2016 Top 25 Avalanche under 25: #8 Mikhail Grigorenko

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Today’s Top 25 Avalanche Under 25 looks at a breakout star of sorts from last season and our eighth-ranked player, Mikhail Grigorenko. The BSN Avalanche staff nearly reached a consensus on Grigorenko like they did yesterday with J.T. Compher. Of the seven ballots entered, Grigorenko was ranked eighth on five ballots and seventh on 2 ballots, giving him an average of 7.7.

Who is Mikhail Grigorenko?

The plight of Mikhail Grigorenko is well-known by now so I’ll spare the gory details of his glory days with the Quebec Remparts giving way to his disastrous tenure with the Buffalo Sabres and then potentially career-saving inclusion in the Ryan O’Reilly trade.

Grigorenko’s first season in Colorado started slowly with him being a healthy scratch early on and then playing fourth-line minutes to get his feet wet. As Grigorenko’s play improved, he consistently found himself being given more ice time and playing in more advantageous situations.

Avalanche fans really got a glimpse of what could be with Grigorenko when he was put on a line with Matt Duchene and Nathan MacKinnon against the Montreal Canadiens and he put up a three-point (1 g, 2 a) night  in the 6-1 blowout of the Habs. That game sparked fans clamoring for more Grigorenko all the time and while he would take baby steps backwards, they wouldn’t last long.

He would see his ice time drop to the single-digits in late January but picked it back up and began performing much better. By the end of the season, he was receiving regular power play minutes and playing over 15 minutes a night. His chemistry with Matt Duchene, especially, stood out late in the season and provided many reasons for optimism for the upcoming year.

On the numbers side, Grigorenko’s 27 points would seem an underwhelming total for a player who received so much hype last season but given the context of his season, it’s important to look beyond the simple raw totals. His 1.62 points-per-60 minutes played was good for 157th in the NHL and 5th on the Avalanche, suggesting a lot more could be in store for him should he see more ice time next season.

What is the future for Mikhail Grigorenko?

For the Avalanche, they hope it’s a lot more of this: