It’s that time of year to fantasize about all the veteran depth players who might be wearing burgundy and blue within a month’s time. Once the Olympic roster freeze lifts after February 22nd there could be a sudden flurry of activity. The Colorado Avalanche like to do their NHL trade deadline shopping early and certainly have a wish list, are any of the following players on their radar?
Forwards
Jonathan Toews
After numerous reports that the Avalanche were finalists for his services over the summer, it’s curious why there hasn’t been much talk about acquiring veteran forward Jonathan Toews from the Winnipeg Jets, who are clearly in a selling position sitting at over ten point out of a playoff spot currently. He’s enjoyed a decent season with 19 points in 56 games in his comeback after sitting out two seasons.
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The 37-year-old center has a very affordable contract of just $2 million for this season but he can earn up to $5 million more in performance bonuses. Most are for games played, which he’s already earned but there’s additional money for playoff performance including an extra $1 million for a Stanley Cup win. Colorado would have to sort out the financials and it’s unclear if Winnipeg would be on the hook for bonuses earned while he was a Jet if he gets traded. If not, at least any bonuses earned over the salary cap can be deferred until next year. But Toews is an intriguing option for veteran center depth which shouldn’t cost a lot to acquire with confirmed interest from the Avalanche in the past.
Boone Jenner
Word on the street is that Colorado has been keeping a close eye on the Columbus Blue Jackets lately. The Ohio team is still undecided about selling but currently sitting four points out of a playoff spot must mean they are considering it. No doubt GM Chris MacFarland would love to get his hands on Blue Jackets captain Boone Jenner making an affordable $3.75M in the last year of his contract to fortify center depth. As a rental Jenner could even go back to Columbus in the offseason making a quick reunion with MacFarland even more appealing. Jenner has had a productive and healthy-ish season with 27 points in 42 games.
Bobby McMann
There probably is a long line of suitors for a hard-nosed player who is on pace for his second consecutive 20 goal season, who skates well with size at 6-foot-2 and has a very affordable $1.35M cap hit on an expiring contract. Therefore, it might cost a premium asset or two to nab the 29-year-old McMann, currently rumored to be two second round picks, but if the Avalanche expect to extend him it could be worth it. There’s also the fact of a big goal he scored in Toronto’s overtime win over Colorado just several weeks ago, which surely Chris MacFarland made a mental note of.
Defense
Luke Schenn
Another potential trade target from the Winnipeg Jets is defenseman Luke Schenn. He is on an expiring contract with a $2.75M cap hit. At 36-years-old he is just the veteran defensive depth a contender is looking for, though he is a right shot which Colorado already has a surplus of. There’s a rumor that Luke would ideally like to get moved to the same destination as his brother forward Brayden Schenn, who happens to be a good friend of Nathan MacKinnon. On a contract with more years of $6.50M, a move for Brayden from St. Louis Blues would need a lot more help to make this deal happen but Luke could be the much more affordable addition on his own.
Brett Kulak
The Pittsburgh to Colorado pipeline, and vice versa, has been strong over the past few years and the Ilya Solovyov move earlier in the year only greased the wheels on potential future deals. Defenseman Brett Kulak would give the Avalanche a depth left shot option on the back end at a reasonable $2.75M price tag for the rest of the season. His experience going to the Stanley Cup finals with the Edmonton Oilers multiple years only enhances his resume. The 32-year-old has already been moved once this year from the aforementioned Oilers, which could mean the Penguins wouldn’t mind flipping him despite currently still holding on to a playoff spot in the Metropolitan Division. Fun fact, Kulak also spent half a season with the ECHL Colorado Eagles in 2014-15 as a member of the Calgary Flames organization.
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Old Friends
We can never discount familiar faces heading back to the Avalanche, especially those who would seamlessly fit back into the dressing room. There’s been continual speculation about a reunion with several former centers, who would all be a good fit and give the Avalanche needed depth down the middle. Former centers Nashville’s Ryan O’Reilly ($4.5M for one more year) and Calgary’s Nazem Kadri ($7M for two more years) have term on their deals and wouldn’t be easy to acquire or afford but if the Avalanche are truly looking to make a splash at the trade deadline they could be options. There’s also the irony that if Columbus’ Charlie Coyle hadn’t been last year’s Avalanche center trade deadline acquisition he’d be the perfect fit on an expiring $5.25M contract enjoying a very productive season of 42 points in 56 games thus far.
Who would you like to see Colorado acquire? Let us know in the comments!
