Strike 2: Will Justus be served? Certainly looks that way.
To the surprise of many, the Colorado Avalanche did not make a trade to bring in a veteran backup goaltender to support regular starter Alexander Georgiev at the recently passed NHL trade deadline. It certainly appears they’re planning on going with young Justus Annunen to fill that key role, especially after he registered a pair of shutout wins over the Chicago Blackhawks in his past two starts.
It’s still far too early to tell if Annunen will become a standout between the pipes. But if he does, he will become the very first Avalanche net minder draft pick to earn that distinction.
There have been names called on draft day like Marc Denis, David Aebischer, Philippe Sauve, Peter Budaj and Calvin Pickard, but none have panned out or filled the void left by men like trade/free agent acquisitions Patrick Roy, Jose Theodore, Semyon Varlamov, Jean-Sebastien Giguere and Darcy Kuemper. The Avs have gotten good to great goaltending from several players over the years, but none of those guys were drafted by the Burgundy and Blue.
Could Justus be the first?
A third-round pick by the Avs in 2018, Annunen has climbed the minor league ladder over his seven years as a professional, getting his first taste of NHL play in 2022 when he appeared in two games, posting a win and a tie. His 4.34 goals against average was certainly nothing to be excited about. He got in the lineup two more times last season, posting another win and a loss while getting the GAA down to 3.58. Still plenty of room to improve.
And he has. After a good start to the season with the Colorado Eagles, in six starts as an Av, Annunen is 3-2-1 with a GAA of 2.33. That includes the two recent blankings of the Blackhawks. Is the third time a charm for him?
It may have to be. Starter Georgiev is not going to play every game during the final weeks of a season where the Avs are battling for the top seed in the NHL’s Western Conference. He’ll need days off, and it won’t always be a struggling outfit like Chicago the Avs will be facing off against.
Much like the situation on the other side of Ball Arena, it’s dangerous for head coach Jared Bednar to rely on youthful, unproven players at key times when the goal is a top seed and ultimately another championship. But in the salary cap era, both the Avs and the Denver Nuggets don’t have much choice but to rely on minimum-wage youngsters to fill out rosters – sometimes in key positions – while paying tip top dollar to their invaluable superstars.
Will it work? The good news is the cap has the same impact on every other contending team, so it may come down to whose young players perform the best down the stretch.
There’s nothing quite as satisfying for a front office as having one or more of your own draft choices blossom into a top shelf talent. Those are the guys you’re familiar with. Players you brought up and trained. Players you’re fine paying a high salary to in order to retain. Growing their own has certainly benefited the Nuggets, with their three “max” players all coming via the draft. Astute trades brought in key pieces, but the nucleus is home grown.
Same goes for the Avalanche. Colorado has struck gold with draft picks/homegrown stars like beloved team captain Gabe Landeskog and superstars Mikko Rantanen, Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar. But for whatever reason, that standout, long time staple of the organization between the pipes has thus far eluded them on draft day.
Perhaps Annunen is finally that guy.
If not, it will be another outside acquisition, former backup Ivan Prosvetov, who would be recalled from the Eagles for the postseason run. Prosvetov was acquired as a waiver pick up after starting his career with the Arizona Coyotes. If it’s the 25-year-old Russian backing up Georgiev when the Cup run begins, it will mean the long, long search for a home grown goalie will continue.
