Avalanche draft pick exposes Colorado's development problem
Photo credit: Ashley Potts / Colorado Eagles
Drafted by the Colorado Avalanche in 2020, Jean-Luc Foudy quickly emerged as a promising prospect, but early career setbacks and injuries may have cut his trajectory short.
Foudy remains a free agent heading into the season, with no PTO offers.
Did the Avalanche screw up with Jean-Luc Foudy?
Brennan Vogt of Mile High Hockey shared the interesting case that is Jean-Luc Foudy. Following his draft in 2020 Foudy seemed like he was on the path to becoming an NHL regular. Unfortunately, many things didn't go his way.
"Then, in the 2022-23 season, things started heading south. Despite making his NHL debut with the Avalanche and playing nine games, Foudy suffered his first injury in three seasons. The then 21-year-old played 46 games for the Eagles, bringing his season total to 55 games. In the 2023-24 season, Foudy fared little worse, with four Avalanche games and 26 Eagles games. The last season he appeared poised to differ. He started the year out hot and then spent time on the injured list, yet he still got in 48 AHL contests but none in the NHL." -Vogt
Foudy also started his career during the pandemic and missed two years of junior hockey.
The curious thing here was his lack of playing time in the NHL despite contributing decently in the AHL at such a young age.
"Injuries and lack of opportunity may have cost Foudy his career. He was a restricted free agent this past July, and the Avalanche chose not to give him a qualifying offer. As of this writing, no team has offered Foudy a PTO for training camp." -Vogt
It's impossible to say what might have happened if Foudy had gotten more playing time, he could have developed into a reliable middle-six forward for the Avalanche, or he might have ended up where he is today. What's certain is that Colorado never gave him a genuine opportunity to find out.
| POLL | ||
SEPTEMBRE 16 | 20 ANSWERS Avalanche draft pick exposes Colorado's development problem Will Foudy sign a PTO with another NHL team before the start of the upcoming season? | ||
| yes | 12 | 60 % |
| no | 8 | 40 % |
| List of polls | ||
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