Trades are still very much going to be a thing, especially when it comes to remaking the blueline. But up front, there are still some guys that could help this team in a depth role.

Avs general manager Chris MacFarland said on Thursday that he’s still keeping tabs on a few options.

Here are five that he could be talking about.

Victor Olofsson, LW, Age: 29

The Avs are still looking for help in the bottom six and Olofsson is the only remaining skater from my first UFA Board on June 30.

If you’re looking for someone who can play the left side on the power play and pound pucks home, then Olofsson isn’t a bad option. He had 15 goals and 29 points in 56 games for the Knights last year in a limited role.

Joe Veleno, C, Age: 25

There was a report earlier in the week that the Avs were favorites to land Veleno. He’s a 25-year-old centerman that was bought out of his contract at one-third of the value because of how young he is.

This is precisely the same way Valeri Nichushkin became an unrestricted free agent in 2019 with the Dallas Stars. And that’s about the only comparison between the two players.

Veleno was a very skilled junior play that just couldn’t find his way with the Red Wings. He’s a centerman, which you could never have too many of, and is the best reclamation project on the market. Can the Avs unlock something in him?

Joel Kiviranta, LW, Age: 29

This is an obvious choice because the Avs know what they’d be getting here. If I had to guess, I’d say Kiviranta is still available because the Avalanche didn’t offer him as much of a raise as he’d like. But that’s entirely a prediction.

If other teams don’t pounce, I’m sure an opportunity to remain in Denver will arise. MacFarland already made it clear that he’d circle back on both Kiviranta and Erik Johnson if needed.

Jack Roslovic, RW, Age: 28

The best forward remaining on the market, Roslovic, who scored 22 goals, is the only option left that had more than Kiviranta’s 16.

If the Avs end up dealing Ross Colton, this is someone that can take his place as a third-line right wing option and can fill in for injuries in the top six. I’m not for dealing Colton at this point, given the surplus of cap space Colorado now holds. But if options arise for MacFarland to shore up and remake the blueline, then trading Colton and signing a slightly cheaper Roslovic is an easy way to create some cap space.

Brett Leason, RW, Age: 26

Listed at 6’5, 220 lbs, Leason can play center or wing. At just 26 years old, he’s a UFA because the Anaheim Ducks didn’t qualify him. Similar to Veleno, Leason could be a solid reclamation project for the Avs, or someone that never dresses and ends up in the AHL. It’s a worthy gamble on a player you can get for around league minimum

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The post Deen’s View: At 40, Burns Isn’t Done Yet — But Where Does He Fit on Colorado’s Blue Line? (+) appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

Burns, 40, appeared in all 82 games last year with the Carolina Hurricanes, compiling six goals and adding 23 assists.

The NHL’s active Iron Man, Burns has played in 925 games, having not missed a game whether with San Jose or Carolina since 2013. Last year he averaged 20:57 per game, the lowest in his career since 2015.

As a righty, Burns adds depth to a right side that includes Cale Makar, Josh Manson, and Sam Malinski. The native of of Barrie, Ontario, Canada is the last remaining active skater that played in the NHL before the 2004-05 lockout.

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“Going back to his draft year, he’s a high-motor, tenacious player that plays with really good pace. That book has just traveled and followed him to pro hockey,” Avs GM Chris MacFarland said about the 20-year-old Florida native on Friday at a media conference. “When we were talking with them, he was a player that our pro scouts piggybacked on to what our amateur side was seeing and thought it was a good player that plays the way we like to play.”

The move freed up $7.75 million and added a highly-touted prospect to the development pool. But there are still moves to be made for the team to solidify its bottom six. The top six are locked in with Gabe Landeskog’s return and multi-year contracts for Nathan MacKinnon, Valeri Nichushkin, Artturi Lehkonen and Brock Nelson. Martin Necas is in the final year of his contract this upcoming season. The unknown is Jonathan Drouin, who is an unrestricted free agent come July 1.

The Avs were eliminated in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in seven games by the Dallas Stars. MacFarland and president of hockey operations, Joe Sakic, said in their end-of-the-season exit conference that they felt they had the team to win a Stanley Cup. Offseason changes were undoubtedly going to be made.

