Colorado Avalanche depth raises some questions
The final section in The Athletic’s checklist looks at top-six forwards and top-pairing blue liners. Jonathan Drouin and Ross Colton get the nod in this category. Both players check off the boxes though they do get some lower-than-expected marks.
By looking at the eye test, Colton and Drouin have held up their own this season. Unfortunately, both have had tough luck with injuries this season. Colton suffered a broken foot amid a scoring tear at the beginning of the season. Meanwhile, Drouin suffered an upper-body injury during the season’s first game.
If we consider what both Drouin and Colton could have done this season if they hadn’t been injured, it’s safe to say their marks would be much higher.
Some questions arise when looking at Samuel Girard and Josh Manson as top-pairing defensemen. It’s clear that neither would be a top-pairing guy. Unless they played on a rebuilding team like San Jose, Anaheim, or Chicago, they would not likely draw as top-pairing guys. That reason explains why they don’t get top marks, here.
This situation also illustrates why the Colorado Avalanche pulled the trigger on the Ryan Lindgren trade. The Avalanche know they need more depth behind Makar and Toews. Girard has had a good season, but Manson has been somewhat underwhelming.
So, adding a guy like Lindgren fills that void. Lindgren gives the Avs positional depth, either on the bottom pairing or jumping into the middle pair.
Overall, the Avalanche look to be in good shape heading into the stretch run this season. There’s not much more the Avs need to do at the deadline this year. They have already done the heavy lifting earlier this season.
Ultimately, Chris MacFarland and company can take Friday easy as other teams scramble to get last-minute deals done.