Question From Brad J.<\/p>\n
Nic Roy\u2019s play dependent obviously, but do you think the Avs will now try to move Jack Drury in the off-season since they were unable to sign him to a new deal, and arbitration looks probable?<\/p>\n
Aarif\u2019s Response<\/p>\n
I have no sources on this, but I do think this is a real possibility now. I don\u2019t believe the Avs would\u2019ve traded for Roy had they acquired Nazem Kadri initially. But since they have both, and since Roy is making a respectable $3 million, I could see them choosing to move Drury rather than paying him whatever his ask is. That could also allow them to recoup some of the assets they gave up in the Roy and Kadri trades. <\/p>\n
But I can also see a scenario where, if Drury comes in at a reasonable number for multiple years, they keep him at 4C and Roy as a third-line winger and as center depth. This would probably result in moving Ross Colton and his $4 million because, at some point, the math doesn\u2019t add up. <\/p>\n
Colorado already also has Kadri ($5.6 million), Logan O\u2019Connor ($2.5 million), Parker Kelly ($1.7 million) locked up in the bottom six. If Roy and Colton both remain, and Drury signs for anywhere near the O\u2019Connor and Roy deals, it\u2019ll be too much money allocated to the bottom six. And this doesn\u2019t account for Gavin Brindley potentially fighting for a full-time spot next year, too. <\/p>\n
I also think it\u2019s strange that Drury is one of the only expiring deals that didn\u2019t sign an extension in advance. They locked up Kelly and Josh Manson last summer, a year away from free agency. They also signed pending UFA\u2019s Sam Malinski, Scott Wedgewood, and Martin Necas during the season and a restricted free agent in Brindley. And then they acquired term with both Kadri and Roy. Drury is an RFA this summer but it\u2019s still interesting that he hasn\u2019t signed.<\/p>\n
It makes me wonder if the Avs have tried but couldn\u2019t reach the number Drury is asking for. Which, again, is just a guess on my part. <\/p>\n
Question From Jean Boisjoly<\/p>\n
Do you think Brent Burns will play with the Avs next season to break the Ironman record?<\/p>\n
Aarif\u2019s Response<\/p>\n
This is a hard question to answer without seeing how the rest of the season and the playoffs go. But my gut says no. If Burns didn\u2019t have the streak, I could easily see him signing as a third-pair option that could potentially be a healthy scratch, no different that the final years of Jack Johnson and Erik Johnson\u2019s careers.<\/p>\n
But if he\u2019s signing to pass Phil Kessel, I can\u2019t see the Avs management wanting to have that pressure to play him every night. But again, this could change if all goes well moving forward and into June.<\/p>\n
Question From Rudy Volz<\/p>\n
Valeri Nichuskin is a very big man. Why doesn\u2019t he use his body, check more, and pound defensemen in the offensive zone?<\/p>\n
Aarif\u2019s Response<\/p>\n
I wondered this a lot when they first signed him in 2019. But I think his relentless forecheck makes up for it. He also does a great job of using his reach to take the puck away, so it\u2019s definitely one way he\u2019s using his size to his advantage.<\/p>\n
Question From Jedwin7<\/p>\n
There are currently six numbers that have been retired by the Avalanche organization. Obviously, No. 8 (Cale Makar), No. 29 (Nathan MacKinnon), and No. 92 (Gabe Landeskog) will one day join them. I was curious, who else do you think will find their numbers in the Ball Arena rafters of current or recent players? Like, does the No. 6 of Erik Johnson deserve a place up there, or how about No. 7 or No. 91, if Devon Toews and Nazem Kadri retire as Avs?<\/p>\n
Aarif\u2019s Response<\/p>\n
This might be a boring answer, but I don\u2019t think anyone else gets there aside from the three you mentioned. 18 months ago, I would\u2019ve added No. 96 to that list, but we know that won\u2019t be the case now. <\/p>\n
After No. 29, No. 92, and No. 8, it\u2019ll probably be another generation before we see another jersey go up in the rafters. If I had to make a case for one of the others, it would be Johnson\u2019s No. 6, given his longevity and popularity. I just don\u2019t think it\u2019ll happen for him. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Question From Brad J. Nic Roy\u2019s play dependent obviously, but do you think the Avs will now try…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":508723,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5116],"tags":[193,1772,192,144,5277,5,515,4,3922],"class_list":{"0":"post-508722","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-colorado-avalanche","8":"tag-avalanche","9":"tag-brent-burns","10":"tag-colorado","11":"tag-colorado-avalanche","12":"tag-coloradoavalanche","13":"tag-hockey","14":"tag-jack-drury","15":"tag-nhl","16":"tag-valeri-nichushkin"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/116247456942423702","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508722","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=508722"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/508722\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/508723"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=508722"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=508722"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=508722"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}