Colorado Avalanche ready to move on from Nazem Kadri?

It’s possible that the Colorado Avalanche have come to terms with the possibility that Nazem Kadri won’t be back in 2022.

We don’t know what the Colorado Avalanche are doing behind the scenes at Ball Arena. What we do know is that Nazem Kadri is still weighing his options on the open market in free agency.

The Avalanche have yet to make a corresponding move that would free up enough cap space to sign Kadri to a long-term deal, which is a problem. The issue is that there are reports out there in hockey Twitter that there are several other teams trying to free up cap space to make a run at Kadri before anyone else.

So, what’s the hold up? Somebody on the Avalanche is going to have to be traded in order for the team to have a realistic shot at signing Kadri.

So, why not just try and renegotiate a contract with a guy like Sam Girard?

Here’s a look at the team’s free agency moves.

Per the NHL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, they can’t.

“Player contracts will not be renegotiated (upward or downward) during their term. Extensions may be negotiated but only in the final year of the contract and only if such extension is for an amount that can be accommodated in a Club’s upper limit for the current year or as computed for future years.“— Collective Bargaining Agreement on NHL.com

That is the reason for the trade speculation around a couple of Avalanche players. The final year of Girard’s deal is during the 2026-27 season.

It certainly is possible that they are working to get something done, but the fact that we have not heard anything, nor has Avalanche insider Adrian Dater heard anything on a Girard trade.

There should be plenty of teams interested in signing Kadri, which is a reason the Avalanche need to make up their mind. Do they trade away Girard or J.T. Compher, or do they bite the bullet and move on from the possibility of keeping Kadri?