Nearly a year ago, the Colorado Avalanche made nine selections at the 2024 NHL draft. Since that time, each player has played another full season. Which took a step forward and which took a step back? When can fans expect them to wearing the burgundy and blue?
Here are my thoughts about each players seasons and their timeline to make an NHL impact.
38th Overall: Ilya Nabokov (G) - Metallurg Magnitogorsk (KHL)
Nabokov was an overage goaltender from Russia who had gone largely unnoticed due to his small frame in the past three drafts he was eligible for. However, he had a monster season and showed he was a top prospect in the KHL. The Avs pulled the trigger to take him at 38th after moving back.
This year, Nabokov largely stayed the course, having a .923 save percentage with a 2.22 GAA. Comparing this to his .930 save percentage and 2.15 GAA from last season, it appears as a slight step down. However, his team was not as good this year and he played in a few more games this season. He still projects very similar to what scouts thought in his draft year, he can play as a tandem for sure, but there are still some lingering questions about being a full-time NHL starter. It is extremely rare to be his size an be an elite starter. Jesper Wallstedt is an example of a player who put up very similar numbers in a European pro league but so far has struggled to adjust to the North American game.
After signing Nabokov to a two-year entry level deal, the Avs can now have a much closer look at his performance when he comes to development camp in July. It will also be interesting to see what role he plays in his first season in Colorado as the Avs have found themselves in somewhat of a goalie log jam. Trent Miner was excellent this season in Loveland and he is a pending RFA, which the Avs will likely sign him to an extension or potentially seek a trade. Both Mackenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood signed through next season at least, so NHL jobs aren't exactly up for grabs, barring an injury. The bottom line is Nabokov will absolutely have to prove himself to earn a solid spot in the Avs organization.
76th Overall: Will Zellers (F) - Shattuck St. Mary’s 18U (USHS-Prep)
I won't dive too far into him as obviously he is not a part of the Avalanche organization anymore, but he did have a great season and it's important to recognize the value of assets given up via trade. He had 71 points in 52 games in the USHL (for the Green Bay Gamblers), winning USHL player of the year along the way. It is also worth mentioning that an astounding 44 of his points came as goals. He still is not a surefire impactful NHL player, but his coming season at University of North Dakota will be interesting to watch for both Avs and Bruins fans.
121st Overall: Jake Fisher (F) - Fargo Force (USHL)
Another overage prospect choice, Fisher had a nice overage year for the Force before committing to University of Denver, an institution the Avs absolutely love their prospects to play for. He went undrafted in his draft year largely because it was a deep pool and he played at a smaller high school in Minnesota while being quite unproven.
This season at DU, he played in almost every game which is impressive as a freshman. He scored eight goals and had 15 points, contributing nicely as a bottom-six player. He started the season as a center but got moved to wing when he was performing quite bad in the face off dot. I believe the Avs drafted him wanting a center, but unless he proves next season he can win faceoffs at the NCAA level, it might not work out for him at the center position. He will most likely play four years at DU at which point he could sign with any NHL team, but the Avs have an advantage especially with him in Denver. I could see him playing a bottom six role for the Avs in three or four years if he stays on his current trajectory.
132nd Overall: Louka Cloutier (G) - Chicago Steel (USHL)
The second goalie picked by the Avalanche was an interesting one and continues to be so. Cloutier played this season for an atrocious Chicago Steel team that saw him have a .882 save percentage and a 4.05 GAA. Those are to say the least, horrific numbers even for a bad team and a step down from last year. He split time with another goaltender, John Parsons, and Parsons actually had better numbers while playing in more games. However, he is committed to Boston College for next season, who have a good track record with developing goaltenders, so time will tell. Cloutier will remain a project for some time as he is most likely still at least a minimum of five years away from seeing any NHL ice time.
137th Overall: Ivan Yunin (G) - Omskie Yastreby (MHL)
The (thankfully) final goaltender the Avs selected in 2024 was Ivan Yunin. Yunin was a questionable pick at the time and now looks to be a bad one. Many people will say it is okay to take a swing and miss in the fifth round of the draft and to an extent I agree. However, having already taken two goaltenders swinging on a third who mainly played in the Russian U18 league and was the fourth string on his Russian junior team does not make sense. A year later he is essentially the third string on a Russian second tier team probably makes it worse. Goalies take time to develop, but Yunin has simply not taken the strides he needs to as an only average sized goalie to seriously push for an NHL job anywhere. I doubt he will ever play in the NHL but if he does, it will be minimum five to six years down the line.
