Pre-Game Talk: Week of Deadlines (@Phi, @Ott, @Wpg)

[Nalens Oga]

Well Detroit have like 10 draft picks going into this draft and they didn't become sellers till February so they're still ahead of us there lol.

There's 4 call-ups left, does that include emergency call-ups? For example, can't they just waive Comeau, Colborne, Weirdo, etc and call-up 4 guys and then if an injury does happen, they can use an emergency call-up?

 

[CobraAcesS]

Kento, that's definitely all fair. I think many of us feel the same variation of how you do. It's like we are told to be patient and wait for the next milestone but nothing happens or very little. Now it's wait for the draft, then July 1, then the season. Every year it's just wait for the bums to go and bring the kids in but somehow bums keep regenerating and we constantly are counting the seconds until their contracts end. We've been baby stepping change and while they were treading competitiveness it seemed ok to try and have some patience but now that we've bottomed out, inching toward becoming a modern and competitive org isn't acceptable any longer. Enough with the excuses, I'm tired of it all too.

The way you wrote this made me laugh. This one was great, lol "Every year it's just wait for the bums to go and bring the kids in but somehow bums keep regenerating"

 

[Nalens Oga]

It's very true though, there has been optimistic delusion. Of course it was reasonable when you had young guys like Mikko and Mac and that playoff run but it's died out because we've been here long enough to notice patterns.

Now those conversation everyone used to have where they'd pencil in a future UFA like Radulov to help fix the situation with X dman acquired from Y team are going nowhere, we know it's in vain. Those quick fixes can't help at all, it's a major change that's needed and we haven't seen any good signs of it yet.

 

[tigervixxxen]

Well Detroit have like 10 draft picks going into this draft and they didn't become sellers till February so they're still ahead of us there lol.

There's 4 call-ups left, does that include emergency call-ups? For example, can't they just waive Comeau, Colborne, Weirdo, etc and call-up 4 guys and then if an injury does happen, they can use an emergency call-up?

I think Compher counts as one and emergency is unlimited. I also believe there's a rule that anyone who wasn't in the AHL as of yesterday can't be sent down. Rosters are unlimited so they could bring up the remaining 3 if they wanted to.

 

[Bubba Thudd]

"Joe tried, things just didn't work out"



RESIGN, Joe. STEP DOWN.

 

[Cousin Eddie]

The way you wrote this made me laugh. This one was great, lol "Every year it's just wait for the bums to go and bring the kids in but somehow bums keep regenerating"

That's the part of her post that stuck with me too. It's so bang on. The Avs have always had too many depth D to allow kids to play in that number 6 role. Elliott had to stay in the AHL because of SOB and Hunwick. Siemens because of Zanon and Hunwick. Bigras because of Goloubef and Wiercioch. It's pretty easy to see Elliott and Siemens aren't exactly NHL quality but at that stage of their development maybe they were borderline and maybe that's what they needed. I don't want Bigras to spend anymore time in the AHL than he needs to. I realize he's not exactly playing great right now, but maybe it's because he's paid his dues. Maybe it's because he was an impactful member of the NHL team last year when he played and now he's playing in the AHL a year later while our NHL squad is worse than ever.

 

[CobraAcesS]

That's the part of her post that stuck with me too. It's so bang on. The Avs have always had too many depth D to allow kids to play in that number 6 role. Elliott had to stay in the AHL because of SOB and Hunwick. Siemens because of Zanon and Hunwick. Bigras because of Goloubef and Wiercioch. It's pretty easy to see Elliott and Siemens aren't exactly NHL quality but at that stage of their development maybe they were borderline and maybe that's what they needed. I don't want Bigras to spend anymore time in the AHL than he needs to. I realize he's not exactly playing great right now, but maybe it's because he's paid his dues. Maybe it's because he was an impactful member of the NHL team last year when he played and now he's playing in the AHL a year later while our NHL squad is worse than ever.

Haha, that still makes me chuckle a sad chuckle when I read it.

I was ****ing infuriated that he was sent down in the first place at the start of the season. The kid was a boarderline top four defender for our best stretch of games last season. I just can't believe continuing to get used to the pace of the NHL on the bottom pairing isn't more beneficial. They also seem to be pushing him too hard to add more offense to his game. That should have been a slow burn over time against easier competition in the NHL rather than go play 30 minutes of ring around the rosey at the AHL level. He was doing absolutely fine offensively at the NHL level IMO.

 

[Cousin Eddie]

Haha, that still makes me chuckle a sad chuckle when I read it.

I was ****ing infuriated that he was sent down in the first place at the start of the season. The kid was a boarderline top four defender for our best stretch of games last season. I just can't believe continuing to get used to the pace of the NHL on the bottom pairing isn't more beneficial. They also seem to be pushing him too hard to add more offense to his game. That should have been a slow burn over time against easier competition in the NHL rather than go play 30 minutes of ring around the rosey at the AHL level. He was doing absolutely fine offensively at the NHL level IMO.

