We’re well into August and Mikko Rantanen hasn’t signed his extension yet. I’ll admit, I’m a little surprised. But I wouldn’t say it’s concerning.
Aside from that, the Colorado Avalanche have plenty of questions up and down their forward lineup. The obvious ones are Gabriel Landeskog and Valeri Nichushkin. But you also lost a lot of depth over the summer in Andrew Cogliano, Yakov Trenin and Brandon Duhaime.
Here are the questions I received about the forward depth, starting with a quick one about Rantanen’s next contract.
@f4rtwaffles asks: Do you envision Mikko Rantanen getting a contract extension before the season starts?
I could see it happening leading up to, or during training camp. And if not, I don’t expect it to linger far into the season either. For example, Devon Toews signed last year after opening night. Perhaps that’s the extent of how long I’d say it lingers.
@mukemuke94 asks: How do you feel about our bottom 6 this year?
It’s hard to grade the bottom six right now, in August, because it still feels incomplete. Ideally, all of Ross Colton, Logan O’Connor, Miles Wood and Nikolai Kovalenko are permanent pieces of the bottom six. You can also include Parker Kelly and Joel Kiviranta in that group, though I still feel the team needs another center for the fourth line. Chris Wagner will get a look there too.
Aside from the addition of another center, you’re going to see one of these guys start in the top six if Landeskog isn’t ready in October and if Calum Ritchie doesn’t get the first look there (more on him later).
The cool part is, it’s not hard to revamp a bottom six. The trade deadline last year was proof. But, without any additions, there’s a scenario where Landeskog and Nichushkin both return and your bottom six could look something like this:
Landeskog – Colton – O’Connor
Wood – Kovalenko – Kiviranta
Extras: Kelly, Wagner
Of course, Landeskog might also be in the top six, but that means one of Arturri Lehkonen or Jonathan Drouin drop down into his spot on the third line. Either way, it’s a stacked lineup with everyone healthy. But there’s no guarantee that happens.
So right now, I’d grade the bottom six as an incomplete, but I’m also very confident in how it’ll come together throughout the regular season.
@f4rtwaffles asks: Do you see Ritchie getting much time if any at all in the NHL this season? If so, what role will he have – 3C/4C?
If Ritchie has a good training camp, which at this point I expect he will, then I can see him getting a nine-game trial. Anything more than that is hard to say right now and will depend on his play.
The Avs have a lot of opportunity for ice time early in the season without Nichushkin and potentially Landeskog ready for opening night. If he makes the team, Ritchie will probably get a look at center and some shifts on the wing in the top six.
I’m all for throwing him to the wolves and letting him play with Casey Mittelstadt and Lehkonen to start the season if he earns a spot out of camp.
@Allrushmixtapes asks: How many Hail Mary tryouts will the Avs be handing out before training camp to old guys to try and cheaply fill the bottom six? Who would they target?
Hah. We know the Avs love to toss these around quite a bit. Last year they even went off the board with Peter Holland, who made a remarkable pro hockey comeback after retiring many years ago. And of course Kiviranta as well.
From the names still available on the UFA market, the ones that stick out most are Tyler Johnson, Filip Zadina, Alexander Barabanov, Dominik Kubalik and James van Riemsdyk.
The only center from this group is Johnson. So maybe he’s my likeliest option right now. In 2023-24, Johnson had 14 goals and 17 assists in 67 games. So he’s definitely still got it.
Aside from those, here’s a random out-of-the-blue thought… How about Jonathan Toews?
I genuinely wonder where he’s at with his hockey career. He took the 2023-24 season off but he didn’t announce his retirement. Is he healthy? Does he want to play again? Will he accept a PTO for a chance to be a 4C on this team?