* puts vacation on pause to tell you that *

The #Canes have signed defenseman Oliver Kylington and forward Givani Smith to professional tryouts (PTOs).https://t.co/LNgaUddwsR

— Walt Ruff (@WaltRuff) August 27, 2025

Defenseman Oliver Kylington and forward Givani Smith signed professional tryouts with the Hurricanes on Wednesday, allowing them an opportunity to attend camp and fight for a contract and a spot in the lineup.

Kylington, 28, was an early August free agent signing for Colorado last season. He was one of those players coming off of a rough couple of years but was loaded with talent and potential. Things didn’t end up working out with him and the Avalanche.

He dressed in just 13 games for the Avs and six more after getting dealt. On the ice, Kylington struggled with consistency at both ends of the ice and off the ice, injuries kept him on the shelf for large parts of the season. He finished with a goal and two assists.

Read More: Avalanche Will Be Spotlighted on National Broadcasts 17 Times in 2025-26

Kylington was a contract throw-in by Colorado in the blockbuster deal that sent Calum Ritchie and a first-round pick to the New York Islanders for second-line center Brock Nelson. He was traded again the next day to the Anaheim Ducks for future considerations.

Smith, 27, was also traded twice in 2024-25. The Avs acquired him from San Jose in December in a massive deal that brought Mackenzie Blackwood to Colorado and sent Alexandar Georgiev and Nikolai Kovalenko the other way. Smith played seven games for the Avalanche and six for the Eagles in the AHL, and wasn’t a factor for either squad.

On deadline day, Smith was dealt to the Philadelphia Flyers in a one-for-one trade for Erik Johnson.

The post Carolina Hurricanes Sign Two Former Avs to PTOs appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

All that and more on this edition of Deen’s Daily — July 9.

Colorado Hockey Now

Things are pretty quiet right now on the Avs front. It’s been a week since Brent Burns signed a one-year deal, with only a new assistant coach hired by the organization since then.

Read More: Avalanche Hire Dave Hakstol as Assistant Coach

Does that mean the Avs are done for the summer? Unlikely. Chris MacFarland has more work to do and admitted as much six days ago when he chatted with media. This summer’s free agency market wasn’t up to par with past years, which means a lot of teams that haven’t yet finished building their teams will need to make trades instead.

Here’s one target I’ve got my eye on. He’s familiar around here and still at an age where bringing him back would make sense if the salary retention is right. Click below. Share your thoughts.

Read More: Should the Avalanche Consider Bringing Back J.T. Compher? 

Around The NHL

Oilers Land Howard: The Tampa Bay Lightning have been shopping their 2022 first-round draft pick Isaac Howard for weeks. Howard is NHL ready and alerted the Lightning that he didn’t want to sign there. Now, he’s on his way to Edmonton in a one-for-one deal for prospect Sam O’Reilly. The Oilers instantly signed Howard to a three-year entry level contract as the young forward eyes a spot on the two-time defending Western Conference champions roster.

Philly Hockey Now: What should the Flyers do with Porter Martone? Is he ready for NHL action?

New Jersey Hockey Now: What the Devils current depth chart looks like.

Detroit Hockey Now: The top two picks from the 2007 NHL Entry Draft are teaming up in Detroit this season.

Florida Hockey Now: Five thoughts on the Panthers’ offseason so far. (I’ll give you a hint. It’s gone really, really well).

The post Deen’s Daily: Oilers Land Howard; Avs 3C Hole; Florida’s Stellar Offseason appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

“I love coming to the rink every day and working. It really is the best. You’re around guys that they’re chasing one goal, there’s just something special about it — all the laughs and working hard together. It’s really special to try to build something together. And I just enjoy that process,” Burns told the media on Thursday via Zoom.

“There’s a lot of different reasons I love that and obviously the biggest one for me is there’s still something to chase. So I’m still super motivated for that. And, yeah, there’s one big goal still.”

Burns has relationships with a few players, which will make his integration into the team a bit easier. He most recently played with Martin Necas and Jack Drury in Carolina, but knows other new teammates.

READ MORE: Deen’s View: At 40, Burns Isn’t Done Yet — But Where Does He Fit on Colorado’s Blue Line? (+)

“Hockey is a pretty small world. I played with Mac (Nathan MacKinnon) before. I’ve come across Brock (Nelson) a little bit. We have some mutual friends in Minnesota. And obviously I know Nechi (Necas) and Jacko (Drury), and there’s a couple other relationships there,” Burns said.