“When you have expectations to try and win, you’re going to make decisions on trying to win. I think that’s what we’ve done and this year it didn’t work,” MacFarland said. “We all still feel the sting of that, but we feel we have a good hockey team and a competitive team, and it just didn’t work.”

Avalanche management still has work to do. MacFarland mentioned that a qualifying offer needed to be made to defenseman Sam Malinski, along with “holes” in the roster requiring attention.

“We’ve got (Zakhar) Bardakov coming over, so we’re excited to see what he can do in that mix in training camp. We know what we’ve got in terms of cap space and roster holes, so you do the math, you try and figure out what’s the average that we can spend and how do we put it together and make the math work,” MacFarland said. “We’ll look at anything we can to improve, including the back end. The only area really that we’re probably set as we sit tonight is in net.”

Colorado has one pick each in the third, fourth, and seventh rounds in this year’s draft. Stay tuned for more action in the near future.

The post Avs Still Have Work to Do After Coyle, Wood, and Brindley Trade appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

But the news is true: Josh Manson, back on a long-term deal. And it came in cheaper than I expected too: four years, $4.5 million cap hit. That’s a great signing right there.

By the way, Darren Helm was also just re-signed: one year, $1.25 million. Same deal as Andrew Cogliano. That Avalanche fourth line is going to be a force again this coming season.

The day is not over yet friends. The Avalanche cap space is being eaten up pretty quickly, and there is still Nazem Kadri to consider. I reported earlier that the sides were still talking, but don’t know which way this is going to go.

The fact that the Avalanche is still working on it is a good sign, or usually is anyway. We haven’t mentioned Nico Sturm by the way. It would seem like he’s leaving, along with Andre Burakovsky, but nothing’s done til it’s done.

But, for me, the Manson signing is big. He made a real difference on the blue line and the Avalanche need that physical element to stay a top team. They’ve got it for the next four years with Manson, at a relatively nice cost of $18 million.

From the Avs’ release:

Manson, 30, recorded seven points (2g/5a) in 22 games with the Avalanche after being acquired from Anaheim on March 14. His 63 hits following the trade almost doubled the next closest teammate during that time span, and he tied his single-game career high with 10 hits in his Avalanche debut on March 15 at Los Angeles. Manson combined for 16 points (6g/10a) in 67 contests with Colorado and the Ducks, with his six combined goals the second most of his career (seven in 2017-18).

In the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Manson tallied career highs in goals (3), assists (5) and points (8), ranking third among Avalanche defensemen in goals and fourth in points. He scored the overtime winner for his first career playoff goal in Game 1 of Colorado’s second-round series vs. St. Louis on May 17.

“Josh was a huge addition to our back end down the stretch and into the playoffs,” said Avalanche General Manager Chris MacFarland.  “He played big minutes on our second pairing throughout the postseason, providing a tough, steady presence in the defensive zone while also contributing on the offensive end with some key goals. Getting him under contract for the next four years helps further solidify our blue line.”

Selected by Anaheim in the sixth round (160th overall) of the 2011 NHL Draft, Manson has totaled 120 points (28g/92a) in 475 career contests with the Avs and Ducks. He has appeared in 42 total Stanley Cup Playoff contests, recording 11 points (3g/8a), helping Anaheim reach the Western Conference Final in 2017 and the Avalanche capture the 2022 Stanley Cup championship.

Manson left Anaheim ranked fifth all-time among franchise defensemen in games played (453) and third in plus/minus rating (+39), while his 87 assists and 113 points are ninth all-time among Anaheim blueliners. The Hinsdale, Ill., native is Anaheim’s franchise leader among defensemen in hits (1,083) and ranks second among all Ducks skaters — only Ryan Getzlaf (1,980) has more.

Manson posted the second-best plus/minus rating in franchise history with a +34 in 2017-18, trailing only Paul Kariya’s +36 rating from 1996-97, while also establishing career highs in points (37), goals (7), game-winning goals (2), assists (30) and blocked shots (99).

