{"id":33806,"date":"2018-08-04T08:00:58","date_gmt":"2018-08-04T12:00:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/?p=33806"},"modified":"2018-08-04T11:00:28","modified_gmt":"2018-08-04T15:00:28","slug":"colorado-avalanche-prospects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/hockey\/2018\/08\/04\/colorado-avalanche-prospects\/","title":{"rendered":"TSP: Top Colorado Avalanche Prospects"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome to the 2018 Top Shelf Prospects series.\u00a0 As we go through the Summer of 2018 LWOH will be featuring a team-by-team look at the top prospects in the NHL. We will be following the order of the first round of the NHL draft (as if there were no traded draft picks) and you can find all the articles here<\/a>.\u00a0 Since we had an\u00a0extensive NHL Draft preview<\/a>, we will not be reviewing the players who were drafted in the 2018 draft, as there have been no games since then, and our reports on them will not have changed.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"What we will be doing is linking you to those articles, as well as taking a look at prospects that were acquired before this year\u2019s draft; their progress, and their chances of making the 2018-19 roster of the NHL team in question. We will also bring you one sleeper pick \u2013 a player who was either drafted in the 4th-round or later, or was an undrafted free agent signing who we pick as our dark horse to make the NHL. For those wondering, the cut-off for what is or isn\u2019t a prospect is typically about 50 NHL games played (including playoff games) or is 25 years old. These are not hard or fast rules though, and we may make some exceptions depending on the circumstances.
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

Colorado Avalanche Prospects<\/h1>\n

After a disastrous 2016-17 season, the Colorado Avalanche<\/a> became one of the surprises of the season last year. An early season trade<\/a> of Matt Duchene<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>seemed to spark the team. Nathan MacKinnon<\/a><\/strong> was a Hart Trophy candidate. Mikko Rantanen<\/a><\/strong> and Tyson Barrie<\/a><\/strong> took leaps forward in their development. These performances were key to the Avalanche’s return to the playoffs.<\/p>\n

The off-season has seen the Avs make some additions to strengthen the squad. They traded<\/a> for Philipp Grubauer<\/a><\/strong> from the Washington Capitals<\/a>. The team also added Ian Cole<\/a><\/strong> and Matt Calvert<\/a><\/strong> in the free agent market. Overall the moves strengthen the squad, while they wait for their prospects to help the team take the next step.<\/p>\n

2018 NHL Draft\u00a0Picks:\u00a0Martin Kaut<\/strong><\/a>,\u00a0Justus Annunen<\/strong>,\u00a0Sampo Ranta<\/strong><\/a>,\u00a0Tyler Weiss<\/strong>,\u00a0Brandon Saigeon<\/strong><\/a>,\u00a0Danila Zhuravlyov<\/strong>,\u00a0Nikolai Kovalenko<\/strong>,\u00a0Shamil Shmakov
\n<\/strong>Graduations: Tyson Jost<\/a><\/strong>, J.T. Compher<\/a><\/strong>, Samuel Girard<\/a><\/strong>, Anton Lindholm<\/a><\/strong>, Alexander Kerfoot<\/a><\/strong>,<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Top Prospect: Cale Makar<\/h2>\n

Defence — shoots Right
\nBorn October\u00a030th, 1998 —\u00a0Calgary, Alberta
\nHeight 5’11” — Weight 190 lbs [180 cm \/ 86 kg]
\nDrafted by the Colorado Avalanche in the 1st round, #4\u00a0overall, at the 2017 NHL Draft<\/p>\n