This story was originally published on Hockey Mountain High, part of the Mile High Sports network.

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A second deal between the Colorado Avalanche and Nashville Predators has taken place, with Jack Drury being traded for Zachary L’Heureux. In addition, the Avs are sending a 2029 third-round pick and Chase Bradley to Nashville for Fedor Svechkov.

Another center departs

For the second time, Chris MacFarland and Joe Sakic have made a deal after their new titles. The first deal involved Ross Colton, who would play center from time to time with the Avs. Plus, Zakhar Bardakov has left for Russia, who would also fill in.

Now, Drury has departed to follow Colton to the Music City. Colorado will be losing a key addition to the Martin Necas and Mikko Rantanen trade, who put up 10 goals and 17 assists in 82 games. In the postseason, he put up three more goals and two assists.


While the Avalanche lose Drury, the AHL-affiliate Colorado Eagles also lose another piece of their forward depth. Bradley is being dealt due to his RFA status.

Bradley has only two career NHL games under his belt, being left without any points in Colorado. However, he had 42 appearances with the Eagles last season.

He finished with nine goals and three assists. While not a major asset for the Avs, it’s another option lost in the system.

The new guys

Meanwhile, Svechkov played as Nashville’s fourth-line center for 70 games. In his second NHL season, he scored four goals while tallying 13 assists.

Svechkov is a 23-year-old Russian forward who was drafted 19th overall by the Preds in 2021. He’s a left-handed shooter who can also dig in amongst the depth of the lineup.


L’Heureux played in only 25 games with the Preds this season, scoring four times with an assist. L’Heureux played most of the season with the AHL-affiliate Milwaukee Admirals. In 30 games, he had an even 14 goals and assists.

L’Heureux brings a lot of tenacity, having a lengthy suspension history. He is also a 23-year-old left-handed shooter. He was also drafted in the first round in 2021 by Nashville at 27th overall.


Both Svechkov and L’Heureux would require waivers to be sent down to the AHL, which is important to note. However, it’d be surprising if both played full-time with the Avalanche.

Colorado not re-signing Drury means there are more gaps to fill, but there’s more money to work with. With the NHL Draft coming up in a couple of days, Sakic and his crew will surely be working more to see what they can muster up. It’s already been a hectic few days with trades across the league, and more are sure to come from the Avalanche.