Manson played parts of two seasons with the Norfolk Admirals in the American Hockey League from 2013-15, totaling 13 points (4g/9a) in 45 contests while adding one point (1g/0a) in 10 Calder Cup Playoff outings.

Prior to turning pro, the 6-foot-3, 218-pound blueliner played three seasons at Northeastern University from 2011-14, collecting 21 points (6g/15a) with a +12 rating in 99 contests. He was named a Hockey East Second-Team All-Star and the league’s Best Defensive Defenseman after captaining Northeastern to a 19-14-4 record in 2013-14.

The post Josh Manson Back With Avalanche, Helm Too appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

The post Gabe Landeskog, Avs “want to find a way to get this done” appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

That’s probably a bit higher than the Avs wanted to spend for him, but the problem is Burakovsky had arbitration rights, and a young guy who scored 20 goals, like he did, probably would have gotten a nice deal from an arbitrator, based on comparable. I mean, Josh Anderson just got a deal worth $5.5 million a year from Montreal – for seven years. It’s all about “well, but that other guy got so and so, and my numbers are as good as his” in contract negotiations.

Burakovsky’s signing brings the Avs’ cap room down to $17.4 million, according to CapFriendly. Also, according to the fine site, there are eight other players that still need to be signed to get to 23 players on the roster. That’s a bit deceptive, though, because it’s not taking guys into account such as Logan O’Connor or Conor Timmins or Bo Byram – guys who might have a very good shot at making the roster by opening night of next season.

Anyway, it’s nice to have Burky back (he was never going anywhere, but just sayin’) and now Joe Sakic turns his attention to other free agents – those of his own (restricted) and maybe a couple from other teams.

So…..that brings me to Tyson Barrie. Darren Dreger, the well-respected TSN reporter, tweeted that the Avs are in the mix to sign him as an unrestricted free agent. I’ve talked with Barrie’s agent, Pat Morris, and he wouldn’t shed any light on the situation.

I gotta say, as much as we all love TB4, I don’t see how it fits, hockey-wise, bringing him back. Barrie is a guy who is going to want to get a lot of power play time, but how is that going to happen on a team with Cale Makar and Sam Girard already?

But, hey, this is a crazy business, so nothing surprises me. Barrie is a right-shot D and knows the system, as they say, so we’ll see.

UPDATE: Barrie signed with the Oilers.

As for Taylor Hall…I’m still getting ghosted by his agent and Joe Sakic isn’t going to reveal his cards to me or anyone else, so….we wait.

Boston’s signing of Craig Smith to a deal with a $3.3 million cap hit lessens some room to sign a Taylor Hall, but they’ve still got $12.2 million left and only two of their own RFAs to sign. They could still fit Hall in on a short-term, budget-conscious deal it would seem.

Nashville can throw more money and term at Hall. They’ve got $13 million in cap space, but only nine “regular” forwards signed for next season.

Bottom line: things are fluid, talks are happening and nobody really knows what will happen ’til it happens.

The post Burakovsky signs, while other rumors swirl appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

The team announced four transactions just now: the re-signing of forward Sheldon Dries and the signings of three players who mostly have been minor-leaguers to this point in their careers, forwards Miikka Salomaki, Kiefer Sherwood and Mike Vecchione to one-year deals.

Here’s more on all of them, from the Avs’ official release:

Dries, 26, appeared in five games for the Avalanche this past season (0g/0a) and made his Stanley Cup Playoff debut in Game 7 of Colorado’s second-round series against the Dallas Stars. The Macomb Township, Michigan, native recorded 35 points (21g/14a) in 50 games for the Avs’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Colorado Eagles, leading the team in goals and finishing third in points. He made the Avs’ opening-night roster as a rookie in 2018-19 and recorded six points (3g/3a) in 40 contests for the Avalanche that season.

Dries (pronounced dr-EYE-z) has produced six points (3g/3a) in 45 career NHL games and has totaled 76 points (43g/33a) in 145 career regular-season AHL games for the Eagles and the Texas Stars. In his first professional season in 2017-18, he notched 30 points (19g/11a) in 70 regular-season games for Texas and added 10 points (10g/0a) in 22 playoff contests for the Western Conference champions, leading all rookies in postseason goals.

