The Colorado Avalanche ended up with the 10th overall pick in the 2015 NHL Draft. By the time their pick rolled around, the likes of Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, Mitch Marner and Zach Werenski were off the board. They ended up selecting Mikko Rantanen from Finland.
Rantanen started his Avalanche career with nine games in his rookie season. He spent the majority of his time with the San Antonio Rampage, who was their AHL affiliate at the time (2015–24). There, he played 52 games and had 24 goals and 36 assists. He also played for that team in 2015-16, participating in four games and recording two assists.
Rantanen became a fixture on the top line with Nathan MacKinnon and the two had great chemistry together. While with the Avalanche, Rantanen had a total of 287 goals and 394 assists in 619 games through 10 seasons.
He had great consistency, strength, puck possession skills and was great at scoring, too. It was obvious that the Avalanche made the right pick by taking him in the 2015 Draft.
But what if they didn’t?
Had the Avs passed on Rantanen, a few things could have happened. First, who would they have selected instead? Some of the players who were selected after him were Lawson Crouse, Jake DeBrusk, Matthew Barzal, and Kyle Connor.
Those players have managed to carve out solid careers, just like Rantanen. It’s possible that each one of them could have worked nicely alongside MacKinnon. It’s also possible they might not have.
It could have also affected their future free agency decisions. Andrew Ladd could’ve been an Avalanche instead of signing with the Islanders. Maybe Milan Lucic would’ve signed with the Avalanche. Looking back on Lucic’s career, I’m just thrilled that the Avs made the choice of Rantanen instead.
The thing that worked so well with the duo was that they both had their own different skills that ended up complementary to each other. Rantanen was more the physical type while MacKinnon has been an elite goal scorer and even point producer in general.
Connor in particular has been a regular 30+ goal scorer in his career. He has surpassed 40 goals in a season twice, including a 47-goal campaign. However, Rantanen has at least two things that Connor does not: a 100-point season and a Stanley Cup.
The year prior, the Avalanche selected Connor Bleackley in the first round. They had to redeem themselves for that selection as Bleackley never played a single second in the NHL.
It is very obvious at this point that the Avs made the right call by selecitng Rantanen. Unfortunately, he is now with the division rival Dallas Stars in what was a shocking turnaround from his trade from the Avalanche to the Carolina Hurricanes.
While not a franchise legend, Rantanen’s contributions will not go forgotten. I think we can all say, however, that it is a shame that it came down to him being traded before they got to hoist the Stanley Cup a second time.
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