Colorado Avalanche Signs Calvin Pickard

The Colorado Avalanche have announced they signed restricted free agent goalie Calvin Pickard to a one-year contract. The contract is a two-way contract worth $850,500 at the NHL level.

The 23-year old Pickard had a breakthrough season last year as he made his NHL debut while filling in for injured goaltender Semyon Varlamov and pushing backup Reto Berra to regain his form. Pickard put up an extremely impressive .932 save percentage with a 2.35 goals-against-average while compiling a modest 6-7-3 record in 16 appearances. Pickard primarily played for Colorado’s AHL affiliate last season, the Lake Erie Monsters, and put up some of the strongest numbers of his pro career with a .917 save percentage and a 2.61 goals-against-average.

Pickard has appeared in 142 games in the AHL and is expected to make a strong push in training camp to be Colorado’s primary backup goaltender in 2015-16. If he fails to win the backup job he will be the undisputed number one goalie in Colorado’s new AHL affiliate, San Antonio, for the first time in his career. He had previously platooned with the since-departed Sami Aittokallio. His signing leaves the Avalanche with two unsigned RFAs: Freddie Hamilton and Stefan Elliott.

Pickard’s run in Colorado last year was a bright spot in an otherwise dismal campaign and his enthusiasm and joyous postgame celebrations immediately made him a fan favorite in Denver. Re-live some of Pickard’s greatest moments below.