The 6-foot-5 blueliner was drafted in the first round (20th overall) of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft by the Minnesota Wild. He spent seven seasons with the Wild before being traded to the San Jose Sharks on June 24, 2011. He won the James Norris Memorial Trophy in 2016-17 and was a finalist for the accolade in 2015-16 and 2018-19. After 11 seasons with the Sharks, Burns was traded to the Canes on July 13, 2022.

Playing both forward and defense in his career, Burns has proven a valuable two-way player. His style and experience will undoubtedly fit seamlessly into the Avs’ system and structure.

“Anytime you have a guy that has that kind of experience, to put in with Gabriel Landeskog and Nathan MacKinnon and the other guys that we have that are maybe not quite 40 years old, but they’ve got a lot of miles in this league and have been good players for a long time. So I think he’s going to fit right in with our group,” GM Chris MacFarland said.

READ MORE: Avs Still Have Work to Do After Coyle, Wood, and Brindley Trade

The Barrie, Ontario native had 29 points (6G/23A) and averaged 20:57 of time on ice per game last season. He played a perfect regular season and added five points in 15 Stanley Cup Playoff games. With 1,497 career regular-season games under his belt (eighth-most all-time by a defenseman) and 14 years the wiser than his fellow Norris Trophy-winning teammate, Burns is excited to learn new things from Cale Makar.

“I’ve heard a lot about how he approaches the game and how he is at the rink. I love that,” Burns said. “I’m 40 years old, but I can still learn a lot. And I don’t know if I’ll be able to do any of it, but I love that part. Trying to learn from people around you is such an important thing, and trying to adapt to it.”

Burns’ extensive resume with numerous awards and milestones is exceptional, but the most important of all trophies is missing — which he hopes to add with his new team.

The post ‘There’s One Big Goal Still’: Burns is Excited to Join Avs appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

“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.

The Norris is given “to the defense player who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-around ability in the position,” voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.

The young blueliner is the sixth player in NHL history to earn the accolade multiple times before his 27th birthday. He joins Bobby Orr (seven times), Denis Potvin (three times), Paul Coffey, Rod Langway and Erik Karlsson.

The Calgary, Alberta native was surprised with the trophy after a day of golfing, surrounded by family and friends.

Halfway to fore.

A golf outing with friends turned into a surprise party to celebrate Cale Makar's second James Norris Memorial Trophy!

Watch the 2025 #NHLAwards before Game 4 of the #StanleyCup Final on June 12 at 6p ET on @NHL_On_TNT and @Sportsnet! pic.twitter.com/UVKkLsLObQ

— NHL (@NHL) June 11, 2025

Devon Toews posted some congratulatory words on X, with a little poke at his D-partner: “Congrats to Cale on another well-deserved Norris Trophy! The best in the game, a great human, and an amazing friend. Extremely proud of you buddy….. although a real man would be walking not using a cart!”

The elite defenseman has been a top-three finalist for the award the last five seasons. Only Orr and Potvin achieved that feat and won multiple times.

Makar had a career-high 92 points in the 2024-25 season and only missed two games. He scored 30 goals, which was the first time a defenseman had done so in 16 years (Mike Green scored 31 in 2008-09 with the Washington Capitals). Only nine other blueliners surpassed the 30-goal mark in NHL history — Orr (five times), Coffey (four times), Potvin (three times), Ray Bourque, Kevin Hatcher, Phil Housley, Doug Wilson and Green.

It is his second consecutive season to post 90-plus points, the fifth defenseman in NHL history to do so. It’s the first time since Coffey and Al McInnis did it in the late 80s/early 90s.

Makar finished the season with the most power-play goals (12), power-play points (35), shorthanded goals (2), and points per game (1.15) among blueliners. He was in the top 10 for points and assists among all skaters.

His first six-point game was on March 6 (2G, 4A) in a 7-3 victory over the San Jose Sharks. He is the first defenseman in franchise history to earn that multi-point game, and only the second in the League in the last 20 years.

Makar’s second Norris win is added to his Calder Trophy (2019-20) and Conn Smythe Award (2021-22) in his young career.

