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Colorado Avalanche Rebuild: Building Next Season's Forward Lines
The Colorado Avalanche are likely to have drastically different forward lines next season.
What else can I write about at this point other than what the Colorado Avalanche may look like next season?
Speculating about next season is the most interesting thing surrounding this team right now.
I suppose there is also trade analyses, but I’ve almost exhausted that route too:
So, today I’ll hop back on some more speculation and try and construct next year’s forward lines using prospects, and potential fillers either via free agency, or the draft.
First, let’s take a look at where the holes are likely to be, as well as the players most likely to depart either via trade, because they won’t be re-signed, or during the expansion draft.
The Likely Departures from the Forward Ranks
First, a list of who is most likely to depart the Colorado Avalanche before next season:
Looking at that list above, it’s clear that the Avs’ forward lines could be radically different next season.
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However, they are certainly likely to hold onto a good amount of those players above. Here’s who I think they’ll hold onto:
Soderberg will definitely be taken by the Las Vegas Golden Knights if he is exposed. And, Duchene is very likely to be traded for a top-pairing defenseman.
There is no way the Avs will re-sign Mitchell, and I believe they’ll also do their best to trade Iginla to a contender at the deadline.
And I’m betting that Grigorenko gets thrown in as a complimentary piece in a trade either at the deadline or during the offseason.
And, they’ll definitely let Bourque walk at the end of his contract.
That leaves the following holes:
That’s a lot of holes in the lineup, let’s take a look at how the Avs might fix them.
The Avs Need Help at Right Wing
The Colorado Avalanche definitely have some holes to fix in their lineup, but the good thing is that they will have a high draft pick, and lots of money to spend in free agency. Plus, they have some promising prospects coming up in their system.
Here’s how the forward lines look with just the prospects:
I think you try and get Nieto to play his off wing on the third line because he’s definitely not a top six forward. Furthermore, he’d make a great addition to that third line with Greer and Compher, who are both speedy like Nieto.
Tyson Jost slides into center on the second line, and then the Avs only need to fill two holes in their forward lineup. The gaps on the right side will — hopefully — be filled by drafting Nolan Patrick, and a free agent right winger.
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The Colorado Avalanche should move Rantanen to left wing on the the top line, Landeskog to left wing on the second line, and then pick up a free agent right winger along with Patrick.
Rantanen has shown an ability to play his off wing well, but he can really play any forward position, and may be better suited to the left wing in this organization.
Either way, the Avs will be looking for a winger in free agency, and I have two in mind.
Tyson Jost Needs a Right Winger
The Avs need to sign a right winger to play with Tyson Jost, and they should look for a steady two-way veteran or sniping veteran at that position.
Free agency is definitely stronger on the right side currently than it is on the left side. Which is why moving Rantanen to the left side on MacKinnon’s line makes a lot of sense for the Avs.
The Avs could of course trade for a top six left winger like Jonathan Drouin, who might be the victim of cap problems in Tampa Bay anyway.
However, that would cost them a player like Tyson Barrie or Erik Johnson, and they’d probably have to take on an expensive contract like Ryan Callahan’s.
So, it’s better for the Avs to focus on signing a right winger in free agency, and hope that they can draft Nolan Patrick as well.
Let’s take a look at two possible right wingers for the Avs to target in free agency.
T.J. Oshie
The Washington Capitals would definitely like to maintain the services of Oshie, but they will face cap issues this summer.
Both Andre Burakovsky and Evgeny Kuznetsov are set to become RFAs this summer, and both should demand a rather high cap hit.
Therefore, it is very unlikely that the Caps will be able to pay Oshie the money he’ll be looking for on the open market.
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T.J. Oshie would be a great player for the Avs to sign for three years, but no longer than that. He is already 30 years old, so the Avs shouldn’t sign him for too much term.
However, he is still an extremely valuable asset, and would bring a nice veteran presence to the top six. He is a good two-way forward, and he can score at a high rate as well.
He’d be my number one choice for the Avs to consider at right wing, but there is one more right winger that I wouldn’t mind.
Alexander Radulov
The Montreal Canadiens are also benefiting tremendously from Alexander Radulov this season, and they will certainly want to re-sign him. However, they are likely to experience cap issues this summer as well.
Alex Galchenyuk and Nathan Beaulieu are both going to become RFAs this summer, and both will demand a high cap hit.
The question is whether or not Radulov would still want to play for the Colorado Avalanche without Patrick Roy still coaching.
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He wants to win a Stanley Cup, that is one of the reasons he cited for returning to the NHL, and the Avs are pretty far off from winning a cup.
However, he would be a good player for the Avs to acquire because he’s a pure goal scorer, and the Avs struggle to score. He is also thirty years old, so if the Avs do sign him, it shouldn’t be any longer than three years.
However, T.J. Oshie is definitely the better player for the Avs to consider as a mentor for Tyson Jost on the second line.
Conclusion
The perfect forward lines for the Colorado Avalanche — to my estimation — would be as follows:
That’s an amazing distribution of talent, and it relegates some good talent to the bottom line. Also, depending on who the Avs sport at their blueline next season, that lineup figures to be extremely cheap.
Hopefully the Avs are able to acquire Nolan Patrick in the draft, but there are some other good options available in the draft at the right wing.
Furthermore, acquiring T.J. Oshie via free agency should not be too difficult for the Avs. He should be a really good addition to their top six for a few years too, as long as the Avs sign him cheap and for a short term contract.
What do you guys think about the speculative forward lines for next season? Drop a line in the comments.
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