For the past 19 years (12 at The Hockey News), Dobber has looked at and evaluated every team from a fantasy hockey perspective.
The 20th Year in Review will be available here on DobberHockey throughout the summer. This is not a review of likely performance on the ice or overall, but rather a review of fantasy hockey for both the upcoming season and the foreseeable future. Will the team do well offensively? Are there many depth options in goalie leagues worth owning? What about the next two or three years? These are questions I consider when looking at the depth chart and the player’s potential on that depth chart.
Enjoy!
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faded – Nazem Kadri (not yet signed at the time of writing), Andre Burakovsky, Nico Sturm, Nicolas Aube-Kubel, Dylan Sikura, Kiefer Sherwood, Darcy Kuemper
incoming – Anton Blidh, Brad Hunt, Alexander Georgiev, Jonas Johansson
Impact of Changes – Stanley Cup-winning teams in the salary cap era often have key players they can’t afford to keep, and the Avalanche are no different. Kadri made the most of his career year and more, posting a career-high 87 points. Assuming the Avalanche don’t move a mountain or two to re-sign him, Kadri will be a significant loss. Still, the Avalanche are a strong team that should be able to weather Kadri’s absence and remain a strong Stanley Cup favorite once again.
The defending champion of the Stanley Cup will also get a new goaltender. Kuemper had priced himself out of the Avalanche’s cap space, so he signed a free agent deal with Washington. Just before the free hand, the Avs traded for Georgiev, who supported Henrik Lundqvist and Igor Shesterkin in New York. With no experience as a starter, Georgiev faces competition for the departures from Pavel Francouz. As built, the Avalanche can’t afford to spend big bucks on goaltenders, so they may need to focus on running the hot hand.
Ready for full time – With the Avalanche in a winning window, there isn’t much in the way. 2018 first-round pick (16th overall) Martin Kaut was featured in this article last season and not much has changed for him. He has played fewer than 10 games in three straight seasons, although he had his highest AHL scoring in 2021–22 (19 goals and 31 points in 46 games). Injuries have also delayed his development. His entry-level contract ends after this season, so it will be an important season for him.
Ben Meyers and Sampo Ranta could also get longer looks with the Avalanche in 2022-23. Undrafted Meyers signed as a free agent in April after scoring 41 points in 34 games for the University of Minnesota. He played in five regular season games and scored in his first game but did not see any playoff action. Ranta is also a University of Minnesota graduate, having spent most of the 2021-22 season in the AHL before a foot injury ended his season early. He also appeared in 10 regular season games but failed to score a single point.
Fantastic prospects – Even without Kadri, the Avalanche should be very good offensively. Her 3.76 GF/GP was the fourth-highest total in the league. The big four Nathan MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen, Gabriel Landeskog and Cale Makar should continue to carry that offense and stack the first unit’s power play. MacKinnon is in the final year of his Superstar Friendly deal ($6.3 million), so the Avalanche need to make more room for their franchise player to make more than $10 million in the future.
With Burakovsky’s departure as a free agent, the Avalanche are hoping playoff hero Valeri Nichushkin can continue his fiery game into the regular season. Nichushkin was rewarded for his post-season performance and a career-high 52 points with an eight-year extension, so the pressure to perform will be on him. Artturi Lehkonen also made a huge contribution to the playoffs, allowing his numbers to reach new heights he hadn’t seen in Montreal. Alex Newhook, after a strong first full season in the NHL (33 PTS in 71 GP), will also look to move up another notch as a potential top 6 option.
Defense also comes loaded with options well beyond Norris Trophy winner Makar. Samuel Girard is rumored to be on the trading bloc, especially when the Avalanche is badly needed due to injuries or underperformance elsewhere. Still, the Avs have a blue line that includes Makar, Girard, Devon Toews, Bowen Byram, Josh Manson, and Erik Johnson. Just eight defenders have had more points per game than Toews (57 PTS in 66 GP), while Byram has sky-high potential if he can manage to get over his concussion woes.
Fantasy planes – A (last year was also A)
Check out the rest of the previews from the Dobber team here.
Source: dobberhockey.com
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