The post Cale Makar Wins 2nd Norris Trophy appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

The 33-year-old forward joined the Avalanche via a trade on March 6, sending forward Calum Ritchie, a first-round selection in the 2026 or 2027 NHL Draft, a conditional third-round pick in the 2028 NHL Draft, and defenseman Oliver Kylington to the New York Islanders.

The second-line center scored 13 points in 19 regular-season games playing with several different linemates. But his impact was most significantly seen when Gabriel Landeskog returned in the postseason, after missing the last three regular seasons.

Nelson earned four assists in the seven-game first-round series loss to the Dallas Stars. One was on the captain’s goal in Game 4, and the other three were in combination with Landeskog. The two found chemistry quickly in the tight playoff circumstances.

“I’ve been playing with Val (Nichushkin) for a bit now, and obviously strong game to him — two-way, makes a lot of plays, good skater … and then Gabe, kind of the same thing. Just a simple guy to read off of, great communicator as well,” Nelson said after Game 4. “Last night he was awesome at communicating different plays on the bench, talking about different things even before the game getting ready and wanting to be a difference. All of that makes it, as a player, to read off him pretty easy, and go out there and just play and allow instincts and everything take over. And he made a lot of great plays out there as well.”

It usually takes a game or more for a player to adjust coming back from injury, so it was unknown how long it would take Landeskog after missing three seasons. The transition was fairly quick with skilled, veteran linemates like Nelson. And Avs management did not miss that.

“We’re thrilled to have reached an agreement with Brock to keep him in Colorado for the next three seasons,” GM Chris MacFarland said. “He’s been a great center in this league for a long time, and he brings professionalism and a dedicated work ethic on and off the ice. We think he’s a great fit and is a stabilizing presence to our second-line center role with his size and ability to touch all areas of the ice. We’re excited to see what his contributions will be over a larger sample size with the Avalanche.”

Since winning the Stanley Cup in 2022 and Nazem Kadri’s departure, the Avs have struggled at the 2C position. Evan Rodrigues was a solid fit but only stuck around for a season before signing with the Florida Panthers as a free agent. Ryan Johansen and Casey Mittelstadt were expected to fill the void, respectively, but did not fit the bill. Now the team has found its match.

“Having spent my entire career with one organization, we weren’t totally sure what to expect when we arrived in Denver. But getting the opportunity to play for the Avalanche, to compete with a great group of teammates in that locker room, and in front of the tremendous fans at Ball Arena, we knew this was where we wanted to stay,” Nelson said.

“Obviously the way the season ended last year was disappointing, but I can’t wait to get back on the ice soon and continue to push for our goal of winning the Stanley Cup.”

Nelson had insight from defenseman Devon Toews and former Avs forward Zach Parise on coming to the team.

It seems it was a plan in progress, and it paid off for the Warroad, Minnesota native. He and his family can settle in for the long haul with an extended deal. “My family and I are excited to be staying in Colorado,” he said.

The post Why Keeping Brock Nelson is Important for Avs appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

But on Monday, the Canadians lost their first game of the tournament against Finland, falling 2-1 in the shootout. And it was largely because of a strong performance from Juuse Saros in goal. Saros made 37 saves.

MacKinnon was interviewed after the game and grew frustrated with the line of questioning from a reporter. I can’t find the Finnish reporter’s name, who got MacKinnon 1-on-1 after Canada’s loss, but I do know that he probably has never done this before.

Not the job itself. But, specifically, talked to MacKinnon after a loss. Especially in a 1-on-1 setting.

According to this Finnish article, MacKinnon stormed out of the room at the end of the interview. The last question he was asked was a follow-up about the poor officiating.

“Horrible whistles. Both ways. We had the puck the whole game, but we only got one power play. So I don’t understand,” MacKinnon said.

“You must be from Finland or something.”

Here is the full transcript, per Google’s translation of the article linked above.

What do you think about the game?

MacKinnon: Their goalkeeper ( Juuse Saros ) played brilliantly.

Were you surprised by how good Finland ended up being?

MacKinnon: Their goalkeeper was good, yeah.

Do you think you were the better team?

MacKinnon: Yes.

So, do you think the goalkeeper was the only reason why Finland won?

MacKinnon: Yes. I agree.

What did you think of the officiating?

MacKinnon: Terrible.

Why?

MacKinnon: How could they have been good? What do you think?

I asked you that.

MacKinnon: Horrible whistles. Both ways. We had the puck the whole game, but we only got one power play. So I don’t understand. You must be from Finland or something.