According to PuckPedia, Dries accepted his qualifying offer of $771,750. It’s a two-way deal, though, and his salary at the AHL level would be $395,000.

Prior to signing with Texas as an undrafted free agent, Dries played four seasons at Western Michigan University, collecting 84 points (44g/40a) in 148 career outings and serving as the team’s captain for three seasons. The 5-foot-9, 185-pound center earned National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) Second All-Star Team honors for his final campaign in 2016-17.

Dries played two full seasons for the Green Bay Gamblers of the United States Hockey League from 2011-13, recording 87 points (41g/46a) in 116 games and adding nine points (2g/7a) in 16 USHL postseason appearances.

Salomaki, 27, spent the majority of the 2019-20 season with the American Hockey League’s Milwaukee Admirals, tallying 15 points (5g/10a) in 41 games while appearing in five games (1g/0a) for the Nashville Predators. Following a Feb. 22 trade to the Toronto Maple Leafs, Salomaki skated in eight games for the club’s AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, tallying four points (2g/2a). Selected by Nashville in the second round (52nd overall) of the 2011 NHL Draft, Salomaki has collected 27 points (12g/15a) in 167 career NHL contests, all for the Predators. He has also appeared in 30 Stanley Cup Playoff games, recording three points (1g/2a).

Salomaki has registered 92 points (37g/55a) in 173 career AHL contests. The 5-foot-11, 203-pound right wing competed for Karpat in Finland’s top professional league from 2010-13, totaling 50 points (25g/25a) in 122 career Liiga outings.

The Raahe, Finland, native represented his country at the 2014 IIHF World Championship, recording two points (1g/1a) in 10 games to help Finland capture the silver medal in his first appearance in the tournament. Salomaki also competed for Finland at three consecutive IIHF World Junior Championships from 2011-13.

Sherwood, 25, split the 2019-20 season between the Anaheim Ducks and the club’s American Hockey League affiliate, the San Diego Gulls, tallying a point (0g/1a) in 10 games for the Ducks and 23 points (16g/7a) in 37 contests for San Diego.

Signed by Anaheim as a free agent on March 19, 2018, Sherwood has skated in 60 career NHL games, all with the Ducks, and has recorded 13 points (6g/7a). The 6-foot, 194-pound right wing has produced 43 points (24g/19a) in 77 career AHL regular-season contests and added eight points (4g/4a) in 16 Calder Cup Playoff games.

The Columbus, Ohio, native played three seasons for Miami University (Ohio) from 2015-18, registering 86 points (34g/52a) in 106 career games. Prior to college, Sherwood played for the Youngstown Phantoms of the United States Hockey League from 2013-15, recording 90 points (42g/48a) in 126 contests and skated in six games for the U.S. National Team Development Program during the 2012-13 campaign.

PuckPedia says his salary is a two-way: $700,000 with the Avs, $250,000 in the AHL.

Vecchione (pronounced VECK-ee-oh-nee), 27, spent the 2019-20 season with the American Hockey League’s San Antonio Rampage, recording 36 points (21g/15a) in 61 games and leading the club in goals and finishing second in points. Signed by the Philadelphia Flyers as a free agent on March 31, 2017, Vecchione has skated in two NHL contests (0g/0a), both for Philadelphia, and has recorded 114 points (53g/61a) in 193 career regular-season AHL outings for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and the Rampage. In 2018, the 5-foot-10, 194-pound right wing skated in 12 Calder Cup Playoff games for Lehigh Valley, tallying seven points (3g/4a).

Vecchione played four seasons at Union College from 2013-17, where he amassed 176 points (71g/105a) in 149 career games, finishing his career as the program’s all-time leader in points and assists. The Saugus, Mass., native served as team captain for two seasons (2015-17) and was a Hobey Baker finalist and ECAC Player of the Year in 2017.

