camp – the 4C position.

Around The NHL

The waiver wire was busy again on Saturday. I’d imagine most, if not all, of these players will pass through waivers, but the closer we get to the start of the regular season, the more players we’ll see on the waiver wire every day.

Devin Cooley (BUF), Dustin Tokarski (BUF), Anthony Angello (NSH), Kevin Gravel (NSH), Troy Grosenick (NSH), Jordan Gross (NSH), Jake Leschyshyn (NYR), Byron Froese (VGK), Mason Geertsen (VGK), Dysin Mayo (VGK), Gage Quinney (VGK), Sheldon Rempal (VGK) and Jonas Rondbjerg (VGK).

— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) September 30, 2023

The Ottawa Senators have made some great moves the last two years, but it’s left them with no cap space to sign Shane Pinto. And now, the gap has widened in their contract talks.

National Hockey Now

The Pittsburgh Penguins are hiring a former executive for the Ottawa Senators onto their staff.

Former DU goaltender Magnus Chrona was strong for the San Jose Sharks on Saturday.

Speaking of DU, Bobby Brink made a statement for the Philadelphia Flyers.

The Montreal Canadiens are sending their top pick this year back to Switzerland.

The post Evan’s NHL Daily: Tragedy In Calgary, Avalanche Stock Report appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.