Eurolanche

Remember These Guys?

First off I want to say I am super happy with the addition of Nathan MacKinnon to the Avs. He has got the potential to be an all-star player for years to come with the Avs.  It is always good to have that kind of player. He is the type of player that can attract other players to come to the team. I like the rest of the Avs draft as well. Heavy on the defensemen drafting this is okay with me. Gives you more guys to develop as well you get possible trade chips for the future too.

Speaking of the Avs and defensemen being traded away. I think the biggest complaint I hear the most often is the Avs giving up on Defensemen and trading them. The endless outcries of letting Kevin Shattenkirk are traded. Johnny Boychuk and John-Michael Liles also traded causes some emotions. Heck we may even hear outcries soon if Cameron Gaunce ends up being really good. But good news everyone four formers Avs blue liner are free agents this year. Of course probably not four of the guys you may want back. But with the nostalgic feel the Avs have going these days you never know.

Let start off with Jordan Leopold who was traded to the Avs by the Flames in 2006 for the newly returned man Alex Tanguay.  In a 122 games played with the Avs scored 13 goals added 25 assists for 38 points. His numbers picked up after signing with Buffalo. His best year coming in 2010-2011 with 35 points. He will be 33 by the beginning of next season coming off a 3 year 3 million per year contract. He could be something the Avs might be interested in.

Next up we got Ryan O’Byrne who hopefully the Avs don’t resign because we have enough big slow defenders. But hey you never know who is going for a repeat performance.

After that we got good old Scott Hannan. Remember when him he was the big free agent signing of the Avs in 2007-2008. He has since gone down in price a lot these past years. He defiantly affordable and somewhat realisable on the back end. Sadly he doesn’t put up big points in a season. The Avs need both skills on the back end reliability and points so they will probably pass. As would I, but don’t forget Hannan did get us Tomas Fleischmann in trade. So don’t say he never did nothing for the Avs

And last on the docket Brett Clark. Yes he is still playing I totally thought he had retired. I mean he probably will retire this offseason if no one takes a chance on him. Since he spent most of this season with The Wilds AHL team. He had some decent season with the Avs at least in my memory. I might just be clouded with nostalgia. Highly unlike the Avs take a sniff at him or really any team.

So there you have four previous Avalanche Defensemen up for grabs on free agency. The only one I see the Avs maybe take a sniff at is Leopold. He still got a couple years in him and can put up some points. I think the Avs will probably go hard at Andrew Ference as their free agent choice. He a year older then Leopold and doesn’t put up as many points but is a playoff stud. I would be happy with him that is for sure. But if they can I could see a guy like Leopold being looked at. Of course before the Avs go snatching up more Defensemen they need to remove a few. So look forward to that in a very exciting Avs offseason.