The idea of the Colorado Avalanche targeting a major piece like Connor Hellebuyck certainly seems tantalizing. The club doesn’t seem to have the pieces needed to pull off such a massive move. However, that does not preclude Joe Sakic from kicking the tires on available names out there.
So, that situation begs the question: Could the Avalanche have a whopper in them this offseason?
It’s certainly fascinating when thinking that players like Dylan Larkin are out there. What would the Avalanche look like if they could add a player like Larkin? What would the Avalanche lineup look like if Jared Bendar could deploy Nathan MacKinnon, followed by Larkin, and, say, Nazem Kadri?
Such a prospect is fantastic in theory. But in practice, it would represent a massive undertaking as the team doesn’t have the cap space or prime pieces to make such a trade work. In fact, if the Avalanche did, it would have to be a type of trade in which one of the club’s veteran pieces went back to the other side.
For instance, would Brock Nelson be amenable to the Detroit Red Wings as part of a deal for Dylan Larkin? Would the Winnipeg Jets have taken back someone like Scott Wedgewood as part of the trade for Connor Hellebuyck?
Yes, I know. Nelson is not necessarily comparable to Larkin, and Wedgewood isn’t close to Hellebuyck.
But that’s the sort of point where the conversation would have to start with any team potentially looking to trade with the Avalanche. Otherwise, a trade would have to revolve around the organization’s younger pieces. And no offense, but Gavin Brindley isn’t going to move the needle in a trade for Hellebuyck, or any other player of that ilk.
Still, Avalanche fans shouldn’t discount Sakic. He may have something up his sleeve that no one is really looking at. That’s the hard part about playing armchair GM. Unless you’re actually sitting in the GM chair, it’s tough to see what’s out there. None of us is privy to the day-to-day conversations that GMs have regarding potential moves.
So, there might just be something out there we’re not seeing. I’m not forecasting a major trade by Colorado anytime soon. But you have to wonder that, considering the suspicion of the Avalanche looking at Hellebuyck, could Sakic actually be up to something big?
Bear in mind that rumors have a way of unexpectedly getting out. So, this might be a nothing burger, but it’s certainly enticing enough to get the conversation started.
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