Duncan Siemens
I feel bad for Duncan Siemens, I really do. The Colorado Avalanche selected the defenseman 11th overall in 2011 (Gabriel Landeskog’s draft year, incidentally). And it’s been downhill ever since.
Siemens has had exactly one NHL game to his name. In all those years, fellow draft-mate Landeskog has played in 383 games, while Siemens, who went just nine picks later, has just one. I know it’s apples and oranges, forwards and defensemen, but it still seems unfair.
That said, Duncan Siemens seems like just the defenseman the Colorado Avalanche need. He’s good-sized at 6-foot-3, 205 pounds. While it’s true he has decent puck-moving skills, his main claim to fame is hitting to make opponents feel it.
He’s a stay-at-home defenseman who can help prevent opponent shots on net. No, he’s not going to score a lot, but he’s going to help prevent the other team from scoring.
Frankly, I was surprised when the Colorado Avalanche re-signed Siemens last summer. The team hadn’t shown any interest in calling him up even in the event of injuries, so I full expected him to be let go when his initial ELC expired. That said, it seems the team is allowing him to develop his puck handling more.
Since the Avs re-signed Siemens, I’d really like to see him given a proper chance.
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I’d like to see all of the players on this list given a chance this season to test their NHL chops. The Colorado Avalanche are done trying to recoup a lost season — let’s see what future seasons might bring.
By Nadia Archuleta for Mile High Sticking