161st Overall: Maximillian Curran (F) - Tri-City Americans (WHL)
Where to begin with Max Curran? This is a player who I think has flown under the radar a bit with even Avs fans but he had a fantastic season this year. He was picked quite late because he was injured in his draft year and couldn't put up too many points but it was respectable. However, he clearly showed some flashes and after the leap he took this year, I do not think he would go 161st in a redraft to say the least. With a team-leading 74 points in 65 games, he practically dragged an Americans team with a quite poor forward group to the playoffs.
He plays a playmaking center type style with some two way ability as well. He's got good size as well, 6'3" 190lbs, that is an NHL frame. He was also one of the youngest players in the draft, if he was born three weeks later he would have been 2025 eligible. Unfortunately, he cannot play in the AHL next season which I would have liked to see, but with the new NCAA-CHL rules he can play in college. I would like to see him make a college commitment because I simply do not think another CHL season would be all that beneficial for his development. Either way I think he will most likely need at least one very solid AHL season before a full time NHL role so most likely we are looking at a two to three-year timeline for Curran to see some NHL minutes. This can change if he decides to play out his full college eligibility.
185th Overall: Tory Pitner (D) - Youngstown Phantoms (USHL)
The only defenseman the Avs drafted in 2024 is Tory Pitner. He played this season alongside Jake Fisher at University of Denver, he played in 40 of 44 games and recorded one assist. Those numbers are clearly not great. However, he was touted as basically a defense first defenseman so not all that surprising. What is more concerning to me, however, is that he recorded only five shots on goal all season. He played 40 games and took a single shot every eight.
Admittedly, I did not watch a ton of DU hockey this season, but in the Frozen Four game against Western Michigan, Pitner did not appear to be on the penalty kill which is the most concerning to me. He is a freshman so time will tell, but to put up a single point, five shots, and not play penalty kill is not a great sign for things to come, especially in the modern NHL game. Pitner is 100% a guy that will fully play out his college eligibility and then play most likely a few AHL seasons before seeing the NHL ice, if at all.
215th Overall: Christian Humphreys (F) - USNDTP (USHL)
I can remember on draft day seeing that the Avs picked Humphreys in the seventh round and being astounded that he was still available. I personally had him going in the third as did a decent amount of scout writers. To follow his fall in the draft he had a very interesting season, playing only 10 games for the University of Michigan before coming to the CHL to play for the Kitchener Rangers. A move from the NCAA to the CHL is a rare one to make and is not usually a good sign but, in this case it was probably best for his development. Humphreys was absolutely buried in the lineup and getting minimal ice time at Michigan whereas in Kitchener he was getting a lot more practice in game.
He put up an very respectable 33 goals in 28 games for the OHL's Rangers, a stark difference in production and ice time than what he was seeing in Ann Arbor. I believe that this was a fantastic move for his development and puts him in a much better place to succed. I would venture a guess that he returns to the OHL next season before possibly going back to college or potentially signing an NHL deal and playing down for the Eagles for a bit. I think his timeline is potentially close, he has to take another step this year, but if he can show sustained offensive production in the OHL and then a respectable season or so in the AHL, he could be a piece for the Avs in 3-4 years and see a few games in as little as 2.
217th Overall: Nikitia Prishchepov (F) - Victoriaville Tigres (QMJHL)
The guy that has already played in the NHL, the overager from Russia who played in the Q, what else needs to be said about Nikita Prishchepov? It is not necessarily a surprise that he was taken this late but everything I have seen from him says he will be a NHL player. His work ethic and motor are just so good, and he has some offensive upside despite his general lack of production this season. In his stint with the Avs I felt like he nearly got a goal or assist almost every game he played which was so promising to see. His timeline could be next season to play a solid number of games with the Avs.
Fun fact: Prishchepov was the first seventth round pick to play in the NHL from the 2022, 2023, and 2024 drafts combined.
Overall Thoughts
This was a respectable draft in general and could be one of the better ones in recent Avs memory if Curran and Prishchepov make the impact they are projected to make. On draft day it did not look great and the decision to take three goalies still doesn't look very good, but it absolutely looks better today than it looked a year ago which is rare for a Colorado Avalanche draft. It should be noted that my timeline projections for many of these players are best case scenarios and a majority of them, in all likelihood, will never play in the NHL.