Colorado Avalanche: Colin Wilson’s 2019-2020 Season Outlook

Colorado Avalanche forward Colin Wilson could see his role increased in the 2019-20 season, which should lead to an increase in production.

The Colorado Avalanche have a great roster that affords them a lot of options for their lines and defensive pairings. I think this year we’ll see a consistent third line again. However, the line will be different from last season’s, not least because the Avs traded center Carl Soderberg to Arizona.

Well, I think forward Colin Wilson will be a lynchpin of that third line. I have him on the wing with JT Compher as his center and Joonas Donskoi as the other wing.

The Avalanche signed the 29-year-old Wilson to a one-year deal this summer. They had previously acquired him two summers ago from the Nashville Predators via trade.

Well, it’s a new year, and one in which Wilson has to prove he’s still NHL-worthy. He’s 29 in a league that’s ever growing younger. And he’s an unrestricted free agent again next summer.

2018-19 Stats

Colin… didn’t have the seasons with Colorado he would have wanted. A large part of the problem was injury. He also had difficulty finding his spot in the lineup. Both of those issues contributed to some inconsistent play — 18 goals and 27 assists in 121 games for the Avalanche.

Let’s look at just last season, though. Wilson played 64 regular season and 12 playoff games with Colorado. In the regular season, he recorded 12 goals and 15 assists for 27 points. In the playoffs, he exploded, for a third liner anyway. He recorded four goals and four assists.

His average time on the ice was 13:34 in the regular season and 16:08 in the playoffs. He danced up and down the lineup, usually either on the second or fourth line, in the regular season. In the playoffs, he was a mainstay of the second line.

Projected 2019-20 Role

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As I said, I expect Colin Wilson to be on the third line as a winger. Last season, he also saw time on the second power play, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him there again.

Wilson needs to cement that spot on the third line. There are too many forwards now who will be fighting for top-six minutes. Besides the top three, the Avs now have Nazem Kadri and Andre Burakovsky, both of whom are expected to show their stuff on that second line. Ditto our own Tyson Jost with Compher and maybe even Donskoi making cases for themselves.

So, if Wilson doesn’t cement his spot on the third line, he might fall to the fourth line. But I think that will look like a checking line consisting of Matthew Nieto, Matt Calvert, and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare.

In other words, Wilson can find himself on the outside looking in as the 13th forward.

Projected 2019-20 Stats

Colin Wilson has plenty of talent and skill — and also a workhorse work ethic. So, I’m going to move forward with the expectation he’ll be on the third line.

So, third liners for the Avalanche get around the 13 minutes Wilson had last season. However, like I said, he also saw time on the power play. Indeed, five of his regular season and three of his playoff goals came on the power play.

Let’s imagine, then, that he’ll be utilized on the man-advantage. That means he gets a bump in minutes, from the 13:34 to something closer to what Soderberg saw, in this case 15:00.

Wilson recorded .03 points per minute in the regular season and .041 in the playoffs. Let’s split the difference and say he might record .035 per minute next season.

Well, if he does get bumped up to around 15 minutes, he might see a 43-point season. That number would actually represent a career-best for Colin, by one point over 2014-15.

Not quite Soderberg numbers, but better than either Matt last year.

I hope Colin Wilson gets into his groove this season on the third line. I think that’s why the Colorado Avalanche signed him for another season.