Avalanche Roundtable: Is Annunen the future?

With the news of prospect Justus Annunen signing his entry-level contract yesterday, we’re naturally using that as the jumping-off point for today’s roundtable topic seeing as how he is one of the prospects coming off strong seasons that really boosted his profile.

Today’s topic: Given the strength of his play in Finland last year and at WJCs, is Justus Annunen the most exciting goaltending prospect in Avalanche history?

AJ: I’ve been excited about Annunen from the start. I liked him as a draft prospect and loved where the Avs got him after trading down and picking up an extra pick. I was a fan after meeting him and was cautiously optimistic when he helped shoulder the load of a bad team in the Mestis a year ago. Then he had his breakout as part of the tandem for Karpat and once again performed well internationally at the WJCs. It’s hard not believe and he’s certainly the most exciting goalie prospect since Pickard, who carried a fair bit of hype himself (Pickard was the top rated North American goalie that year and was drafted in the second round). Annunen is the next great hope that the Avs can finally develop a starting-caliber goaltender on their own without having to let Washington do all the hard work. I’m buying the stock and saying he finally surpasses Peter Budaj as the top homegrown goaltender in Avalanche history.

Evan: All I know is my gut says “maybe”. There’s definitely a lot to like about what he’s done so he’s up there with how well he played in Finland. I remember Spencer Martin having some hype with how he finished his OHL career and even his first AHL year. To be honest, there isn’t a whole lot of competition, as the Avs haven’t exactly drafted a ton of great goalies over the years. Pickard’s hype came more after he got some stints in the NHL, and not really before that. Annunen is up there, and maybe the closest to him would be…Philippe Sauve? For all of our sanity, I hope Annunen turns out better than that. Another year in Finland would do him well and give everyone a better idea of what the Avs may have.

Rudo: He’s certainly the most exciting goalie prospect since Pickard. Having played and succeded in a professional league at such a young age gives him an edge on the likes of Spencer Martin and others that had hype coming out of Juniors. He has the size and athleticism that screams NHL goaltender and has consistently proven to be near the top of his class of peers. All of this is great and fair reason to be excited about the Avs’ future at goaltender but at the end of the day, goalies are still voodoo. Annunen’s adjustment to North American ice is still a complete unknown and he has had the pleasure of playing on one of the best teams in the Liiga as well as some very solid, sound Finnish teams internationally. I am optimistically buying the hype. Annunen will be the first true homegrown NHL starter for the Avs.