As hard as it is sometimes to send away a player or two, the trade the Colorado Avalanche just made with the San Jose Sharks seemed almost inevitable. Well, part of it, anyway.
The Avalanche have sent goaltender Alexandar Georgiev, forward Nikolai Kovalenko, a 2026 second-round pick and a 2025 fifth round pick to the Sharks for goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood, a forward Givani Smith, and a 2027 fifth-round pick.
We have traded Alexandar Georgiev and Nikolai Kovalenko to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for Mackenzie Blackwood and Givani Smith. pic.twitter.com/04rknVkWGX
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) December 9, 2024
If you recall, Blackwood had an epic game against the Colorado Avalanche, where he saved 51 of 52 shots, but the Avalanche came out victorious in overtime. His overall record against the Avalanche is 0-2-1, though he played another game against them but played just 29 minutes (in 2019).
Georgiev had struggled earlier in the season, getting pulled out in favour of Justus Annunen three times this year. It was a combination of poor goalie play but also some shakeups in front of him, as the Avalanche have had to explore different combinations due to injury and also trying to get better results. It wasn’t all on Georgiev, but it was clear that something had to be done at some point.
Officially, Georgiev finished his time with the Avalanche with an 8-7 record this year, and an overall record of 43-27-7 with the team.
The inclusion of Nikolai Kovalenko is disappointing to me because I thought that he had played well for the Avalanche. However, although he wasn’t a top player on the team, I would have liked it if he had produced more than four goals and four assists through 28 games. Still, being elevated from the Colorado Eagles and playing in every game this year is still something to be proud of if you are Kovalenko.
What Mackenzie Blackwood brings to the Colorado Avalanche
Just the other night, the Sharks had Blackwood in net against the Florida Panthers, and he made an incredible 51 saves. Unfortunately for the Sharks, Florida was able to squeeze three goals into the net while only producing one goal.
He had a record of 6-9-1 this season for the Sharks, but as you may know or realize, that team is trying to get out of being a bottom team in the entire NHL. In a move like this, the hope is that Blackwood can begin a new era in his career. With how the team is playing right now, I have confidence that he will be able to.
Heck, just checkout Scott Wedgewood. He pulled off two victories so far in his short time with the team, including the very first game in which he shutout the Buffalo Sabres. In fact, he now has two shutout victories in his very new Avalanche tenure.
This trade also marks the end of the Avalanche’s 2023-24 goaltending tandem of Georgiev and Justus Annunen, who the Avs traded to the Predators for Wedgewood.
If I had to guess, the trade talks might have started to happen pretty recently. Colorado played Georgiev against the Red Wings two days ago. They were risking him getting injured, which would mean that a trade likely wouldn’t happen.
A new era of Colorado Avalanche goaltending starts now. Avalanche fans are thankful for Georgiev for leading the league in wins last season, but now they look to the future.