Colorado Avalanche
2026-06-19
The Colorado Avalanche fell short of winning the Stanley Cup in 2026, and as a result, they began their offseason work sooner than expected. General manager Chris MacFarland left the team to become the President of Hockey Operations with the Nashville Predators, and Joe Sakic has assumed the day-to-day operations of the Avalanche. The team recently traded Ross Colton to the Predators in exchange for two draft picks and goaltender Magnus Chrona. With the offseason underway, the Avalanche are looking to address areas of improvement, including their defense and power play, which ranked 27th in the NHL during the regular season. Brett Kulak's less-than-ideal play and Brent Burns's uncertain future are concerns for the team. The Avalanche are set to continue contending in 2026-27, but they need to make important decisions regarding their roster. One player the Avalanche must consider signing in 2026 NHL Free Agency is Patrik Laine, a veteran winger who has experienced highs and lows in his career. Laine has been a seven-time 20+ goal scorer, a three-time 30+ goal scorer, and a one-time 40+ goal scorer, but he has struggled with injuries over the last few seasons. Despite this, he has proven to be productive when on the ice, scoring 20 goals in 55 games in 2024-25, with 15 of those goals coming on the power play. The Avalanche have enough goals at 5v5, but they lack a player who can finish on the power play when their superstars are having an off night. Laine could be a valuable addition to the team on a cheap prove-it contract. With limited cap space, the Avalanche will need to get creative in NHL Free Agency, and signing Laine could be a smart move to boost their power play and overall performance. The team's available cap space is currently around $7 million, which will require them to make strategic decisions in free agency. By signing a player like Laine, the Avalanche can address their power play needs and continue to contend for the Stanley Cup in 2026-27.