Colorado Avalanche offseason at a glance

The Colorado Avalanche have been involved in some interesting shenanigans while the Stanley Cup has been awarded and the last vestiges of playoff hockey have started to fade from memory. Since this year’s offseason may prove more interesting than last year’s entire regular season, it seemed a good time for a roundup of what’s occurred and what’s on the horizon. Saddle up, cowpokes, because it’s likely to be a bumpy ride.

RECENT ACTIVITY

1. The Avalanche bought out veteran 37-year-old defenseman Francois Beauchemin out of the last year of his contract. The buyout opens up another protected spot for the upcoming expansion draft. It also presents a chance for some of the young defensive players to get more ice time. While Beauchemin proved valuable his first year, last year’s on ice performance raised some concerns. Whether it was player usage or the inevitability of time, he no longer looked to be a good fit for the team.

2. Colorado made some changes on the assistant coaching front – finally. They released Tim Army and Dave Farrish as well as confirmed the end of Francois Allaire’s tenure as the goaltending coach. The Avalanche have yet to announce any replacement hires. Prayer may be necessary here as something needs to improve the team’s power play and penalty kill.

3. The Avalanche signed Russian defenseman Andrei Mironov during the World Championships. The 22-year-old played his last four seasons in the KHL with Dynamo Moscow as well as representing Russia on the international front. Colorado selected Mironov in the fourth round of the 2015 draft at #101. Whether he will spend time in the AHL before playing in the NHL has yet to be revealed. But more young defensive depth is cause for celebration.

4. Rumors swirl around changes in the front office but nothing has materialized. Initially, the Avalanche talked with Kyle Dubas, an analytics focused Toronto Maple Leafs assistant General Manager. However, the Maple Leafs rescinded permission for talks. Then there were rattlings around whether former NHL (and former Avalanche player) Warren Rychel might join Colorado’s management team. He has been successful as an executive at the junior level with the Windsor Spitfires. After Patrick Roy and his juniors experience, the Avalanche may be a bit gun shy. As of now, nothing formal has transpired on any front.

5. Nine Avalanche players participated in the IIHF World Championships. Gabriel Landeskog and Carl Soderberg helped Team Sweden win the gold, although Soderberg was benched for the final rounds. Calvin Pickard impressed many observers with his play in net for silver medalist Canada. Fellow Canadian Nathan MacKinnon tied for second in scoring in the tourney, Tyson Barrie played well before injuring himself (any bets MacKinnon was involved?), and Matt Duchene won a lot of faceoffs for Canada but was otherwise unimpressive. Mikko Rantanen tallied the second most points for Finland which earned a berth in the bronze medal game, losing to Mironov’s Russian team. J.T. Compher proved his worth playing crucial minutes for team USA. With nine players in Worlds, the Avalanche should have been better than last season’s record indicated. But you already knew that. Sigh.

UPCOMING CHANGES

The upcoming few weeks will prove crucial to the Avalanche setting the course for next season. With the expansion draft, the entry-level draft, the trade deadlines and the start of free agency all happening over the next 15 days, it’s time to buckle in and watch the show.

The first buyout window for contracts before the expansion draft freeze opened yesterday. With the Beauchemin issue already resolved, this window won’t likely affect the Avalanche. But hey, the Avalanche did something. Woohoo!

• June 16 –
  • 3 pm MST – deadline for players to waive thier no movement clause. Again, may not particularly be relevant for the Avalanche.
• June 17
  • 1 pm MST – all the existing teams will freeze their rosters (no trades, waivers, contract signings). Time to start praying the Avalanche front office knows what they are doing.
  • 3 pm MST – the expansion draft protection lists will be submitted to the NHL although they will not publicly be announced until 8 am MST on June 18.
• June 18
  • 8 am MST- the Las Vegas Golden Knights have exclusive rights to negotiate with pending unrestricted free agents (UFA’s) and unprotected restricted free agents (RFA’s) until Vegas announces their selections on June 21. If they sign a player during this time, Vegas will not be able to select another player from the same team for the expansion draft. Hopefully, the Avalanche have made a deal here or already know who Vegas will select from their roster.
• June 20
  • New Colorado Avalanche jerseys should be revealed. Will the ‘A’ survive? Will there be a Yeti foot? Will the black spot of death return? Place your bets, Vegas style.
• June 21 
  •  8 am MST- Vegas submits their team selections. Seems like it could be a good time to say any last minute prayers. Or start drinking. Or both.
  • 6 pm MST – during the NHL awards ceremony, the Vegas team will be gradually announced over the broadcast. While no Avalanche players were nominated for awards this year, one of them WILL be going to Vegas. This could be excruciating or exhilarating – right now, only the shadow knows.
• June 22 
  • 6 am MST – the moratorium on trades and waivers ends and all teams are free to resume business as usual
• June 23-24
  • the entry level draft takes place. Who will Colorado select with their fourth overall pick? Round 1 will commence at 5 pm MST on June 23. Round two will start at 7 am MST June 24. BSN’s very own A. J. Haefele will be live in person in Chicago so look for great updates.
• June 25-30
  • teams may speak with upcoming UFA’s but cannot sign contracts until July 1.
• June 25
  • 3 pm MST – deadline for teams to issue qualifying offers to their RFA’s.
• June 26
  •  RFA’s may begin to speak with other teams but will have to wait until July 1st before signing any contracts.
• July 1
  • 10 am MST – free agency begins. Gentleman, start your engines and let the trades fly! Hopefully, the Avalanche are done with their real work by then and can stave off the urge to sign an aging free agent defenseman. But, hey, what’s life without a little risk every now and then?

One thing’s for certain, Avalanche fans certainly won’t be bored over the next couple weeks. Whether the team makes moves or not, they will be setting the stage for next season and everyone will have an idea where they are heading. After the dust settles, look for part two of the Avalanche roundup, full of pithy wisdom and questionable humor.

As always, stay tuned to BSN for all the latest and greatest breaking news! Same bat time, same bat channel.