Avs Mailbag: Chris Kreider, Colin Wilson's replacement, Grubauer, and more

Welcome to the weekly Avs mailbag, where we answer whatever Avs questions you have on your mind. If you have any questions for the mailbag, leave them for Evan Rawal on twitter or respond in the comments.

https://twitter.com/Elessar010/status/1201606308094496768?s=20

Doesn’t it feel like Colin Wilson has been hurt for the majority of his tenure in Colorado? I’m not sure he’s really skated much in any of the training camps since arriving, as he’s always been recovering from some sort of injury, and there always seems to be something nagging there. I would imagine this injury would mean it’s the end of the line for Wilson in Colorado, which is a shame. He’s been up and down in the regular season, but the playoffs are where he’s really shown his value. If he’s not back by then, that will be missed.

We’re already kind of seeing some younger guys get opportunities, like Logan O’Connor. They’ve still got Shane Bowers and Martin Kaut in the AHL as well waiting for their opportunity (if they get healthy).

As far as his replacement, I think we’re already kind of seeing it. The organization, and particularly Jared Bednar, seem really happy with Valeri Nichushkin, and I think he’s already filling that role that they had in mind for Wilson. He’s been solid defensively and good on the forecheck most nights. The offense may never be there, but Wilson wasn’t exactly lighting the world on fire offensively either. I could see the Avs extending Nichushkin beyond this season, considering he’s still pretty young.

Should we be worried about the start our most exciting forwards prospect are having in the AHL?

— Robin (@R_Fredriksson) December 3, 2019

Shane Bowers? No. It seemed like he was starting to come on before he was injured on 11/15. He hasn’t played since but has been skating with a non-contact jersey. Plus, the organization loves him. If he gets healthy and picks up where he left off before his injury, I can see him getting games this year.

Martin Kaut? That’s a different story. I really liked Kaut’s training camp, and so did Bednar. The coach mentioned that Kaut was starting to understand how he needs to play in order to be successful, and that’s a north-south game. That being said, going to the AHL and putting up no points in seven games is disappointing, and to top it all off, he’s been out with a mystery injury since 10/26. That’s over a month he’s missed now. He’s been skating for a few weeks now, but still looks to be in a non-contact jersey still. He’s still extremely young at just 20-years-old, so it’s no time to panic right now, but hopefully, when he gets healthy the production starts to pick up.

The disappointing part is that the Avs have had a billion injuries up front, and the two legitimate prospects people would have wanted to see have both been injured. Tough break.

How confident are we that Grub is the goalie of the future for the Avs?

— The Heretic (@TheHeretic48) December 3, 2019

I think the Avs are reasonably confident with Grubauer in net. They targeted him as someone they felt could be a number one goaltender, and to be honest, I think he’s played really well this year. We’ll see how he handles the grind of being the starter over a full season, as it’s something he’s never done before, but so far, so good.

The Avs don’t have to make any decisions yet with Grubauer, as he’s still got another year on his contract after this one. That’s plenty of time to find out if this is the guy you want to move forward with as your starter. He’s done the job so far, but still a long way to go. I really like Grubauer and always have, back to his Washington days, so I have faith he can get the job done.

The Avs do have some good young goalies in their system, though. We saw Adam Werner briefly in Colorado, and he’s having a nice rookie season in the AHL. Justus Annunen is over in Finland breaking records, putting up absurd numbers in the Finnish Elite League, and could very well be Team Finland’s goaltender at the World Junior Championships. It seems like for the first time in a while, the Avs have something to look forward to in net.

From KCRybek: Kind of off topic but A

vs should do everything possible to acquire Chris Kreider. Big tough fast and can score. Pending UFA

Kreider is someone I know the Avs were interested in over the summer, but it sounded like the asking price was the 16th overall selection, and that was too steep a price for a pending UFA. I still would anticipate the Rangers are going to shop him come deadline time, as they’re still looking to rebuild, and he is certainly someone I can see the Avs circling back on.

Kreider isn’t having the best season of his career so far, but he’s someone the Avs really like. He can skate, he’s big, and he attacks the net. All the focus is on Taylor Hall, and for good reason, but I think Kreider is someone they will look into as well. The concern with him, as with anyone else at the deadline, will be about the asking price. He’ll also be 29 years old next summer, so is that someone you want to trade for and sign long term? I’m not so sure I would do that.

What are some significant aspects you've noticed change from Bednar's coaching/leadership year 1 versus now?

— Kevin (but, like, from Home Alone) (@PickleySpices) December 2, 2019

I’ll start by saying I was not on the beat when Bednar started, so it’s a little tougher to say. One thing I have noticed this year, more so than in years past, is the focus on skill, and fun skill games at practice. I think his willingness to do those things at practice show how much he wants to emphasize skill development on the team, but also shows faith in the leadership group that he can let the team have some fun in practice and not have to worry about the team losing that fire or edge as the year goes on.

In regards to skill development, I would say in Bednar’s first year, he was maybe too rigid in how he wanted everyone to play, and there wasn’t much room for creativity. That’s something that has evolved over time. Tyson Barrie’s first year under Bednar was rough, as it seemed like he had a leash on him most nights, but I think Bednar realized that’s not going to work, and you have to let a skill guy like Barrie do what he does best. We’ve seen that with MacKinnon and Rantanen as well. Sometimes you just have to let your skill guys do what they do best and that’s something that maybe wasn’t there the first year.

In your opinion who are the 2 most underrated and 2 most overrated teams in the NHL currently

— Meeqs (@Meeqs) December 2, 2019

I guess I’ll start with underrated. I really like Philadelphia’s team. They’re having a good season so far, and if they get decent goaltending, should be a good bet to make the playoffs. Travis Konecny is having a breakout year, and Couturier is a legit 200-foot monster down the middle. I love Ivan Provorov, and he’s bouncing back big time from a rough year in 18-19.

As for another, maybe Florida? I don’t know if they’re really all that underrated at this point, but they’re winning games despite Bobrovsky getting lit up seemingly every night (and hurting my fantasy team). I think Bobrovsky will figure it out eventually, and that makes them even scarier.

Overrated? Vegas seems to have lost a bit of that luster this year, and has looked very beatable. Their defense is pretty suspect, and the lack of speed beyond Theodore and Schmidt back there has been exposed. Fleury has been great, but how many games does he have to play? Their backup situation is sketchy.

I’m also not buying Buffalo just yet, despite them being in a playoff spot. It’s tough to pick another overrated team because there’s a giant cluster of teams around all the wildcard spots in both conferences, but I don’t trust Buffalo’s goaltending situation.