I was just thinking today how good the Avs actually are right now, and how bad the team was in 16-17. It's incredible how much they've improved over a short period of time.
Avs lineup, more or less, in
opening night 16-17 (i know lines aren't correct but w/e)
Landeskog -
Duchene -
Iginla
Grigorenko - MacKinnon - Rantanen
Comeau - Soderberg -
R. Bourque
Martinsen -
Colborne -
Mitchell
McLeod
Johnson - Zadorov
Barrie -
Beauchemin
Tyutin -
Wiercoch
Goloubef
Varlamov
Pickard
Players in red are not with the team anymore. Out of these 14 players,
10 (TEN) players, just 2 years after, do not currently play in the NHL.
Avs current roster to start the 18-19 season, changes made through trades, waiver pickups, FA and prospects graduating, all inside 2 calendar years.
Landeskog - MacKinnon - Rantanen
Kerfoot - Jost - Wilson
Nieto - Soderberg - Calvert
Andrighetto - Compher - G. Bourque
Kamenev
Girard - Johnson
Cole - Barrie
Zadorov - Nemeth
Barberio
Varlamov
Grubauer
I absolutely love the defence as it has a bit of everything (in 16-17 Barberio was their 4th best dman after getting claimed, now he's their #7), goaltending is solid, they have one of the better top lines, bottom 6 is decent and young guys with upside on the 2nd line. Also the depth all-around decent in the organization.
What i find amazing is that after replacing over half of their roster, they still have all of their picks for the next 3 years aside from one 4th rounder. Good prospects like Makar and Kaut in the pipeline and of course, the Senators unprotected 1st round pick this year.
They also have 12M in cap space, and zero albatross contracts.
I mean, the team is set for one of the brighest futures in the league, but not only that, the team right now is very underrated. I think they can crack 100 pts this year without it being a fluke. Like, if you really think about it, this team is probably just a great 2C away from being a legitimate cup contender. Boston is viewed as a top tier team and to me their lineups are looking quite similar.
Anyway, Joe Sakic took so much crap around here year ago. He's quietly fixed everything that was wrong with the team in 16-17 without giving up much of anything, actually, he gained assets in the process
Big thumps up