Valeri Nichushkin's Offense Will Be Missed & Avs In Need For Backup Goalie
Also, Logan O'Connor beginning to shine & more!
Welcome to the THW Colorado Avalanche Substack newsletter, with all the latest from our team of Avalanche writers.
In today’s edition, Valeri Nichushkin’s offense will be missed as he enters the Player Assistance Program and how the Avs need to help find Georgiev a backup goalie for another playoff run
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Valeri Nichushkin’s Absence Will Be Felt by the Avalanche
January 17, 2024 by Stefano Rubino
The Colorado Avalanche have one of the best offences in the NHL this season, currently ranked second in goals for per game (GF/GP) with 3.82 and eighth in power-play percentage (PP%) at 25.2. The is built to score tons of goals, and has been even better with the additional help of Valeri Nichushkin, who has capitalized on the power play, has been playing on the top line, and seeing increased chances in front of the net.
While this season for Nichushkin has been going great so far — and he has the luck on his side to not deal with any significant injuries — there is recent news that will impact him personally and the team going forward. It was announced on Jan. 16 that Nichushkin will be entering the Players Assistance Program for the foreseeable future. The reason is unknown, but this will be his second time entering the program; the first time was last season during the first round of the 2023 NHL playoffs against the Seattle Kraken. The NHL Players Assistance Program and Nichushkin have released a statement on him entering the program.
Avalanche Must Trade for Backup Goalie to Relieve Georgiev
January 21, 2024 by Marko Zlomislic
With the Colorado Avalanche‘s 7-4 win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 20), the club improved its record to 30-14-3 and currently rank third in the Western Conference by points percentage (PTS%). The team has been successful relative to expectations (their .670 PTS% is slightly better than their mark of .665 last season), but one worrying trend threatens to derail what most in the organization hope is a lengthy postseason run.
Starting goalie Alexandar Georgiev – who submitted a Vezina Trophy-calibre campaign in his debut season with the Avalanche – is playing too often, and has seen his performance dip over the first half of 2023-24. The drop could just be Georgiev regressing to the previously inconsistent level he displayed over his tenure with the New York Rangers, but his high usage isn’t helping matters at this stage.
The Avalanche don’t have too much cap space to work with (they currently have $13.5 million parked on long term injured reserve) and have an arguably more pressing need at second-line center. As a result, any potential acquisition would have to either carry a cheap cap hit, have their contract expire after this season, or both.
Avalanche’s Logan O’Connor Rising to Occasion
January 21, 2024 by Kerry Collins
The Colorado Avalanche were thrown a bit of a curveball last week when they lost Valeri Nichushkin indefinitely as he entered the NHL’s player assistance program. While no one is going to blame Nichushkin for reaching out for help, the forward’s absence loomed large – particularly since he was in the midst of a career year.
Like many teams, the Avalanche have been craving depth scoring for some time now. When they needed it most, a familiar face stepped up to make it happen. Logan O’Connor is having a career year in his own right, and he’s emerged as an offensive force – culminating in his first career hat trick on Saturday (Jan. 20) against the Philadelphia Flyers. Don’t look now, but Colorado’s answers to their depth scoring might have been on the roster all along.
Matt Duchene Trade Analyzed
January 16, 2024 by Dayton Reimer
At the beginning of the 2017-18 season, expectations were high for the Nashville Predators and the Ottawa Senators. The Predators were just coming off of their first trip to the Stanley Cup Final and the Senators were one goal away from meeting them there, taking the Pittsburgh Penguins to game seven in the Eastern Conference Final. The Colorado Avalanche, on the other hand, were coming off of their worst finish in franchise history with just 48 points.
With the Senators and Predators looking for the missing pieces on their rosters to bolster their lineups and the Avalanche looking to retool their own, the trio of teams managed to pull off a blockbuster trade that sent long-time Av Matt Duchene to Ottawa.