Mile High Sticking
Fansided

Colorado Avalanche Free Agency Profile: Maxime Legace

By Nadia Archuleta

DALLAS, TX - DECEMBER 9: Maxime Legace #33 of the Vegas Golden Knights tends goal against the Dallas Stars at the American Airlines Center on December 9, 2017 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Glenn James/NHLI via Getty Images)
DALLAS, TX - DECEMBER 9: Maxime Legace #33 of the Vegas Golden Knights tends goal against the Dallas Stars at the American Airlines Center on December 9, 2017 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Glenn James/NHLI via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Colorado Avalanche need to boost their goal tending depth. Maxime Legace of the Vegas Golden Knights is a player they might consider.

The Colorado Avalanche are highly unlikely to be big buyers come July 1. I believe GM Joe Sakic when he states that he’s going to stay the course and develop through the draft and growing prospects.

That said, the Avalanche rarely stand pat on Free Agency Day — I can’t remember when, if ever, they have. And certainly not under Sakic’s tenure.

I think the Colorado Avalanche might try to pick up some depth pieces. They’re likely to look for young players who will accept two-way contracts for just a year or two — and who come cheap. I’m thinking of the three contracts they’ve offered their own depth players since the end of the season:

The Avs have done a lot to shore up their goal tending by signing 27-year-old goalie Pavel Francouz to a one-year, two-way contract worth $690,000. (He just won KHL Goalie of the Year, by the way.) However, they’re still a little thin in that position.

So let’s look at a pending unrestricted free agent Maxime Legace, whose team is about to star in these historic Stanley Cup Finals.

Maxime Legace

Age: 25
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 176 lbs.
Position: Goalie
Catches: Left
Previous Contract: 1 year, AAV $650,000
Previous Team: Vegas Golden Knights (plus 3 years in the AHL)

Goalie Maxime Legace took Calvin Pickard‘s place as backup goalie for the Vegas Golden Knights, but I’m not going to focus on that.

When Marc-Andre Fleury went down with injury, Legace stood up when called upon. He played in 16 regular-season with the Knights, going 6-7-1. His stats weren’t stellar — he had a .867 save percentage and 3.92 goals against average.

Legace offers an impressive butterfly augmented by his long legs. He’s one of those cat-like goalies with great reflexes. What’s more, he’s a mental goalie in the good way — his hallmark is working hard on the mental aspect of the game.

While Legace has some tools at his disposal, he doesn’t always play to his size. Nonetheless, he displays a quickness that helps him adjust to shooters.

Maxime Legace and the Colorado Avalanche

More from Mile High Sticking

Right now, the Colorado Avalanche have only Semyon Varlamov as a legit NHL goalie. The rest of their goal tending depth includes the following:

  • Spencer Martin (3 NHL games, pending UFA)
  • Pavel Francouz (0 NHL games, never played anywhere in North America)

They also have pending UFAs in Jonathan Bernier, Joe Cannata, and Andrew Hammond. Bernier and Hammond are not expected to return, and Cannata has no NHL experience.

That, sports fans, is what’s known as being shallow at a position.

I think the Colorado Avalanche might look for a goalie in free agency. I don’t know that Legace is the answer. I imagine Sakic and company might kick at a few other tires first.

But, if Legace comes cheap enough, they might consider him for their new AHL-affiliate Colorado Eagles.

Next: 5 Under the Radar UFAs for the Avs

Free Agency Frenzy starts on July 1. Teams can start talking to pending free agents a couple days prior.

Home/Free Agency