Prior to college, Vecchione played two seasons for the United States Hockey League’s Tri-City Storm, producing 89 points (36g/53a) in 112 games from 2011-13.

The post Avs free-agent day: Team re-signs Dries and three minor-leaguers appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

All five players will not be given contract offers by the Avs by the start of the free-agency period, at 10 a.m. Friday, a source told Colorado Hockey Now.

This is not a big surprise, given how the Avs still have to sign several of their own restricted free agents. It is expected that the Avs will try to fill some of the departed’s roster spots with either free-agent signings from other teams, or from within by the start of the next season – which has a target date of Jan. 1.

Of the five players, Nieto had the most regular role with the team this past season. The 27-year-old left winger spent parts of four seasons with the Avs, playing 251 games overall with Colorado. He had eight goals and 21 points for Colorado in 70 games this season.

Namestnikov, acquired as a rental at the trade deadline, played pretty well for the Avs in his short time with them. He almost became a playoff hero in Game 7 against Dallas in the second round, scoring a goal with 3:40 left to break a 3-3 tie. But the Avs couldn’t hold the lead.

He scored four goals in 12 playoff games for Colorado, and figures to draw some good interest from around the league.

Wilson, 30, played only nine games for the team this season before injuries struck. His best season with the team was 2018-19, when he scored 12 goals and 27 points in 65 games, and played well at times in the playoffs that year.

Connauton spent most of this season in the minors, though he got some playing time in the postseason when injuries struck the defense. Hutchinson won two games for the Avs in the playoffs as a third goalie, before losing Game 7 to the Stars.

The post Avs UFAs will go to open market appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

I’ve been informed by a source close to the situation that Taylor Hall to the Colorado Avalanche on a short-term deal is being finalized. Will be announced in the coming days.

— Alex Moretto (@alexjmoretto) October 8, 2020

Just another rumor tossed out there by some random person in Twitter-land, I thought, and soon turned out the lights and went to bed.

But then I checked out his bio a bit closer, and he is a writer for a pretty well-respected sports site in Canada, The Score. This morning, I decided to do something I rarely do, which is reach out to another media person about a story they wrote and ask if, well, they still stand by it.

Mr. Moretto is, indeed, standing by it. He says he has a very good source on this, a source one might not suspect. I, of course, did not ask for the name of his source, as that would be very bad form – and it would be even worse form if Moretto actually told him/her to me.

So, here we are then. I guess we’ll see what happens with this. Hey, if Mr. Moretto is right, I’ll be the first to doff my hat to him. We have heard Joe Sakic say already that the Avs won’t be players on any wildly expensive players in free agency, which opens at 10 a.m. tomorrow.

But Moretto’s tweet says it would be a short-term deal. And, who knows, maybe Hall just wants to take a one-year deal at short money and try to win a Stanley Cup with the Avs, a la Paul Kariya/Teemu Selanne circa 2003-04? The current market for any kind of long-term, huge-money deal might be very bad for a guy like Hall. Maybe he wants to come to a team like the Avs, have a great season and then go back into the UFA market with a lot better leverage than a guy coming off a pretty mediocre season with New Jersey and Arizona?

TSN hockey insider Darren Dreger went on the radio apparently today and said his top-three potential destinations for Taylor Hall are Nashville, Columbus and Montreal. Nothing about the Avs.

Personally, I’ve gotten radio silence from the hockey sources I’ve asked about Hall. So, I want to make it clear: I’m not “endorsing” Mr. Moretto’s report. I just thought it makes for an interesting story in a way.

I know what it’s like to put my neck on the line with a “scoop” prediction like Mr. Moretto did. I’ll tell you one thing: it’s very stressful waiting to see whether it comes to fruition or not. I once had to sweat out a story I wrote saying an entire franchise would move to Denver, as a part-time writer for a big newspaper. You talk about a sleepless night of stress…

I suspect Mr. Moretto is feeling that stress right now as well, as he works for a credible outlet. He’s either going to be right or he’s going to be wrong.

Maybe we’ll find out tomorrow on that. Saddle up, folks.

The post The Taylor Hall-to-Avs rumors are baaaaaack appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.