The post Nathan MacKinnon Loses it at Finnish Reporter at IIHF World Championships appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

All that and more on this edition of Deen’s Daily — May 17.

Colorado Hockey Now

When Artturi Lehkonen made his season debut in November, the Avs were so desperately starved for depth scoring that he was playing 23-25 minutes seemingly every night. And for good reason — he was delivering. He picked right up where he left off in last year’s postseason and looked like he didn’t skip a beat. Not bad for a player that missed all of training camp and the preseason.

He was on track for a whopper of a career year, at least in the goals department. But then the trade deadline happened and the well dried up. I broke down Lehkonen’s season in the article below. Give it a read if you haven’t already.

Read More: What To Make of Artturi Lehkonen’s 2024-25 Season

Stanley Cup Playoff Recap

Game 6 — Toronto Maple Leafs at Florida Panthers: The Toronto Maple Leafs actually did it. After getting booed out of their building in an embarrassing 6-1 loss in Game 5, the Leafs clamped down defensively and shut out the Panthers 2-0 to force Game 7. They got in front of pucks, laid off some massive clean hits, and made Joseph Woll’s night as easy as humanly possible. Also, Auston Matthews stepped up with a big goal. That series finale on Sunday is going to be must-watch.

Tonight’s Schedule

• Game 6: Winnipeg Jets at Dallas Stars (6 pm MT on ABC & ESPN+)

Around The NHL

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: The Pens’ coaching search continues. Two more candidates were interviewed as Kyle Dubas starts to narrow down his long list of candidates.

Montreal Hockey Now: What the Habs need this offseason as we get closer to the draft and free agency.

Philly Hockey Now: Rick Tocchet was introduced as the 25th coach in franchise history on Friday. And he’s well aware of the difficult job at hand.

New Jersey Hockey Now: Hopefully, it’s not anything severe, but the Devils captain suffered an injury at the World Championships. You know… the tournament that Nathan MacKinnon and Martin Necas are participating in.

NYI Hockey Now: Could you imagine this scenario: The Leafs lost, and Brendan Shanahan takes a job with the Isles. Why it would be a good fit.

Detroit Hockey Now: Ken Holland was introduced as L.A. Kings general manager, sitting side-by-side with a legend he brought to the Red Wings more than 25 years ago. Time is seriously just a big giant circle.

Vegas Hockey Now: Jack Eichel was stunned by the loss to Edmonton and expressed his feelings during Vegas’ exit interviews.

Speaking of which, I really wish the Avs did exit interviews. We’ve asked for them for years, but the organization has never been interested in it for some reason. I remember when the Seattle Kraken beat the Avs in Game 7. The media went into the dressing room knowing this was the only chance we had to speak to players, especially those on expiring deals, before July 1.

I chatted with J.T. Compher 1-on-1 about the loss and the series as a whole. And then I asked him about his contract status and if he had given any thought to the idea that this could be his last game with the Avs. He didn’t like the question, he didn’t answer it, and he walked off. I honestly don’t blame him. I shouldn’t have to ask him that five minutes after losing a Game 7. That would’ve been better for exit interviews after the sting of the loss wears off.

Chicago Hockey Now: The Blackhawks interviewed Jeff Blashill during their coaching search. What do they see in him?

The post Deen’s Daily: Assessing Lehkonen’s Season; Leafs Force Game 7 — Can Winnipeg Do The Same? appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

After the Avalanche’s Game 5 loss at American Airlines Center, head coach Jared Bednar said now is not the time for players to have off nights. Nichushkin had one that night and took his frustration out on a stick during the game.

10 Observations: The Time Is Now for the Avalanche to Shift the Game 7 Narrative (+)

That frustration carried over to Thursday morning’s skate, with another demolished piece of lumber from the Russian forward. Bednar was not thrilled with this behavior because “it means that he’s not happy with the way he’s playing.”

Through five games, Nichushkin had only one point, so he had reason to be upset. He had seven points in five games against the Winnipeg Jets in last year’s first-round Stanley Cup Playoff series.

“When you’re playing real well, you’re not breaking sticks and stuff. I do know that he holds himself to a very high standard of play …,” Bednar said. “He expects to do well, works extremely hard to do well. And he’s had a couple games in this series that haven’t been great. I just go back to Game 4, he was one of the best players on the ice and I know that he can repeat that, so I relay that to him. It’s just put the work first and the rest of your game will follow.”

