Avalanche season grades: Gabriel Bourque

What more could you want out of your next few minutes than to read a comprehensive review of Gabriel Bourque’s 2017-18 season? Without further ado, let’s do it:

Overview

If there were times, in the first third of the season, whether you weren’t even sure if Gabriel Bourque was even on the team, you’re not alone. He was just not very…noticeable at all in that time. In fact, there was a five-game stretch when he was a member of the San Antonio Rampage. To his credit, though, he got another shot and did a respectable job with it. Nothing that will set history aflame, but respectable.

It took 17 games until Bourque would score his first goal of the season, Jan. 6 against Minnesota. He got another in a Jan. 22 win in Toronto and then went on a rampage with three goals in four games, from Feb. 6-11. That would do it for regular-season scoring, but then came the playoffs against his former team, Nashville, and he scored two goals in six games.

Bourque doesn’t play with the puck a whole lot. His Corsi numbers reflect that. He’s a checker, a grinder, a physical player, helps out on the penalty kill. He’s a fourth-line guy. There’s not a whole lot more to say than that.

Biggest Moment

I’m going to go with a Jan. 22 game in Toronto in which Bourque scored a goal in Colorado’s 4-2 win over the Maple Leafs. That was the Avs’ 10th straight win, a streak that ended the next game in Montreal. Bourque not only scored a goal, but he did nice work on the penalty kill when guys such as Carl Soderberg and Blake Comeau were in the penalty box.

What’s Next

Bourque does not have a contract for next season. He can be an unrestricted free agent July 1. He made $750,000 this past season. Was his respectable showing in the second half enough to get him a new offer from the Avs? We don’t know, but a contract hasn’t happened yet. He’s still only 27 years old, though he has more than 300 games of NHL experience. I think he’ll find another job with an NHL team next season. I just don’t know if it’ll be with the Avs. I would probably put the odds at less than 50-50.

Final Grade

C

Bourque did a serviceable job on a team that made the playoffs, in a season in which he started poorly and was even sent to the minors. He can feel good about his perseverance. There’s not a whole lot more to say. He’s a role player, and it’s not a big role. But he did some things that helped a team make the postseason for the first time since 2014. That’s something at least.