Colorado Avalanche: Do the Latest Injuries Change Trade Deadline Approach?

With the Colorado Avalanche’s recent spate of injuries, will they change their approach to the NHL Trade Deadline on February 24?

The Colorado Avalanche have been bitten by the injury bug again. In the debacle that was the Stadium Series game, we had two more players drop.

So, as of right now, we’ve got Colin Wilson out pretty much until the end of the season after having a couple surgeries. That’s not new news.

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We’ve got Nazem Kadri out four to six weeks win a lower body injury — that happened in the game against Minnesota, so also not really new news.

However, we had two more players fall in the Stadium Series game. One was forward Matt Calvert. His disappearance from the game was pretty low-key, and we don’t know too much about what happened.

The other injury was more spectacular. Early in the third period, Ian Cole — yes, Avalanche player Ian Cole — butt-checked Philipp Grubauer. While said butt seemed to hit Grubauer’s head, it’s his lower body that’s injured. He was ginger getting off the ice.

And today the Avs called in the newly-signed Hunter Miska from the Colorado Eagles. It’s understood he will stand in as backup for Pavel Francouz, who went in for Grubauer in the Stadium Series game. Prior to the game they had already recalled forward TJ Tynan.

Right now is a time the Avalanche are looking to solidify their playoff run. There are just 25 regular-season games left. Before the Stadium Series game, they were challenging for first in the Central Division. They’ve now fallen to third.

GM Joe Sakic always states he plans to have a quiet Trade Deadline day. In recent years, he’s just traded for depth players. Will any of that alter with this recent spate of injuries.

Blake Coleman Rumors

Today, gritty forward Blake Coleman was a Colorado Avalanche for about one hour. To be clear, he was never officially traded to the team. However, credentialed reporters had the deal already done:

Renaud Lavoie works for TSN.

In fact, about an hour later the news came out that the New Jersey Devils had, in fact, traded Coleman to the Tampa Bay Lightning for forward prospect Nolan Foote and a 2020 first-round pick that originally belonged to the Vancouver Canucks. So, he’s heading to Colorado, but only for tomorrow’s game against the Lightning.

However, the appeal of Coleman is he’s a gritty forward for down the stretch of the season and the playoffs. The Avalanche are without their grittiest forwards in Kadri and Calvert. Maybe their decision to trade for a gritty forward depends on the timeline for Calvert’s injury. We won’t know until tomorrow’s morning skate.

Need for a Goalie?

The Colorado Avalanche’s goal tending tandem has been in question for most of the year. Many Avs fans — and even pundits — have questioned whether Philipp Grubauer is a real starter and whether Pavel Francouz is adequate backup.

Well, they’ve both run hot and cold, as goalies do. They’ve stolen a few games and maybe cost a couple games. Again, that’s the life of a goalie.

But is this the tandem to take Colorado on a Cup run? The Stanley Cup is won through a combination of team chemistry and goal tending. And don’t discount the first.

So, even before Cole’s butt injured Grubauer, there were questions about whether the
Avs might be in the market for a goalie. With the Grubauer injury, said questions are much sharper.

Because Pavel Francouz with Hunter Miska as his backup does not seem like the goalie tandem to take us on a deep Cup run.

Again, whether the Avalanche decide to trade for a goalie depends on how long Grubauer is expected to be out. You want him to be able to return with enough time to not only warm up but get hot before the playoffs.

Not for nothing, I like the look of Marcus Högberg out of Ottawa.

So, what do you think, Avs Nation? Will the Colorado Avalanche make a trade at deadline based on their current injuries? The NHL Trade Deadline is one week away.