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PostPosted: Tue Jun 25, 2019 12:05 am 
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Friedman says Avs are the faves for Zuccarello and in on Panarin.

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PostPosted: Tue Jun 25, 2019 12:51 am 
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I'd love to see Zucc in an Avs uniform!

I feel like Joe Pavs would be a great fit as well, but I just don't know how much term he wants or will get. But if there was anyone who checks virtually all the boxes for the team, it's him.

I am glad they ultimately passed on Hayes. Way, way too much money and term for a middle-tier guy.


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PostPosted: Tue Jun 25, 2019 12:53 pm 
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Carl Soderberg heads to Arizona for defenseman Kevin Connauton and a 3rd rounder.

https://www.tsn.ca/colorado-avalanche-t ... -1.1328302

Avs clear up cap space by trading away their 2nd-best center, and get some more defensive depth in return.

What's that you say? The Avs have tons of defensive depth? Not so fast...both Erik Johnson and Ian Cole will not be ready to start the season. EJ had shoulder surgery and Cole had double hip surgery. So even though the Avs have Mark Alt, Mark Barberio, and Ryan Graves filling out 6/7/8 spots, it appears the Avs just wanted a little more insurance there. Which is fine.

BUT...I'm guessing the Avs are clearing cap room because they intend to either swing a trade to address their severe lack of forward scoring depth, or they're going big in free agency. Either way, Soda was an interim measure who did better last season than the team had any right to hope for, putting up career numbers. Unfortunately a cheap shot from Jack Eichel late in the season kinda derailed his run, and he never quite got back on track. He's a good 3rd/4th line pivot who has a nice shot, plays a tough game, and is adequate defensively. Not nearly as good at faceoffs as you'd think a big, burly, two-way center like that would be and his skating leaves a bit to be desired. Seeing him moved on before his current deal expired is something pretty much all Avs fans saw coming. The Avs used him precisely the way you should use him--as a quasi-2nd line center with some speedy guys who can get him the puck, which allows him the chance to put up points while not giving him too much of a defensive burden. He's not quite good enough to be a scoring line center, but not quite two-way enough to be a checking line guy.

Gotta be honest...I'm not sure why Arizona made this move. They took on a bigger salary and also gave up more assets in this deal and I don't quite see how Soda fits with them. But then again, this is more credence to the notion that Ian put out there years ago that eventually, every single player in the NHL ends up in Arizona at some point in their careers. And I've long since given up trying to figure out what John Chayka's vision is.


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PostPosted: Tue Jun 25, 2019 1:18 pm 
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Pokecheque wrote:
Gotta be honest...I'm not sure why Arizona made this move. They took on a bigger salary and also gave up more assets in this deal and I don't quite see how Soda fits with them. But then again, this is more credence to the notion that Ian put out there years ago that eventually, every single player in the NHL ends up in Arizona at some point in their careers. And I've long since given up trying to figure out what John Chayka's vision is.


Salary < Cap hit.

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PostPosted: Tue Jun 25, 2019 1:34 pm 
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Bosc wrote:
Pokecheque wrote:
Gotta be honest...I'm not sure why Arizona made this move. They took on a bigger salary and also gave up more assets in this deal and I don't quite see how Soda fits with them. But then again, this is more credence to the notion that Ian put out there years ago that eventually, every single player in the NHL ends up in Arizona at some point in their careers. And I've long since given up trying to figure out what John Chayka's vision is.


Salary < Cap hit.


They still took on a contract that's well over twice the one they dealt away, and Chayka's not exactly swimming in cap space.

Now, they did get the better player who also happens to be coming off a career year, but he's also 33, I doubt he'll hit those milestones again.

I mean, they have, like 20 players who can line up at center...they needed another one...? :lol:


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PostPosted: Tue Jun 25, 2019 1:50 pm 
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I think Zona wanted some easy/cheap offence. They really stunk at scoring last season.

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PostPosted: Tue Jun 25, 2019 3:11 pm 
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E.L. wrote:
I think Zona wanted some easy/cheap offence. They really stunk at scoring last season.


Geez...not sure Soda really moves that needle much on his own. He played behind the Best Line in Hockey the last two years. :laugh:


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PostPosted: Tue Jun 25, 2019 6:14 pm 
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Avs get through their QO phase, only really notable name among the non-quals is Sven Andrighetto. Rumor had it during the playoffs that he had a deal in the KHL lined up because he knew what was coming. His agent denied it, but I wouldn't be surprised if that ended up being the case.

