Tonight at 5:00 p.m. MST, at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, the Colorado Avalanche will partake in the NHL draft for the 22nd time in its history. Adding new players can change the dynamic of a franchise and create the base for a championship team and it all begins with the entry draft.
Since Joe Sakic and Patrick Roy took over the team in 2013 the Avalanche have done a relatively decent job of drafting. This season the managing duo appear to be under a bit more of a microscope, making this draft, perhaps, their most important yet.
However, the NHL draft has alway been pretty important for the Avalanche as it has brought some of the team’s best players, and therefore best moments, to Colorado hockey fans.
Looking back through the draft picks of the past, there have been plenty of good picks, some busts, some overachievers and some underachievers. We take a look at some of the most memorable moments in Avalanche draft history which have shaped the organization into what it is today.
We are starting negatively here, with what could potentially be the biggest bust in Avalanche history. A product of the 2011 draft class and a first-round selection for Colorado at pick 11, Duncan Siemens was a prospect with a lot of promise.
A stay-at-home defender who has been unable to develop and has only played one NHL game since being drafted, Siemens has proven year in and year out that he is not the defensemen the Avalanche thought they would one day be receiving.
Siemens played a few years in juniors before transitioning to the AHL where he struggled to ever make a real impact. Injuries and replacement players have continually pushed Siemens down the Avalanche’s organizational depth chart and there seems to be no sign of change.
The Avs had an obvious need at defense the last few seasons and Siemens could have filled that void if he were to have lived up to expectations. Duncan Siemens is perhaps the most disappointing draft pick the Avalanche may have ever had.
