The Colorado Avalanche surprised fans by pulling off a bit of an unusual trade. The Avs sent defenseman Ilya Solovyov to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for AHL forward Valtteri Puustinen and a 2026 seventh-rounder.
The deal seems somewhat off, as Solovyov has been a solid depth defense option for the team. The Avs carried Solovyov the entire season as a seventh defenseman. Perhaps Colorado was looking to send him down to the AHL and feared placing him on waivers again would lead to his claiming by another club. So, it was preferable to trade him for something instead of losing him for nothing.
Be that as it may, the Avalanche could use another depth defenseman. That option could have hit the waiver wire on Tuesday. The Boston Bruins placed depth blueliner Vladislav Kolyachonok on waivers. The likely plan is to send him down to the AHL. However, the 25-year-old must clear waivers first.
That’s where the Avalanche could step in. The Avalanche could certainly use Kolyachonok to take Solovyov’s place as the club’s seventh or even eighth defenseman. His cap hit is $775K, identical to Solovyov’s. That’s why it almost seems like this entire situation happened on purpose.
It’s worth pointing out that Kolyachonok is not a scoring machine. He appeared in 11 games for the Dallas Stars this season, scoring one goal and three points. He hit the waiver wire, where the Bruins picked him up. Unfortunately, he only appeared in two games, failing to register a point.
The Bruins kept Kolyachonok around, but didn’t bring him into the lineup. Now, it seems the club has no use for him, so back to waivers he goes.
It’s worth pointing out that the Avalanche will have the last crack at the depth blueliners. The way waivers work in the NHL, teams get a shot at players based on the standings. So, the last overall team gets first crack. That’s why the Avs will get the last shot at Kolyachonok.
If he’s still around after 30 other teams pass on him, the Avalanche would do well to claim him. The club loses nothing by taking him on. If anything, the Avs can turn Kolyoachonok into another draft pick like they did with Solovyov.