The Colorado Avalanche will have their rookie face-off tournament rookie face-off tournament take place a week from today: September 15 in Vegas. The tournament will be a best-of-three situation, as the team will square off against the Arizona Coyotes, Anaheim Ducks, and Vegas Golden Knights.
Despite the term “rookie” in the title of the tournament, there will be a mix of actual rookies as well as players who were fairly recently added to the team. Let’s take a look at the roster:
Owen Allard, C, Renfrew, ON
Brandon Cutler, C/LW, Spruce Grove, Alberta
Ivan Ivan, C, Ostrava, Czech Republic
Maros Jedlicka, C, Trnava, Slovakia
Simon Lafrance, C, St. Eustache, Quebec
Yoan Loshing, C, Ste-Catherine, Quebec
Oskar Olausson, RW, Stockholm, Sweden
Ondrej Pavel, RW, Praha, Czech Republic
Jason Polin, RW, Holt, Michigan
Calum Ritchie, C, Oakville, Ontario
Milo Roelens, RW/C, Saint-Petronille, Quebec
Ryan Sandelin, RW/C, Hermantown, Minnesota
Brett Stapley, C, Campbell River, British Columbia
Matthew Stienburg, C, Halifax, Nova Scotia
Julius Sumpf, C, Munich, Germany
Briley Wood, C, Rivers, Manitoba
Aidan De La Gorgendiere, D, Abbotsford, British Columbia
Gianni Fairbrother, D, Vancouver British Columbia
Jeremy Hanzel, D, Burnaby, British Columbia
Marc Lajoie, D, St. Albert, Alberta
Sam Malinski, D, Lakeville, Minnesota
Kyle Mayhew, D, Anaheim Hills, California
Ryan Michael, D, Langley, British Columbia
Brayden Schmitt, D, Truro, Nova Scotia
Michael Underwood, D, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan
Sage Weinstein, D, Edmonton, Alberta
Bryan Yoon, D, Parker, Colorado
Trent Miner, G, Brandon, Manitoba
Brandon Peters, G, Taber, Alberta
Ivan Zhigalov, G, Minsk, Belarus
This year’s team consists of a couple of familiar names, including this year’s draft picks Calum Ritchie, and Jeremy Hanzel, as well as last year’s Ivan Zhigalov. This tournament will be a great test for the young players in trying to perfect their craft as they continue to work their way up to the NHL level and play some meaningful hockey for the Colorado Avalanche.