Here's the word straight from the horses mouth:
The #Avs have reassigned Stefan Elliott to @monstershockey.
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) February 25, 2015
Elliott heads back to Lake Erie after a few weeks and 5 scattered games with the Avalanche. Elliott gave the Avs the kind of mixed bag in terms of performance, that most Avs fans expected. At times he looked dynamic and downright dangerous offensively and at others he disappeared with the puck and looked dreadful without it. Still, Elliott's demotion is a disappointment to fans who are more oriented towards moving the puck up ice and scoring, and less interested in using bad defensemen who can't do that. Despite his blank scorecard, Elliott did put up 10 shots on goal in his 5 games (2 per) this season. He's being demoted now in favor of Nate Guenin (31 shots in 55 games) and Brad Stuart (44 shots in 45 games).
Stick Tap to regular commenter "ThatGuy22" for the reminder that tomorrow marks 30 days since Stefan Elliott was called up. After clearing waivers at the beginning of this season, if Elliott played in 10 games or stayed with the Avalanche for 30 days, he would need to be exposed to waivers on his way back to Lake Erie. Sending Elliott now protects him from a potential waiver claim.
The move is curious, however, because Elliott's demotion leaves the Avalanche with just 6 "healthy" defensemen which is especially curious since Jan Hejda is just 1-game returned from a day-to-day knee injury. Erik Johnson may be close to returning to the lineup, but according to Mike Chambers at the Denver Post, the Avalanche refuse to fan the flames of his return:
#Avs say no update on Erik Johnson, who is approaching 5 weeks out from knee scope. Team sticking to 3-8 week absence
— Mike Chambers (@MikeChambers) February 25, 2015
On the other hand, trade season is heating up with Jiri Tlusty moved to the Jets and Daniel Winnik to the Penguins in just the last few minutes, so maybe Elliott's move happening without another call-up signals something coming for the Avalanche.
Either way, the AHL All-Star's return to Lake Erie should help the Monster's in their late season pursuit of a playoff spot.