Avs Re-Tool Roster Ahead of Deadline

The Colorado Avalanche made a big splash in the week leading up to the EHE deadline trading stalwart d man Brent Burns, high flying forward Jonathan Marchessault and shut down d man Brayden Mcnabb to the Dallas Stars for Corey Perry, Jake Muzzin, Jeff Petry and what GM Kirklan Lycar has referred to as his prize possession, international super star Nikita Gusev. “It was no secret we weren’t overly pleased with how this season has played out to this point.” Spoke Lycar. Brent Burns was a humongous part of the Avs cup championship team and fans will surely miss the offensive rear guard. “Utmost respect for Burnsy, the ultimate pro. This was a hockey decision and nothing else.” Lycar would also go onto say “these things are never easy, Brent was a guy that I developed a relationship with but we needed a shake up.” 

Enter the Nikita Gusev era in Colorado. “From a subjective point of view we really like the package coming back to Denver, and when Nikita comes over from Russia we will certainly reap the fruits of moving Burnsy.” Avalanche fans seemed to have a lukewarm reaction in light of the trade news, while some where over the top ecstatic in the acquisition of Gusev, others are reserving their judgment for when he comes over and how he performs. It is certainly a wild card, an absolute wildcard. But if the often referenced “best player in the world not playing in the EHE” has the impact that many scouts think he will have, this is sure to be a homerun deal for the Avs. “While I’m the one pulling the trigger I’ve always deferred to those putting in the leg work and grinding hours upon hours on the road scouting. I’ve always had a ton of faith in my scouting department and this deal is no different.” Remarked the back-to-back GM of the year. Not to be overlooked the Avalanche also bring in veteran forward Corey Perry, along with d men Jake Muzzin and Jeff Petry. “All three should help solidify our roster and bring in some veteran experience.” 

While the Colorado Avalanche have enjoyed a run of unparalleled success since the hiring of Kirklan Lycar. A presidents trophy and trip to the cup finals in year one, the Stanley Cup n year two. Enter season three and the Avs find themselves in a heated battle for the final Gretzky conference wildcard position with the Winnipeg Jets. Colorado and Winnipeg have been linked all season, due in large part to the trade the two organizations pulled off, sending Blake Wheeler to the Avs and a plethora of high-end prospects to the Jets. ‘When we made the deal we really didn’t expect to see Winnipeg have the season that they’re having but give him (Joe Tremblay) credit he’s done a hell of a job this year.” Spoke Kirklan Lycar during his deadline day press conference. Blake Wheeler has certainly come as advertised, driving the Colorado offense by currently leading the team in points and also riding an 18 game point streak. 

The Avs made a couple of other “smaller” moves to round out the roster ahead of the deadline acquiring both Paul Byron and Kevan Miller in separate deals with the always active New York Rangers. “Both UFA’s heading into the offseason, we were looking to make a couple of calculated low risk moves and feel as though we accomplished just that.” Explained Lycar. We like the speed that Paul (Byron) brings to our lineup, as for Kevan Miller; Lycar alluded to his physical presence and the veteran experience that he will add. “We have targeted Miller for months now but to no avail, we were happy to see him move out of Anaheim.”

As for the where the Avalanche stand today, it has been quite the up and down season but Lycar is optimistic that they’ve found the right formula going forward “Our goal is still the same as day 1, anything less than the Cup is unacceptable.” 

Coach Jared Bednar didn’t reveal much about his lines for tonight’s tilt against Arizona, other than stating Mike Smith will be starting in net, but with pivot Mark Scheifele out week-to-week it is rumoured that the Avs will be dressing 11 forwards and 7 d. Take this with a grain of salt, but this is how they looked in morning skate: 

Nugent Hopkins – Tavares – Wheeler

Byron – Eller – Perry

Maroon – Nash – Wilson

Pouliot – Tavares – Tanev

Muzzin – Petry 

Dumoulin – Miller 

Phaneuf – Engelland 

Mcquaid