Just as we suspected, the Colorado Avalanche and goalie Philipp Grubauer could not come to terms on a new contract and as a result the Vezina finalist bolted for the Pacific Northwest.

In what can only be called a wild free agent frenzy, Grubauer was lured away by the Seattle Kraken and a very large six-year deal worth $5.9 million per season. obviously more than the Avs were willing to pay. The first year franchise now has their very first full-fledged franchise goalie.

Grubauer turned an outstanding season into a big paycheck. The 29-year-old led the NHL in shutouts with seven. He was second in wins (30) and goals-against average (1.95) and had a solid .923 save percentage.

The only problem I see is that he had one of the best teams in the league playing in front of him and now he'll be playing goal for an expansion team. Wins and padded stats may be harder to come by. Just saying.

***

There were plenty of goalie options when the free agent window opened but the list quickly dwindled as teams scrambled to sign the best fit for their clubs. Colorado was rapidly running out of options. But by days end they had their man.

The Arizona Coyotes traded goaltender Darcy Kuemper to the Avs for a first-round pick, 2024 a conditional third-round pick and defenseman Connor Timmins.

Kuemper is a really solid replacement for Gru. The 31-year-old is 6' 5" and a slim 215. Over the last several seasons he's been among the leagues best net-minders, while playing for a very mediocre Arizona team. Kuemper has a career goals against average of 2.47 and a career save percentage of 2.17.

This could very well could turn out to be a blessing in disguise for the Avalanche. Kuemper is a nice 1A/1B complimentary partner to Pavel Francouz.

***

So if you're keep track at home of the off-season comings and goings:

IN: Darcy Kuemper (Trade AZ), Kurtis Macdermid (Trade SEA), and Rowland McKeown (FA from Sweden).

McKeown is a 6'1" 195lbs defenseman with 10 games of NHL experience that played in Sweden last season.

Re-signed: Gabriel Landeskog and Cale Makar

Out: Philipp Grubauer (UFA SEA), Connor, Timmins (Trade AZ), Brendon Saad (UFA), Joonas Donskoi (Expansion Draft), Patrick Nemeth (UFA NYR), Ryan Graves (Trade NJD), Matt Calvert (RET) and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare (UFA TB).

That's it for now I think...

It's been a busy last few weeks for the Avs front office, but thus far you'd have to be pleased with the work they've done. Sakic and company managed to keep the core intact for many years and that all-important Stanley Cup window is still wide open. I'm sure this is not it either.

More to come...

Thanks for reading,
Steve

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