The Colorado Avalanche are among the teams believed to be most active at the deadline. Pundits posit the Avs will be looking to upgrade anyway they can. That line of thought has led to numerous links to just about every available player at the NHL trade deadline this season.
But there’s one name that could be an interesting addition. That would be a veteran forward currently skating for the Ottawa Senators.
We’re talking about Claude Giroux. Giroux’s name recently popped up in a column by Pierre LeBrun in The Athletic. LeBrun suggested that the Senators could be willing to move the 38-year-old as he’s never won a Stanley Cup before.
Going to Colorado would certainly give him that opportunity.
While Giroux might not be the sort of player that Avalanche fans have in mind, he’s certainly a serviceable addition to the team.
The former 22nd overall pick from the 2006 NHL Draft is a gritty, hard-nosed player with plenty of playoff experience. He’s the sort of guy teams love to have in the locker room and would add another layer of leadership.
Plus, he can eat up tough minutes, giving stars like Nathan MacKinnon, Martin Necas, and Gabriel Landeskog a bit of a break heading down the stretch run.
Perhaps the best part is his cap hit. Giroux signed a one-year, $2 million deal this past offseason. While the deal contains performance bonuses, paying $2.75 million if he delivers in the postseason seems like a cheap price to pay.
Giroux could slide into a middle-six role. He could play on a third line with Victor Olofsson and Jack Drury. If coach Jared Bednar really wanted to move him up the lineup, Giroux could slide into the second line.
Imagine a second line featuring Brock Nelson, Landeskog, and Giroux. That would be some heck of a veteran, gritty, and punchy second line.
Sure, Giroux won’t be the sort of guy to score 20 goals in the remaining games. But he’ll be the sort of low-cost pickup savvy GMs make at the deadline.
It’s just an idea for now, but it wouldn’t be surprising to hear rumblings linking the Avalanche to under-the-radar veterans like Giroux.