Fall is right around the corner with summer winding down as the Colorado Avalanche are now counting down the days, being less than a month away from the start of training camp. It has been a bustling offseason for the Av’s while management has been struggling to scout talent to bring to Colorado. Last season Colorado did the most to transform their roster for a cup run that was cut short in Dallas in the first round. As expected, unloading the roster has been unpleasant with the amount of players that were released immediately after the season had ended that demands consequential change.
Released: Martin Necus, Miles Wood, Ryan Lindgren, Jimmy Vesey, Jonathan Druin, Oskar Olausson, Calle Rosen, and Charlie Coyle.
Added: Brent Burns, Gavin Brindley, Danil Gushchin, Alex Barre-Boulet.
The 2025 Norris Trophy winner Cale Makar is in his prime alongside Nathan “The Great” MacKinnon are a deadly combination of generational talent that need help on the depth chart to capitalize on winning a few more Stanley Cup championships while they are at the peak of their game. Joe Sakic and company have been on the hunt all summer long for more talent, and so far, they’ve only brought in a few noticeable names over the past few months including 40-year-old veteran Brent Burns on the active roster in hopes of bringing in some grit and veteran playoff experience. Locking in Brock Nelson, Josh Manson, and Joel Kirviranta for the upcoming season was imperative to keep familiarity and chemistry amongst some of the players, especially after having to part ways with eight former Avalanche players this offseason.
Additions & Extensions:
Brock Nelson (FW) – Three-year extension through 2025-28 season for $7.5 million.
Josh Manson (D) – Two-year contract through the 2027-28 season for $3.95 million per year.
Joel Kirviranta (FW) – One-year extension for the 2025-26 for a 3rd consecutive season.
Brent Burns (D) – One-year contract for the 2025-26 season for $1 million.
New Assistant Coach:
Dave Hakstol is stepping in to replace the former assistant coach, Ray Bennett. Hakstol’s coaching style should go hand in hand with head coach Jared Bednar, as Hakstol brings in a fast-paced puck possession stretch pass style offense with a plethora of knowledge coming in from Seattle. He spent time coaching the Philadelphia Flyers from 2015-2019. Shortly after his stint as a HC in Philly, Hakstol was assigned as the head coach at the helm of the Seattle Kraken during Seattle’s inaugural season in 2021 and has been in that position up until now. Hakstol finished in Seattle with a 107-112-27 record.
Improving the power play should be the main focus for both Jared Bednar and Dave Hakstol, as the Colorado Avalanche and Hakstol’s former team Seattle has faced quite the challenge to get off a decent shot to find the back of the net while on the power play. Both teams have had an extremely difficult time developing any kind of zone entry, or break out in the neutral zone, especially against Dallas during the first round of last year’s playoffs. Even having two ridiculously fast PP lines. In Seattle, Hakstol would often implement a low-high setup play similar to Jared Bednar, which generates a lot of shots from the point. So, let’s hope that Bednar and Hakstol will collaborate effectively to crack the code back into a deep playoff run.
Dante Robinson | Senior NHL Analyst for The NSR Network
