Despite the NHL’s annual free-agent period starting on July 1, the Colorado Avalanche began executing their offseason plans in the days before in anticipation of reshuffling a roster which hopes to challenge for the Stanley Cup in 2025-26.
The Avalanche shed nearly $8 million in cap commitments in one fell swoop after sending center Charlie Coyle ($5.25 million average annual value/AAV) and oft-injured winger Miles Wood ($2.5 million AAV) to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for a second- and third-round pick and prospect Gavin Brindley. The move removed two inefficient contracts from the Avalanche’s ledger and recouped some future capital to boot, earning high grades from evaluators.
The next order of business involved signing pending restricted free agent (RFA) defenseman Sam Malinski to a one-year deal worth $1.4 million, which will make him an unrestricted free agent (UFA) when his contract expires next summer. Malinski played 76 games this past season, tallying 15 points while playing an average of just under 16 minutes per game. The 26-year-old blueliner should continue to be a fixture on the third pair going forward.
The organization most notably allowed Jonathan Drouin and Ryan Lindgren to hit the open market after which they signed with the New York Islanders and the Seattle Kraken, respectively. Pending UFAs Erik Johnson, Tucker Poolman, Jimmy Vesey, and Joel Kiviranta were not re-signed before the start of free agency, but could still return to Colorado next season.
General manager Chris MacFarland also extended Parker Kelly for four more years (kicking in next summer) with the deal worth $1.7 million, a move which helps shore up the fourth line for the foreseeable future. Kelly was Colorado’s second-most frequently used forward on the penalty kill and took the third-most faceoffs on the team last season.
Ronnie Attard – a 26-year-old right-handed defenseman who spent the entire 2024-25 season in the American Hockey League (AHL) – was signed as depth for both the NHL and AHL clubs.
The Avalanche currently have $7.55 million in cap space to play with and have addressed most of their key concerns. With the aforementioned moves in mind, here is how the Avalanche’s lineup for opening night is shaping up after the first day of free agency.
| Forwards | ||
| Lehkonen | MacKinnon | Necas |
| Landeskog | Nelson | Nichushkin |
| LW3 | C3 | Colton |
| Kelly | Drury | O’Connor |
| Defence | Goaltenders | |
| Toews | Makar | Blackwood |
| Girard | Manson | Wedgewood |
| Middleton | Malinski |
While he is listed, utility forward Logan O’Connor underwent hip surgery in early June and is expected to miss the start of the 2025-26 season with a six-month recovery time. The 28-year-old should start the season on long-term injured reserve (LTIR), giving the Avalanche an extra $2.5 million to play with until he returns, at which time he would assume the third- or fourth-line right wing role. Until then, either a forward from the AHL or a cheap depth winger on a league minimum contract should assume his spot in the lineup.
Barring any trades (though at least one or two may be coming), the Avalanche need at least two more third-line forwards to replace Wood and Coyle, one of which should ideally be a center to keep Kelly and Jack Drury on the fourth line. The free agent market has already thinned out quite a bit, so the trade route may be more appealing at this point in time.
The Avalanche could also sign someone like top-six winger Nikolaj Ehlers (63 points in 69 games last season) and push Gabriel Landeskog into a bottom-six role, but that would require trading one or more players including Ross Colton ($4 million AAV), Samuel Girard ($5 million), and Josh Manson ($4.5 million) given that Ehlers is projected to sign a deal worth north of $8 million annually as per AFP Analytics. Even Martin Necas could be traded, given that his next deal could be too rich for Colorado’s blood. That would of course require the addition of another top-nine forward or a top-four defenseman, meaning that there are still a lot of puzzle pieces needing to be sorted before settling on a final lineup.
Sean Behrens should battle for a job as the sixth or seventh defenseman on the roster after missing the entire 2024-25 season due to a knee injury. An extended stint in the AHL to start the season might be the better route given that he has only played in one professional game to date, and reps are more important at this point in his young career.
Avalanche Have Time and Space to Build Roster
Rome famously wasn’t built in a day, and neither is the Avalanche’s opening-night roster for the 2025-26 season. There are still plenty of internal and external trade candidates, as well as free agents yet to decide on their next destination.
The Avalanche have the benefit of having the most important parts of their team sorted out (both goalies, the entire top-six forward group, the top defensive pairing), so they can afford to be patient with the rest.
The front office has shown the ability to recognize and rectify its mistakes, as well as not committing significant term or salary to players either struggling with injury, inconsistency, or both. They can’t wait all summer, but time remains on their side.
Available Free Agents: Brent Burns (Defenseman), Nikolaj Ehlers (Forward), Jack Roslovic (Forward), Anthony Beauvillier (Forward)
Data courtesy of the NHL and PuckPedia.
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