A very unique player that the Avs got in a steal of a deal for career fringer (and only Norwegian in the NHL not named "Mats") Andreas Martinsen during the Season Of Doom, Sven-10 has great speed, plenty of pugnacity and truculence, and has impressive play-driving skills. The downsides: Not a big guy and not terribly durable, and didn't have a ton of finish around the net. He's not really consistent enough to be a scoring line guy, not really good enough defensively to fill out a bottom-six role. And then there are the injuries, which were ultimately the deciding factor.

Regardless, he was a fun player to watch. This right here, for the tail end of the 2017-18 season, is my favorite Sven Andrighetto moment.



The best part is when the Pepsi Center crew keeps putting him on the jumbotron and the crowd erupts, he smiles and acknowledges them every time. :lol:


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PostPosted: Wed Jun 26, 2019 1:24 pm 
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Yikes. According to Ryan Clark of The Athletic, Ian Cole won't be ready to go until December, and Erik Johnson maybe a bit sooner, but not by much.

If ever there was a time for young Nicolas Meloche to make the team, this would be it. He's still got some depth guys to pass up, but he will at the very least have a fairly prominent role to play for the Colorado Eagles since they said goodbye to AHL veteran (and finely coiffed gent) Mason Geertsen.

It helps they went and got Kevin Connauton, he'll definitely see some time, and Ryan Graves proved that he's a capable third pairing guy. No idea what they end up doing with Marks Alt and Barberio, I'm guessing since Alt was the Eagles' captain last season they'll try and sneak him through waivers again. Barbs is in the final year of his current deal, so he'll probably see some time.

This is, at the very least, a chance to see what a defensive corps of Girard, Makar, Barrie, and Byram leading the way will look like. I don't expect Byram to actually make the team but he'll at the very least get his 9 games. At some point I imagine there'll be a cut-bait time for EJ. No way do they enter the expansion draft without either buying him out or having him waive his NTC (and they might buy him out anyway if he doesn't get claimed). Either way he's not finishing his career in Colorado.

Aaaaaaaaaand there's still a ton of uncertainty surrounding Nikita Zadorov. Negotiations were pretty rough the last time, the Avs held firm and Z's camp blinked first. This time around, if their numbers are too steep for the Avs, this ends in a trade. But they need a guy like Zads very badly, I'd hate to see it end that way.

Everyone's got their eye on the Avs right now since they currently have the most cap space of any team. But I'm not necessarily expecting them to go balls-out in the free agent market. Friedman has already indicated that despite their best efforts, they're not a preferred destination for Artemi Panarin. And it sounds like a lot of the other top guys are asking for too much term.


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PostPosted: Wed Jun 26, 2019 1:41 pm 
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Pokecheque wrote:
E.L. wrote:
I think Zona wanted some easy/cheap offence. They really stunk at scoring last season.


Geez...not sure Soda really moves that needle much on his own. He played behind the Best Line in Hockey the last two years. :laugh:


That's a 4.75 Million win for the Avs!
:siren:

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PostPosted: Wed Jun 26, 2019 2:30 pm 
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harmfuljays wrote:
That's a 4.75 Million win for the Avs!
:siren:


Well...it will be IF they find actual scoring depth up front this offseason. If they don't and try another line of Kerfoot-Jost-Compher or some combination thereof, that won't sit well with the fans.


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PostPosted: Wed Jun 26, 2019 2:44 pm 
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They have a lot of room to work with so sitting pat with one scoring line is completely unacceptable. A Marner offer sheet would help!

I wouldn't be too surprised to see Byram make it out of camp with those injuries.

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PostPosted: Wed Jun 26, 2019 7:01 pm 
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Development camp underway...and CONOR TIMMINS is wearing a normal jersey!!!

:rock: :Butch: :kraken: :viking: :wookie: :awesomecylon:


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PostPosted: Thu Jun 27, 2019 6:40 pm 
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Just saw a quick interview with Byram at Avs development camp. He's from Cranbrook, so naturally he grew up a Canucks fan. He didn't name specifically who his favorite players were growing up though.

I wouldn't rule out the possibility of him making the team out of camp but I'm guessing he gets 9 games and gets sent down. Another possibility has them burning the first year of the ELC but still sending him down before he hits 40 games. Has something to do with arbitration rights...I think. Despite the fact that he's a pretty big kid, he still looks like he's about 12 years old to me.


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PostPosted: Sat Jun 29, 2019 7:44 pm 
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Avs make one fairly major move and one fairly minor one.

