The 2025 NHL Draft is moving quick, as the Colorado Avalanche have made their second selection of the day, and overall. They selected defenseman Linus Funk out of Sweden.
Funck is a 6’3”, 183 pounds. While he is right up there with some of the taller Avalanche defensemen, he would be one of the lightest in that position group. My guess is that he’ll have to put on some pounds to have a bigger impact in the NHL .
On the draft broadcast, they had Funck ranked 88th overall, much higher than where the Avalanche were able snatch him up at pick 118. Automatically, he’s deemed as a potential steal of the middle rounds in 2025. In 68 games over the last two years at Lulea HF Jr. of the Sweden-Jr league, Funck had 6 goals and 31 assists. He had a goal and an assist in three playoff games in 2024-25.
In my opinion, the Avalanche’s third pairing could be different in the next couple of years. They currently have been slotting in different players, with Keaton Middleton and Sam Malinski having pretty decent roles in that part of the defensive zone. I’d imagine the Avalanche want to give Malinski a bigger role in years to come, as they just qualified him on Friday.
Middleton is more of a hitting defenseman than a scorer. While the Avalanche always want to have some physical players, Middleton spent time in the AHL last year, so the Avalanche don’t have a problem sending him down while plugging in a different player in his spot.
Funck is labeled as a pass-first type of defender, which isn’t bad at all, especially if he’s put on a line that has some of the team’s solid shooters.
If Funck doesn’t see time in the NHL for a couple of years, it will be interesting to see where the team stands in terms of its defensive units. Josh Manson is set to become a free agent in 2026-27, while Sam Girard and Middleton are set to become free agents in 2027-28.
One thing is for certain: If/when Funck gets put into the Avalanche’s lineup, we’ll be having a lot of fun with his name!