MHH Roundtable: Who are these guys?

1 week ago  /  Mile High Hockey  /  Read Time: 7 minutes 32 seconds

Photo by Jonathan Kozub/NHLI via Getty Images


It will be a furious finish to the season. As the Colorado Avalanche enter the Four Nations extended break, here are our thoughts where the team stands as they enter the stretch run and the impending trade deadline.
Now that the dust has settled on the Mikko Rantanen trade, any final thoughts?
Evan: I still don’t love the trade even weeks later. Losing a key forward factor has hurt the Avalanche. I still believe Rantanen and the team could’ve come to an agreement, especially now knowing what the cap will be in the years to come. The Avs will still have to deal with this when it’s time to re-sign Martin Necas, which is an absolute must now. With that being said, Necas has looked good so far in Colorado. It helps to play alongside Nathan MacKinnon on the top line, and he certainly could and should have more goals and points than he has. But I’m still unsure of the fit, especially with how excellent Rantanen is even on his “off nights.”
Adrian: It might be too early to tell and not necessarily the real proving grounds so far, in my opinion. I was openly critical of the return regarding the Mikko deal and not garnering a first rounder. Since arriving in Colorado, Martin Necas and his performances have opened my mind quite a bit. If Marty Necas can produce the rest of the regular season and into the playoffs the way he has so far, that trade will quickly look lopsided in favor of the Avalanche just based on having an equally effective player as Mikko that you’ll be able to sign at a significantly lower AAV. If Marty Necas continues to go off, all that makes sense, but for me, the real proving ground comes in the playoffs.
Jackie: The real crux of the Nečas-Rantanen trade isn’t going to be comparing game-by-game production of these two prolific players but rather the long-term financial implication of the move. The impact of the rising cap and cap percentage comparables moving forward is going to heavily factor in. It’s easy to ignore inflation at this juncture but when contracts get signed this summer it might be an eye opener, especially if an internal cap still remains. Nečas has enjoyed a good start to his Avalanche tenure but he, too, will need a big extension likely this summer or the UFA dance starts all over again. Any production Nečas contributes now will have to get paid for in short order.
Jess: The trade still doesn’t feel real to me, and it likely won’t feel real for a good while. As great as Martin Necas has looked so far for the Avs, I don’t know that he’ll ever fully replace Mikko. That being said, as everyone has touched on a bit, he’s been a great fit for this team so far, and I was pleasantly surprised by how great of a match between this player and team has turned out to be, at least initially. If he continues to tear it up like he’s been doing, locking him down as early as you can this summer becomes priority number one.
Ezra: I’m gonna miss Rantanen, buuut... I love Martin Necas, and I like Jack Drury. Ultimately for me this trade gets graded on how they use the extra picks and space to fill out the roster both this year and next - specifically, this year can they upgrade the second defense pair? If that answer is yes, I’m sold on the move - a deeper blueline will give the Avalanche the best chance to go on a deeper playoff run.
Have expectations for this team changed?
Evan: I don’t think the expectation for the team has changed. Internally, I’m sure they believe they can make a run and go all the way - as they should, why would it be any different? From the outside looking in, the expectations have likely shifted with the new personnel, and confidence may not be as high as it was before. Of course, a lot has to go right when it comes to health and availability - particularly around Valeri Nichushkin and the always-looming question mark of Gabriel Landeskog.
Adrian: Back to my initial reactions to the trade and how those have changed. At first, I felt like the Mikko deal was admitting defeat on the season. Now I can see the potential for Necas to go off, and I absolutely love how his arrival has stimulated the powerplay. It’s an entertaining and fluid powerplay that gets me to the edge of my seat again. Combine that with some next-level net minding, and that Avalanche is still a contender as far as I’m concerned. Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar are still here.
Jackie: How the trade deadline goes will ultimately show Chris MacFarland’s hand. There shouldn’t be desperation but given the moves over the last 12 months it sort of feels that way. Expectations should be managed regardless, this team has a lot to prove.
Jess: Given the fact that my initial expectations for this team were just to survive the first half of the season, given all the uncertainties, I’d say they lived up to those expectations so far. I still think this team can be competitive come playoff time, but as Jackie kind of touched on, just how competitive I think they can be will be determined by what other moves the front office has in store at the trade deadline and how much they’re able to bolster their current team.