I was okay with them sending him down at the beginning of the year because I thought it would give favorable minutes and matchups to other D who we could trade off and we'd call Bigras up to finish the season with the rest of the youth movement. Instead Gelinas never saw a minute of PP time, Weircioch was scratched for GoloBFF and I have no idea what went wrong with Tyutin because I saw him as by far our most valuable rental. On top of that Bigras is still in the AHL because all those bums couldn't go anywhere.

Edit: Tyutin isn't a bum. I like him and respect him. But he isn't part of the future.

 

[expatriatedtexan]

<snip>

Edit: Tyutin isn't a bum. I like him and respect him. But he isn't part of the future.

I agree with the Tyutin thing. He's been fine but as with most Avalanche defenders for the last decade plus, he's being asked to play way too much. Not part of the future for sure...but also, not really the biggest problem around. I like him. If we could ever have a complete D unit that allowed something like Tyutin (today) and Barberio on the bottom pairing, that would actually be a decent group of defenders.

 

[tigervixxxen]

I'm getting legitimately concerned with what they are doing with Bigras. Even though I'd like to see him for my own entertainment it's not about impatience. He seems to be stagnating in the AHL. All the others we'd like to see aside from Siemens I could say they are still improving and getting something out of the AHL. I'm not sure Bigras is getting that. I don't think it's the concussion, it seems he's been trying to be someone he isn't and I don't know if that's him or the Avs pushing him in that direction and it started in camp. He's playing a ton put he's pushing so hard he makes too many mistakes and that's not what makes his game the best. There seems to be this line that every prospect crosses where they get written off in this org and I'm scared he's getting dangerously close to it. I'd love for this to be a Detroit Model place where 3 solid years of development doesn't signal a problem but that's not how it works here. Someone who spent nearly half a year in the NHL one year and then nothing the next is not a good sign. Then what either he has to win a job straight out of camp or else he's forgotten? It would be one thing if they actually called guys up and down but they don't. I know some of y'all will just say Ive got my tinfoil hat on and reading too much into things but I think there's real concern here.

 

[UncleRisto]

No, he definitely could be close to being written off.

 

[The Kingslayer]

I'm getting legitimately concerned with what they are doing with Bigras. Even though I'd like to see him for my own entertainment it's not about impatience. He seems to be stagnating in the AHL. All the others we'd like to see aside from Siemens I could say they are still improving and getting something out of the AHL. I'm not sure Bigras is getting that. I don't think it's the concussion, it seems he's been trying to be someone he isn't and I don't know if that's him or the Avs pushing him in that direction and it started in camp. He's playing a ton put he's pushing so hard he makes too many mistakes and that's not what makes his game the best. There seems to be this line that every prospect crosses where they get written off in this org and I'm scared he's getting dangerously close to it. I'd love for this to be a Detroit Model place where 3 solid years of development doesn't signal a problem but that's not how it works here. Someone who spent nearly half a year in the NHL one year and then nothing the next is not a good sign. Then what either he has to win a job straight out of camp or else he's forgotten? It would be one thing if they actually called guys up and down but they don't. I know some of y'all will just say Ive got my tinfoil hat on and reading too much into things but I think there's real concern here.

I just wanna see him up for selfish reasons because at this point what are we playing for? The seasons lost. The veterans on this team quit in November. Gologoof is not gonna be part of this teams future and if he is **** me. I think golo has played enough games by now for the expansion thing right? Bigras is healthy now so they cant use that as a reason not to call him up so really what is it? What is the reason for guys like Greer, Bigras and even Siemens to be toiling on a terrible team in Texas when they can be playing NHL minutes gaining experience on a terrible team in the NHL?

 

[expatriatedtexan]

I'm getting legitimately concerned with what they are doing with Bigras. Even though I'd like to see him for my own entertainment it's not about impatience. He seems to be stagnating in the AHL. All the others we'd like to see aside from Siemens I could say they are still improving and getting something out of the AHL. I'm not sure Bigras is getting that. I don't think it's the concussion, it seems he's been trying to be someone he isn't and I don't know if that's him or the Avs pushing him in that direction and it started in camp. He's playing a ton put he's pushing so hard he makes too many mistakes and that's not what makes his game the best. There seems to be this line that every prospect crosses where they get written off in this org and I'm scared he's getting dangerously close to it. I'd love for this to be a Detroit Model place where 3 solid years of development doesn't signal a problem but that's not how it works here. Someone who spent nearly half a year in the NHL one year and then nothing the next is not a good sign. Then what either he has to win a job straight out of camp or else he's forgotten? It would be one thing if they actually called guys up and down but they don't. I know some of y'all will just say Ive got my tinfoil hat on and reading too much into things but I think there's real concern here.

I'm curious as to how this surprises you. The AVs simply do not allow young defensemen to spend more than one year in the AHL. If they do...they are dead to the organization and are treated as such. The big question is why do they even bother drafting dmen since they have a love affair with the waiver wire.