Evan Rodrigues continues to shine

1 year ago  /  Mile High Hockey

Photo by Zac BonDurant/Getty Images


In midst of the darkness of injuries, an almighty Evan has risen from below. Evan’s are always an interesting character to come by. You never know who it’ll be. Whether it’s a managing editor or an NHL player, Evan’s are just built different.
While I won’t toot my own horn, I will toot the horn of Evan Rodrigues. While he didn’t have an NHL team to call home before September, Rodrigues said he had waited to see if any other team came to offer him a spot to play. The Colorado Avalanche had been interested in him throughout the offseason, it was a matter of who he’d end up with. It dragged on for a time, but he finally signed with the Stanley Cup champs.
Rodrigues has put up solid numbers so far as we almost reach the halfway point of the season. He’s up to nine goals and seven assists in 26 games for the Avs. He is in the middle of a five-game point streak at the moment. On his one-year, $2M AAV deal, this doesn’t seem like a terrible place to be in right now.

Rodrigues was unfortunately bitten by this massive slew of injuries the Avs face at the moment when he went down hurt against the Vancouver Canucks. From the way he was holding his knee and gingerly came off the ice, it seemed as if this could’ve been a significant setback in this season and perhaps his career.
However, since his return, he has been part of the action and helped the Avs who so desperately need anything they can get right now. Ever since his return against the Buffalo Sabres on December 15, he has been on the scoresheet in six of the eight games, including this beautiful assist to Sam Girard for the overtime winner against the Nashville Predators.

While it hasn’t been up to the same amount of points production as Nathan MacKinnon or Valeri Nichushkin, he is doing his part in this entire system. Unfortunately, he’s hurt yet again with an upper-body injury he suffered late against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Therefore, his return along with several other big names is highly anticipated.
Now the next big question: what does the future hold for Rodrigues?
As mentioned earlier, the new Avs No. 9 is on a one-year, $2M deal which ends this summer. Rodrigues is one of several key middle-six Avalanche forwards whose deals expire this summer as well, including Alex Newhook and J.T. Compher.


Photo by Andy Cross/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images

While the cap hit will go up by $1M this summer across the league, it may be too early to say who will end up staying with the Avs after this season. There’ll be another piece going over contract statuses later on in the season, but this will certainly be one to watch as the offseason approaches.
Compared to the others above, Rodrigues is the oldest at 29 years old. He has the most experience, and arguably the lowest ceiling - especially compared to someone like Newhook. Both Compher and Newhook have more than one year of experience than Rodrigues does, and both have won a Stanley Cup. It will be an interesting dynamic to see where Chris MacFarland and Joe Sakic decide to take the team.
At this point, Rodrigues could end up going either way - whether he stays or goes. Depending on how the rest of the season goes, he could end up on a longer-term deal with more trust and dependability - similar to Nichushkin. But, he could end up like Brandon Saad did, with a one-and-done stint in Colorado, and move on to other pastures.
Regardless of what happens this offseason with Rodrigues, let’s hope he continues to produce and gets better as more players return and can find a good spot within the team. With that being said, what does happen with Evan Rodrigues this off-season? Let us know in the comments below!


...

Read Full Article.