The NHL deadline for teams to submit qualifying offers to their restricted free agents passed at 5pm EST on June 29th, thus making those players who didn’t get qualifying offers unrestricted free agents. The only Colorado Avalanche player to not receive a qualifying offer was Daniil Gushchin. With the Avalanche needing to add some depth to their roster and possibly fill some holes, there are some intriguing options out there.
I've selected three forwards that I think would make good fits for the Avalanche roster. The Avalanche need to find a way to fill out their roster in a frugal way. It'll likely take another trade to make anything really work, but these three players shouldn't break the bank and would fill the roster holes while getting younger as well.
Matias Maccelli
Matias Maccelli could be a potential replacement for departed wingers Ross Colton and Valeri Nichushkin. His best season came with the Arizona Coyotes in 2023-24. He set career highs in goals (17), assists (40), and points (57). The next season he fell off in Utah's first season with only 18 points. He was traded to Toronto last offseason and had somewhat of a bounce back year for a terrible Maple Leafs team, running a 14-25-39 stat line. Playing within Colorado's middle-six would give him playmakers to help boost his play even more.
Philipp Kurashev
Philipp Kurashev is similar to Maccelli as he's played for clear rebuilding teams—The Chicago Blackhawks and last year's San Jose Sharks team. Following Maccelli's lead, his best season was an 18-36-54 stat line in 2023-24, followed by a significant dip the following season. I think Kurashev is a bit more of a gamble than Maccelli as he's got some injury history. While he's more of a playmaker and not a goal scorer, he fits into the high hockey IQ players that Sakic is targeting.
Arthur Kaliyev
Arthur Kaliyev was not a name I expected to see available. He led the AHL in goals for the 2025-26 season, yet the Ottawa Senators chose not to give him a qualifying offer. An offensive weapon as a true goal scorer, he would provide the Avs with that missing element. The knock on Kaliyev, of course, is his defensive game. This is one of those contracts where the Avs could sign him at league minimum and see if they can get everything out of him.
There are lots of options for the Avs to fill out their roster in free agency. These new names are players that Joe Sakic and the Avalanche front office should at least take a good look at.
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