Yesterday, they dealt their own 2nd rounder and the 3rd rounder (both in next year's draft) alone with minor league forward Scott Kosmachuk for Andre Burakovsky from the Capitals. Avs are obviously hoping with a larger role and a change of scenery, his development won't continue to stall. Personally I don't love this deal at all, but it's clear the free agent market is being driving to ridiculous, lockout-causing extremes once again, so this was a relatively cheap way to get some scoring depth...but of course this is a guy who, despite size and talent to spare topped out at 12 goals the last three seasons. I'll be happy when/if the Avs are finally past the "reclamation project" phase.

Today Joe dealt NCAA free agent signing (former Leafs draft pick) Dominic Toninato to Florida in exchange for minor-league defenseman Jacob McDonald. Pretty clear that's a move to try and get some real offensive punch for the Eagles, who struggled mightily to score. I'm a little irritated Toninato was moved along before actually getting a legit shot at the NHL, as he's looked quite good in the big leagues. Avs have done a very lousy job developing defensive forwards (along with, y'know, players in general) so seeing him make it to the NHL would've been a huge win for them. Oh well...


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PostPosted: Mon Jul 01, 2019 12:28 pm 
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The man who ended Colorado's postseason run, Joonas Donskoi, is set to join the team for a reported 3 years, $3.5 million AAV. I like that deal.

According to more than one source, the Avs did just about everything they could to try and snag Artemi Panarin. Alas...if the guy wants to play on the coast, that's one thing the city of Denver cannot offer him.

Reportedly the Avs are not done yet, but I'm not sure where they go from here since most of the big names are spoken for. Reports have them looking at Simmonds and Ferland. I've also read they're interested in Ryan Carpenter to be their 4th line center.

It appears the idea since learning they weren't getting Jack Hughes and later, Kevin Hayes, is to try and bolster the depth as much as possible, increase the team's defensive acumen up front, get bigger and tougher while also getting faster and younger. There's still a very obvious 2nd-line-center problem, but I figured this wasn't getting solved overnight. At least now the "Roommates" have some bigger guys to help create space and some scoring chances for them, and there's still the possibility the Avs swing a trade involving Tyson Barrie.

Of course, as of right now...Mikko Rantanen still isn't signed, so...


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PostPosted: Mon Jul 01, 2019 1:18 pm 
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Well HERE'S a pleasant surprise, Colin Wilson opts to come back on a one-year deal. That's awesome news.


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PostPosted: Mon Jul 01, 2019 1:50 pm 
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Barring any M. Night Shyamalan twists, the Avs are gonna keep pretty quiet today, despite having the most cap space of any team going into July 1st.

Joonas Donskoi, 4 years, $3.9 million AAV
Colin Wilson, 1 year, $2.6 million
Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, 2 years, $1.8 million AAV

Opening night lineup if no other moves are made and RFAs are signed...

Gabriel Landeskog - Nathan MacKinnon - Mikko Rantanen
Andre Burakovsky - Tyson Jost - Joonas Donskoi
Colin Wilson - J.T. Compher - Alexander Kerfoot
Pierre-Edouard Bellemare - Vladislav Kamenev - Matt Calvert
Matt Nieto

Samuel Girard - Cale Makar
Nikita Zadorov - Tyson Barrie
Kevin Connauton - Bowen Byram
Mark Barberio
Ryan Graves

Philipp Grubauer
Pavel Francouz

IR: Erik Johnson, Ian Cole

Looks like it's gonna be the top line and three "grind lines" more or less, which is far from ideal but hey, it worked amazingly well the last two seasons. And now there's a much more mobile and offensively adept blueline to deal with as well. A lot of these two-way forwards will be covering for a defense that likes to jump into the play.

And the thing I like most about the PEB signing is that the guy can WIN FACEOFFS!!!!!


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PostPosted: Mon Jul 01, 2019 4:03 pm 
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Following the Colorado Rockies model of just good enough. If I was a fan this would not be acceptable. Wonder how much of this MacKinnon is going to put up with. It doesn't matter how much you get paid when the ownership is only lukewarm about winning.

Donskoi has sweet moves but they need more. Dzingel and Ferland are still out there!

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PostPosted: Mon Jul 01, 2019 5:13 pm 
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harmfuljays wrote:
Following the Colorado Rockies model of just good enough. If I was a fan this would not be acceptable. Wonder how much of this MacKinnon is going to put up with. It doesn't matter how much you get paid when the ownership is only lukewarm about winning.


I dunno, I would hope he understands they made as big a run on the biggest name out there as they possibly could. They didn't throw absolutely stupid money (and trade for!!!) a mediocre 2C in Kevin Hayes. The market was just whacked-out, so I don't necessarily blame them for keeping relatively quiet. I'm sure their grand hope was to win the lottery and pick Hughes, but that's not what happened.

Maybe they make a trade during the season, but the market just isn't there right now.


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