Will the Colorado Avalanche be better off in the long run after trading Mikko Rantanen?
Photo credit: RDS.ca
The Colorado Avalanche started and finished the 2024-25 NHL season on a disappointing note.
They opened with a 13-12-0 record and wrapped things up with a Game 7 first-round loss to the Dallas Stars, despite leading for much of the matchup. However, between those struggles, few teams overhauled their roster as dramatically as the Avalanche did this season.
Will the Colorado Avalanche be better off in the long run after trading Mikko Rantanen?
Adam Proteau from The Hockey News writes that even though the Avalanche were stung in Game 7 by former right winger Mikko Rantanen, the very star they dealt away, Colorado president of hockey operations Joe Sakic addressed the trade on during Colorado's end-of-year media availability, standing by the decision and offering a defense of the move.
«You look at where we were the last few years, we weren't good enough, we weren't deep enough. This stings not because Mikko is on the other side, it stings becausewe were closeWe felt we had the team to move on and really compete.» -Sakic
Sakic's reasoning for trading Rantanen is hard to dispute. Keeping him, along with star center Nathan MacKinnon and elite defenseman Cale Makar, would have left the Avalanche with a top-heavy roster built around three expensive contracts.
Sakic's reasoning for trading Rantanen is hard to dispute. Keeping him, along with star center Nathan MacKinnon and elite defenseman Cale Makar, would have left the Avalanche with a top-heavy roster built around three expensive contracts.
"Instead, Colorado wound up with very good right winger Martin Necas, center Jack Drury and trade deadline acquisitions Brock Nelson, Ryan Lindgren and Charlie Coyle. Considering that the Avalanche went 21-10-2 after the Rantanen trade, you can see why Sakic and Avs GM Chris MacFarland chose to move Rantanen and make their roster deeper." -Proteau
Looking ahead to next season, the Avalanche are projected to have $8.7 million in salary cap space. With Mikko Rantanen now signed to a $12 million-per-year extension in Dallas, keeping him in Colorado would have pushed the team well beyond its cap limit. That would have forced the Avalanche into a top-heavy lineup, likely needing to fill out the rest of the roster with players on league-minimum contracts.
"The Avalanche's cap space this summer will permit them to potentially bring back Nelson or Lindgren and pay another mid-tier player or two to fill out their lineup. That means Sakic and MacFarland made the right move, and with a full season of a more balanced roster and the return of captain Gabriel Landeskog, the Avalanche may have a better record next year. That may lead to a longer playoff run for them next spring." -Proteau
If that's how things unfold for Colorado in the 2025-26 season, it'll be a result of the front office having the courage to take major risks in the trade market this year. While the Rantanen trade wasn't a flawless success, stepping away from a top-heavy roster was ultimately the smartest long-term move the Avalanche could have made.
Source:
The Hockey News
Will The Colorado Avalanche Benefit Long-Term From Depth Over A $12-Million Rantanen?
The Hockey News
Will The Colorado Avalanche Benefit Long-Term From Depth Over A $12-Million Rantanen?
Previously on Avalanche Insider
| POLL | ||
MAI 21 | 28 ANSWERS Will the Colorado Avalanche be better off in the long run after trading Mikko Rantanen? Will the Colorado Avalanche ever be as good without Mikko Rantanen on their team? | ||
| yes | 21 | 75 % |
| no | 7 | 25 % |
| List of polls | ||
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