The Colorado Avalanche loaded up for a Stanley Cup run, but it’s going to be a while before this Death Star is fully operational.
That means Jared Bednar is going to spend the final weeks of the regular season tinkering and experimenting. The Avs traded for Nazem Kadri and Nicolas Roy, but key forwards Gabe Landeskog and Artturi Lehkonen are both week-to-week with injuries.
Both Kadri and Roy were added to fortify what is now the best collection of centers in the NHL, but that doesn’t mean either, or both, is always going to line up in the middle of the ice. Case in point, Kadri’s return to the Avs lineup came on the wing, next to Nathan MacKinnon and Martin Necas in a 3-2 shootout win Sunday against the Minnesota Wild.
“No Gabe. That’s it,” Bednar said of Kadri playing on the wing. “I want him to play with our top-end guys, and in order to do that for me, he’s got to play on the wing right now.
“I started him and put him with MacK and Marty (to) see how it looked. And I liked the way it looked. I thought they were dangerous right from the get-go at the start of the game, and created a lot of dangerous scoring chances, so thought I’d leave them together.”
Kadri and MacKinnon teamed up for Colorado’s first goal. Roy, who split time during the afternoon between center and wing, scored the game-tying goal in the third period.
Toss in Logan O’Connor, who hasn’t played all season after offseason hip surgery and another undisclosed injury that popped up during his rehab process, and Colorado is missing three forwards who could be in the top nine come playoff time.
Kadri took line rushes during warmups with Valeri Nichushkin and Brock Nelson, but Bednar wanted to start the fan favorite in his return and just stuck with it.
“I haven’t played wing in years, actually,” Kadri said. “When I found out about that, I knew I had to be a little bit sharp (Sunday). I don’t mind playing it. … Playing with those guys, they make it easy on me. We were able to have some chemistry, make some great plays.”
The permutations for Bednar are plentiful. The lead in the Central Division and the Western Conference is getting closer to insurmountable. Colorado leads Dallas by seven points and Minnesota by 10, with 20 games to play and contests in hand on both clubs.
That means the environment is primed for experimentation. When everyone is healthy — or if the Avs are fortunate enough to get everyone healthy together — the forward group should be downright terrifying.
Will the Avs roll out MacKinnon, Nelson, Kadri and Roy at center? Could Kadri or Roy play on the wing, with Jack Drury slotting in as the No. 4 center?
Necas, Lehkonen, Nichushkin and Landeskog have been the club’s top four wings when they’re available all season, but could Ross Colton, Kadri or Roy end up on the second line with one of the big four on the third unit to further balance out the group and make it even tougher on opposing coaches trying to pick and choose matchups?
“I think it gives us flexibility,” Bednar said. “Like, if someone is having a bad night, it’s our coaching staff’s job to recognize that and move somebody around. We want to be dangerous throughout our lineup.
“If we want to go with MacK, Nelly, Naz down the middle, they can play with good wingers that can help create offense and score and still check other teams’ top lines. I think we’re going to have some really good options as we get into it and we’ll just keep experimenting a little bit here through the regular season.”
Kadri has been here before, knows the system and many of his teammates and therefore should have a pretty easy transition. It’s a different situation for Roy.
He was a versatile player for years with the Vegas Golden Knights. That’s clearly the way Bednar wants to deploy him. The coach noted Roy’s time spent as a bottom-six center but also in more offensive roles on the wing with the Golden Knights.
“For myself, I’m just going to try and be the same player as I always have (been),” Roy said. “Not the most flashy out there, but I try to be a little bit of everything, do everything right. I’m really excited.”
The Toronto Maple Leafs had a different plan for Roy. He was used in an extreme defensive role in Toronto, starting more shifts in the defensive zone than he has at any point in his career.
It may take him a little time to re-adjust to different expectations while learning the nuances and tendencies of both the system and his teammates.
“I think he’s trying to figure it out,” Bednar said. “Systematic stuff, playing safe, being responsible. I think that’s kind of his mentality, and it’s my job to help drive a little more offense out of him, get him skating and being impactful on both sides of the puck.”
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