A lot of print journalists have stayed home this year, but, thankfully, the Denver Post has ponied up the dough to send Adrian Dater to cover the draft in Montreal. And he's working it, with all sorts of Avalanche chatter. His article is well worth the read, but I'll bullet point it here so that you can comment on it below.
- No one really know who the 1st overall pick is going to be.
Brian Burke (the real one, not the fake twitter version) says he thinks it's going to be Duchene, but he could certainly be posturing to help his own situation. Others have speculated that Hedman is going to go #1 and, of course, the consensus (by a narrow margin) or the scouts has Tavares going to New York. I still think Duchene is going to be an Avalanche (and no, I don't buy the story that the Avalanche will pass on all three). I do think there are scenarios out there for any of the big three to end up in Colorado and I will make sure my fat ass is planted in front of the TV tonight at 7 to see how it unfolds.
- Duchene likely would be looking at another year in Juniors.
Angelique has mentioned this a few times here, so that shouldn't come as a huge surprise. I think that statement is especially true if Duchene does land in Colorado, as his cap hit is going to be close to $3 million and...well...see the next item.
- The Avalanche are looking to shed salary.
This has been talked about recently both here and around the World Wide Wolski. This isn't so much about this coming year, but about beyond as the salary cap is probably going to come down next summer, possibly by a significant margin. I suspect that's why Tucker hasn't been bought out - the team doesn't want any dead contract money next summer. We've been hearing rumors that the Avs are looking to move Smyth / Hannan since the end of the season, so it's no shock that chatter to that effect would be heating up again (thanks to Twitter, there are a TON of trade rumors coming from the draft).
I'm not sure I'm ready to buy that the Avs are going to be close to the cap floor, but I know the club isn't in a great spot financially at the moment, so it certainly wouldn't come as a shock to me. It could be a tough couple of years ahead.
- Lappy is gone.
You knew this was coming, unfortunately. It doesn't make it any more palatable.
- Gustavsson too.
I scratched my head when I saw that quote from Gustavsson about meeting Roy too. I'm really curious to hear the explanation behind that. But, yeah, it doesn't sound like he's choosing Colorado.