The Colorado Eagles were eliminated from the American Hockey League playoffs Monday. Unfortunately for the Pacific Division winners, regular season success did not translate to the postseason. The Colorado Eagles were dispatched 5-0 in a Game 5 winner-take-all tilt for a spot in the Western Conference Final.
I wrote last week about the Eagles chances, and was optimistic about a veteran-heavy roster having a legitimate shot at Calder Cup glory. The team did bounce back from a tough Game 3, and dominated play in Friday night's Game 4. The Eagles won that contest 3-1 and looked great in the process.
On Friday, the Eagles finally converted on a power play when Tye Felhaber scored their sole PPG of the entire divisional round to put the Eagles up 3-0. It was only some late-game luck that spoiled an Eagles shutout bid for Trent Miner.
However, Game 5 was an altogether dismal experience for the club. The Eagles could not solve Abottsford goaltender Arturs Silovs even once. The Canucks goalie was perfect, stopping all 34 shots he faced. It would be overly simplistic to say that the game was decided solely on that fact, but if you can't light the lamp, you can't win.
The Eagles came out of the locker room with some decent jump to their game. They were setting the pace and pushing the action early. I believe Colorado actually led in shots 7-3 in the opening frame before they took a penalty that shifted momentum.
Colorado forward Oskar Olausson was sent to the box for a high-stick and Abbotsford scored on the ensuing power play. The Canucks then added another a minute later and took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission. The Eagles ended the period with an 8-7 lead in shots.
Abottsford increased their lead to 3-0 in the second frame. They effectively shut the door in the third period by scoring a fourth tally right away. The fifth and final goal was an empty net score as time wound down.
That sort of recounting hurts to relive. Still, despite the absence of payoff on the scoresheet the Eagles did not play a brand of hockey devoid of effort. In fact, three out of the four *normal goals surrendered were the result of lethally successful counters from Abottsford. The Eagles were getting decent chances, but in combination with saves and the Canucks burying some rushes, we got an end score that spelled disaster.
What does this mean for next season?
Like any end to a playoff run, this will lead to some amount of soul searching. The Colorado Eagles are still a contender in the American League, and I think they may be even more intriguing in 2025-26. But with the impending cap crunch and a real lack of draft capital after going big at the deadline, it's fair to be concerned about a slim prospect pool.
Perhaps the most prominent name from that pool who was on this version of the Eagles was the aforementioned Oskar Olausson. The 22 year old forward was once a 1st round pick of the Avalanche. Olausson was selected 28th overall in 2021, but he's failed to gain much traction in the time since.
Olausson did miss much of 2023-24 with a shoulder injury, but he has been consistently underwhelming when healthy. Olausson has scored exactly 11 goals in each of the three campaigns where he got significant time with the Eagles. While that registers some contribution to the team, it isn't anything that might hint at an NHL future with the Avalanche.
Olausson has one more year to erase his current tag as a draft bust. While that is a sentence I loathe to write, I think it is a fair evaluation.
One positive to take from less than rosy outlook on supposedly high-end prospects is that Colorado has gotten okay returns from their system even without the cache of touted draft position. They have turned guys like Sam Malinski and Keaton Middelton into players the club is comfortable with on their back-end.
Malinski is a set to be an RFA, but I think he probably stays in Colorado. I also believe he has a lot of room for quality improvement. Middelton is more of a question to me, but as a rotating bottom-pair guy, I don't have an issue with him.
When we look at forwards who have shown some spark, I still really like the upside of Ivan Ivan and even Nikita Prishchepov. Prischepov had just three less points than Oskar Olausson's 26, even while playing 10 less games in Loveland. Ivan Ivan only tallied 8 points while up with the Avalanche this year, but his 40 NHL starts did help team navigate an injury-plagued campaign.
What I did notice from Ivan at the NHL level was that he played hard and mostly smart minutes. For a guy of his experience, that says a lot to me. Maybe he's not going to light the league on fire, but he's an NHL regular and any time you can pull one from relative obscurity that counts as an organizational win.
Ilya Nabokov time in Loveland?
Finally, I want to talk about the biggest potential story coming for the Colorado Eagles next season. It has to be the impending North American debut of goaltender Ilya Nabokov. The Avs' top draft selection from last summer has quite possibly played his last game in Russia. Nabokov shut down talks of a KHL extension and seems keen on testing his skills stateside.
With the Avalanche relatively secure in net, having both starter Mackenzie Blackwood and backup Scott Wedgewood under contract, Nabokov seems primed for an AHL assignment. If Nabokov does come over he immediately slots in as a starter for the Eagles.
Nabokov has championship pedigree from his time in Russia and I'm super excited to see what he can do for Colorado's AHL affiliate. Although I did stress that a goalie being really tough wasn't the only reason the Eagles season is now over, it was a major factor.
I'd imagine that the 2025-26 incarnation of the Colorado Eagles will once again be anchored by AHL vets. But if you add a proven winner between the pipes who could someday soon be donning burgundy and blue to that equation, there will still be plenty to cheer for in Eagles Country.