Bednar’s pep talk must have motivated Nichushkin, and the hockey gods answered his plea six and a half minutes into Game 6.

The play started with Devon Toews clearing the puck from the defensive zone to Gabriel Landeskog. The captain then shoveled it to Brock Nelson on the rush into the offensive zone. Nelson slid it across to Nichushkin, who ripped it past Jake Oettinger from just inside the right circle.

“He’s a fiery guy. He’s one of the hardest-working guys I’ve ever seen. So we knew he’d be ready,” Nathan MacKinnon said after the 7-4 win.

His second goal was six minutes into the third period off a rebound from Landeskog’s shot. Nelson earned the secondary assist.

Have the Avs Found the Blueprint to Beat the Stars?

Nichushkin flipped a switch that turned his frustration into determination. And that is a dangerous shift for the Stars. Bednar wants him to channel that to bring to Game 7 in Dallas.

“He did the same thing in Game 4 as well. So I’ll have a conversation with him tomorrow and figure out how we get him to do that again in Dallas,” Bednar said laughing. “He’s been exceptional in the home games and frustrated in the road games. Our whole team has to think about what’s made them successful here, especially in the last couple games, and how do we carry that over to the road?”

Martin Necas, who was held scoreless in the first three games, came alive in the Game 5 loss with two points and another two in the Game 6 do-or-die win. The Czech forward could relate to his teammate’s frustration, although he didn’t break any sticks to show it.

“That’s just the way he is. He always plays his best. And sometimes you have games that you feel your best and puck is bouncing and nothing’s really going your way,” Necas said about Niuchushkin. “He showed up big time today, and it was huge. He got the huge goal in the third and the first, he got us going. I think we’ll see more in Game 7.”

I have tried to talk to Nichushkin several times, only to be turned down every time. While the media swarmed around the captain after the game, I hung out by Nichushkin while he did his ritual at his stall. He evaded me and shook both his goaltenders’ hands on his way out of the locker room. Maybe he’ll be ready to chat in Round 2 … to be determined.

The post Nichushkin’s Breakthrough was Just What the Avs Needed appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.

All that and more on this edition of Deen’s Daily — May 1.

Colorado Hockey Now

The Avalanche are on the brink of elimination heading into Game 6 at Ball Arena for the second consecutive year. They’ll need to right several wrongs that ailed them in Game 5 in Dallas. And more importantly, they’ll need more production from some of the guys at the top of the lineup.

Read More: 10 Observations: No Excuses For Avs Game 5 Loss

Stanley Cup Playoffs Recap

Washington Capitals vs Montreal Canadiens: The Habs fought valiantly until the end, but their season is over. The Capitals are advancing past the first round for the first time since they won the Stanley Cup in 2018. That surprises me.

Tampa Bay Lightning vs Florida Panthers: The Lightning have also been eliminated. After blowing an opportunity to tie the series at 2-2 in Game 4, they lost 6-3 to the Panthers in Game 5 to bow out in the first round for the third straight year.

Winnipeg Jets vs St. Louis Blues: The Jets are back on top, winning again at home to take a 3-2 lead as the series shifts to St. Louis.

Tonight’s Schedule

• Game 6: Toronto Maple Leafs at Ottawa Senators (5 pm MT on TBS)
• Game 6: Vegas Golden Knights at Minnesota Wild (5:30 pm MT on ESPN)
• Game 6: Dallas Stars at Colorado Avalanche (7:30 pm MT on TBS)
• Game 6: Los Angeles Kings at Edmonton Oilers (8 pm MT on ESPN)

Around The NHL

Pittsburgh Hockey Now: Five names to watch for the Pens’ next head coach. Also, who could be a sneaky good pickup for the job?

Philadelphia Hockey Now: The latest Flyers mailbag.

Vegas Hockey Now: What the Knights need to close out their series tonight against Minnesota on the road.

San Jose Hockey Now: The Sharks are hoping for luck at the draft lottery, which will take place on May 5.

Boston Hockey Now: Remember Will Zellers? The prospect attached to Casey Mittelstadt and a second-round pick for the Avs to get Charlie Coyle? He was named the player of the year in the USHL.

The post Deen’s Daily: Do or Die For Avalanche; Capitals, Panthers Advance — Habs, Lightning Eliminated appeared first on Colorado Hockey Now.