Category Archives: Colorado Avalanche

Hunwick on Waivers

Is NOW the Time For Stastny?

Difficult yes. Impossible no.

What we can tell you – for certain – is that Stastny would provide Leafs an immeasurable boost up the middle. His grandiose performance for the United States at the World Hockey Championships last May proved he still has a wonderful feel for the puck – as a play-maker and scorer. His valuation in the NHL has undoubtedly been skewed by toiling for a dismal Colorado club. Additionally, Avs appear to be well-established at center with Matt Duchene, Nathan MacKinnon and Ryan O’Reilly. Even with nearly $11 million in cap space, it’s difficult to imagine Joe Sakic forking over a king’s ransom to retain Stastny – still only 27.

Avs have a tough choice on whom to cut when Ryan Wilson comes back soon. My speculation on how it plays out…

I really think Patrick Roy wants to keep the big, hungry and young Nick Holden and Nate Guenin among his top eight D-men. When Wilson comes back though, somebody will have to either be placed on waivers and/or sent to Lake Erie. That could be Matt Hunwick too. Wilson probably won’t return until Saturday in Washington, unless the Avs play horrible in Toronto Tuesday and Roy just wants to get Wilson in there and not worry about it.
Holden is probably the odds-on choice to get sent down, when all is said and done.

http://sulia.com/adater/

Dater: Paul Stastny could be odd man out with Avalanche by season’s end

It may work out that the Avalanche can keep three very good centers beyond this season in Paul Stastny, Matt Duchene and Nathan MacKinnon. But most everyone believes one of them will have to be traded before too long, and odds are that player will be Stastny.

It may be an uncomfortable topic for everyone around the dressing room, but it is reality. There are only so many minutes to go around for a team’s top forwards, and anyone out of the top six more often than not stays slotted in a utility role.

Avs not going to make a trade

Ryan Miller for Paul Stastny swap a possibility?

It’s been a while since we’ve had a good, salacious rumor in NHL circles, that tends to happen in the month of August. But a somewhat juicy one popped up this week.

 

For a while now the future of Ryan Miller in Buffalo has been clouded. The Sabres made it clear that they were ready to steer in the direction of a rebuild when they traded captain Jason Pominville to Minnesota last season. They reportedly gave some thought to dealing their No. 1 goalie Miller at the time, too, but nothing happened on that front.

Perhaps it could happen sometime soon as Josh Rimer tweeted this on Thursday night.

http://www.cbssports.com/nhl/eye-on-hockey/23396654/nhl-rumors-ryan-miller-for-paul-stastny-swap-a-possibility

Avalanche news and notes: Will Paul Stastny be trade bait to Maple Leafs?

Some rumors today about Dion Phaneuf possibly being on the trade block. If the Avs got him, they’d almost certainly have to deal Paul Stastny to get him – in large part just to make the math work on the salary cap. Phaneuf’s cap hit is $6.5 million, just under Stastny’s $6.6 million. Like Stastny, Phaneuf can be an unrestricted free agent after this season.

Roy has a big job

 

Patrick Roy, new man behind the bench in Colorado, told the Denver media Tuesday that “my No. 1 quality is that I am not afraid to put in the time.’’ If only coaching were a time-in/results-out business. The NFL is full of coaches who sleep and eat in their offices, but performance does not necessarily correlate with the punching of the time card. St. Patrick went a formidable 348-196 and won a Memorial Cup (2006) in his time directing the Quebec Remparts.

 

Should the Avs really trade the No. 1 pick, or try to trade so they get the top two?

An awful lot of speculation going on right now about what the Avs might/should do with their No. 1 pick in the draft next month.
Patrick Roy and Joe Sakic both definitely started a mini-frenzy but strongly hinting they might be open to make a deal with someone involving their top pick in what is considered the deepest NHL draft in years. You trade the No. 1 pick for more established veteran help PLUS Florida’s or Tampa Bay’s pick, and just take whatever is left of the top 3. Win-win. Or maybe not.
Let’s look at some of the potential scenarios. I have now just nestled my GM hat nicely onto my dome:

Joe Sacco fired as coach of Colorado Avalanche after four NHL seasons

The Colorado Avalanche on Sunday fired coach Joe Sacco after four seasons at the helm, the team said.

The Avs have not hired a replacement.

The Avs made the change after a last-place showing in the NHL’s Western Conference, and for missing the playoffs for the third straight year under Sacco’s watch. Sacco had a final year left on his contract as coach.
After a rookie coaching year in which he helped guide the Avs to the playoffs in 2009-10 and was a finalist for the Jack Adams Award for coach of the year, Sacco’s teams finished out of the running the next three seasons.

Should Blues Consider Stastny ?

There’s some talk of Colorado maybe looking to move center Paul Stastny. Reports suggest he could be expendable with the addition of Ryan O’Reilly.

We’ve asked this question for several years, how would Stastny look in St. Louis?

Obviously he comes with a contract that pays him $6.6 million for one more season. That’s a lot for a budget team like the Blues and obviously some dollars would need to be shipped out to make room for this type of contract.


shoes