"This is my family now": Nazem Kadri's new home gives him a second chance

When I was a kid and started a sentence with “Yeah, but…”, my dad would always cut me off and say “Yeahbuts come at Easter!” and cackle to himself. Dads, am I right?

The Avalanche were kind of like me as a kid last year. Every time someone would talk about Colorado’s elite top line last year, it was inevitably followed by “Yeah, but…” and that person would talk about Colorado’s lack of reliable secondary scoring.

Following a busy opening to free agency that saw the Avalanche sign Joonas Donskoi, Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, and re-sign Colin Wilson, it seemed like Colorado was done. General manager Joe Sakic did his typical conference call and said they were still looking for ways to improve the club.

Was he ever not lying to the media on that one. Not long after the conference call wrapped up, Colorado and Toronto agreed to arguably the biggest blockbuster trade of the summer when Alexander Kerfoot and Tyson Barrie were dealt to the Maple Leafs in exchange for Nazem Kadri and Calle Rosen (and a pick swap).

As the kids say, “Boom goes the dynamite.”

The Avalanche had already jettisoned their fourth-highest scoring forward in Carl Soderberg but in one deal also dealt their top-scoring defenseman and fifth-highest scoring forward in exchange for Toronto’s third-line center and an AHL defenseman.

What?

A deeper look at Kadri shows he was more of a victim of circumstance last year as the arrival of John Tavares pushed him to the third line where his most common linemates weren’t the elite talents at the top of Toronto’s forward corps but rather Patrick Marleau and Connor Brown, two solid and productive players but not guys who make up the top six of a playoff team.

Kadri’s arrival in Denver was just what the doctor ordered. Wunderkind Cale Makar is on hand to try to replace Barrie’s scoring and Kadri is exactly the kind of high-end second line center the Avalanche needed.

Soderberg did an admirable job the last couple of years but he was clearly maxed out and entering the final year of his contract while also getting deeper into the wrong side of 30 made Kadri the more appealing option, especially with three more years on his contract at the very reasonable rate of $4.5 million per season.

With multiple 30-goal seasons under his belt, Kadri is in Denver to play Robin to the top line’s Batman. He arrived a few weeks ago and has been working with Nathan MacKinnon at Andy O’Brien’s elite camp in Vail.

“It feels good,” Kadri said of settling into life as an Av. “I’ve had a chance to be here for a few weeks. I’ve met a bunch of the guys, a bunch of the staff. At this point, I’m definitely comfortable.”

That comfort looks to become mutual in time as he will settle into an increased role but with unproven linemates that he’ll be needing to lift up. He doesn’t seem overly concerned about the challenge lying ahead, however.

“I’m familiar with how these situations work,” Kadri said. “I’m more than comfortable to take on that position. Like you said, I’ve done it before and I think I’ve got the confidence and capabilities to do that. I’m going to be paired with some special players out there. It’s not like it’s just going to be me out there. I’m going to have teammates that are going to contribute and that’s something I’m really looking forward to.”

Kadri reportedly vetoed a trade to Calgary over the summer in hopes of staying with Toronto. When he had no veto power against Colorado, however, he packed up his life and began anew.

“It’s already behind me,” he said. “I’ve turned the page. I respected my time in Toronto. I love the city, love the fans. As of this point, this is my family now. These are the guys I’m going to do anything for and this is the team I’m going to do anything for. I’ve got that short-term memory and I’ve turned the page fairly quickly. I’ve already done that and I’m really looking forward to stepping on the ice with these guys.”

The trade was initially a jolt to Kadri’s system as he was hoping to play a tenth season with the Maple Leafs, the team that drafted him seventh overall back in 2009.

“It was a bit of a shock to me at first then it kind of resonated,” Kadri said. “I sat and looked at the roster, talked with the coach, talked to [Sakic], talked to some of the players (Landeskog and MacKinnon) about how special the team can be. I love the expectation and I love the standard these guys hold themselves to.”

Once he worked through the disappointment of no longer being a Leaf, it started to sink in that he was going to a team widely considered one of the league’s most intriguing. If the NHL were a yearbook, the Avs would be voted “Most likely to succeed within five years.”

On his first official day as an Av, the picture started becoming clearer to him.

“It’s special,” Kadri said. “I’ve been around some good teams and this is certainly one I feel could compete to go the distance. We’ve got a good mix of veteran leadership and youth and I think that’s a lethal combination.”

If Kadri can live up to his billing and solidify a quality second line to go along with the elite top unit, the “Yeahbuts” might be coming at Easter but they won’t be coming back to Colorado.