Where does Brock Nelson fit with the Colorado Avalanche?

The Colorado Avalanche acquired Brock Nelson from the New York Islanders on Thursday, in a trade that was announced literally during a game against the San Jose Sharks. Nelson had been linked to the Avalanche for a little while, and it has proven to be an accurate scenario. Unfortunately, however, to get, you must give.

The Avalanche are sending Calum Ritchie, Oliver Kylington, and two draft picks—including a first-rounder for Nelson and forward William Dufour.

It’s tough giving up so much for several less pieces in return, but Colorado appears to be confident in making a strong push into the postseason this year. While Nelson is going to be placed somewhere across one of the Avs’ lines, Dufour has appeared in just one NHL game—back in 2022-23. So, it’s probably safe to assume that he’ll be with the Colorado Eagles.

Nelson has 43 points in 61 games this season, which is around .70 points per game. He had at least a goal in back-to-back games just three times this season, which isn’t great. Maybe he’ll fit in nicely with the Avalanche, but right now, it feels like a bit of a risky move.

As for Ritchie, I had high hopes for the former first-round pick. Although he did not make the Avalanche’s roster after his audition in the lineup, he has loads of talent. It sucks to lose him, but in the sports world, you do what it takes—or what you feel it takes—to win now. Though the NHL is setup for players into the future, the now is what matters most.

I hope that Ritchie finds his way into the Islanders’ lineup at some point in the near future. I believe he will.

Where will Brock Nelson fit in with the Colorado Avalanche?

Initially, I thought that Nelson could center the second line with Casey Mittelstadt bumped over to one of the wing spots. That could have kept Mittelstadt’s confidence up, playing with the better players and continuing to play second-line minutes. I think that Mittelstadt had been playing pretty decently lately.

However, why add some more fire to one line when you can possibly improve two lines with one acquisition?

Daily FaceOff has quickly adjusted the Avalanche’s lines on their Avalanche page, with Nelson centering second line with Valeri Nichushkin and Jonathan Drouin and Mittelstadt moving to the third line with Joel Kiviranta and Ross Colton.

It’s certainly possible that this transaction rejuvenates Mittelstadt and helps him play better, if the team ends up keeping him around past Friday’s trade deadline. There’s still time for the Avalanche to make another move or two, and as someone who has followed sports for 20 years, I’ve learned that nothing should be surprising in the world of sports.

We’ll see how the addition of Nelson works out and whether or not he’ll help the Avalanche on their way to the postseason.

The Avalanche take on the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday. We’ll see if Nelson is in the lineup that quick. It wouldn’t surprise me if he is. We should get to see him play very soon.