Ezra: Not for me! You have Nate and Cale - win the cup.
What is your interest level in the Four Nations tournament?
Jackie: I’m very glad there will finally be best-on-best hockey after nearly a decade but to be honest the teams in this tournament don’t excite me very much. I’m hoping for some great competitive games and of course no major injuries. I’m undecided on how much I’ll watch but it is nice the NHL is trying something different.
Evan: I’m intrigued by it. It’s something different and unique and it’s cool to see the league and players trying something new. I’ll admit I’ll be busy with my other jobs and won’t be able to catch many of the games which is unfortunate, but it’s just important to me that Colorado’s participants stay healthy.
Adrian: I think this is a great time for a tournament that pits the world's best against each other. I like even more that Team USA is the favorite heading in, and for better or for worse, things are a bit spicy on the world stage between the US and Canada. This isn’t your queue to get political, but that tension might spill onto the ice, as we’ve seen in past international contests that occur in the same time frame as contentious worldly affairs. Hockey is a healthy outlet.
Jess: I’m really excited to watch best-on-best hockey, and I’m intrigued to see how this tournament goes. It’s a breath of fresh air this season compared to an All-Star weekend event that I thought had kind of gone a bit stale in the past couple of seasons. That all being said, I am tempering my expectations at the same time, just because I’m sure that it won’t be a perfect event by any means, because this is the first time they’re putting on this event. I hope it goes well, though, and as I said, I’m excited and intrigued to see this event in place of the All-Star weekend.
Ezra: I don’t care at all. I will probably watch the final..? Frankly, I don’t have a lot of bandwidth for sports outside of the Avs.
How would you approach the upcoming trade deadline?
Evan: The trade deadline is always something fun to look forward to as a hockey fan, but for Avs fans this year, it might just feel like a complex jumble of a mess. It’s safe to say the Avalanche are not done making moves, but what they can do with what they have is the bigger question. If they’re looking to improve the roster, who knows how much they can get with rumored trade pieces such as Miles Wood and Casey Mittelstadt? On top of that, if they’re looking to make a big splash, there isn’t much cap space nor assets such as draft picks they can utilize to make moves. Chris MacFarland has already made some massive moves this season, with some saying they’re knee-jerk reactions. Will there be any more knee-jerk reactions to come, or subtle moves to quietly improve the team is the real question in early March.
Jackie: I’m a firm no rentals on a good day but should a team which has already dressed 43 different players this season really be in the market for more temporary help? If they can find a better long term fit than Mittelstadt then that would be an ideal move. The issue of needing an additional top four defenseman still remains but that’s a tricky hole to fill. It will cost too much in dollars and assets for a permanent fix and half the league wants an extra defenseman at the deadline. Still, the best course of action is to navigate away from instant gratification and to find players that can address needs for longer than two months.
Adrian: I’m with Jackie on this and hope the Avalanche refrains from getting too wild at the deadline. At this time, I think we see a relatively reserved approach that possibly adds another trustworthy bottom-six forward with PK prowess and a 5-7D man for depth purposes.
Jess: As Jackie and Adrian touched on, I’m perfectly happy with Colorado not going crazy at the deadline by any means, especially after going a bit crazy already and dealing Mikko. If they find a trustworthy depth defenseman and a depth forward of some kind, I’ll be a perfectly happy camper. While they might need to find a better fit than a player like Mittlestadt or another top-four defenseman like Jackie mentioned, it will probably be easier to make those moves in the summer rather than in March no doubt, simply because they’ll have more options, at least in theory.
Ezra: Sorry to say it, but everyone else is wrong! They have to upgrade on defense to go on a real run. I love Malinski, and Middleton is a good guy and a fun story, but that can’t be your third pair when you’re fully healthy. Malinski looked better up on the second pair with Girard the last couple games, but even if you buy that as an option then you’re running Manson with de Haan, Middleton, or Kylington and none of those four handle the puck well consistently — the answer has to come from someone else’s roster. Might want a depth center around too, and I don’t mind spending a few picks to bolster a roster that can win. ...

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