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Adrian Dater believes that both Adam Deadmarsh and Sylvain Lefebvre will be back behind the bench next year. Of course, we're talking about the PR inept Avalanche here, so this information had to be obtained by extrapolation from non-comments. Fucking ridiculous.
There were rumors that Lefebvre might leave to coach the new Sherbrooke team in the QMJHL this coming season, but when I asked if there were any changes to the Avs’ assistant coaching spots – Lefebvre’s in particular – I was met with silence. Which means, from what I gather from that, he’s coming back.
TSN's Scott Cullen has his annual offseason game plan up for the Avalanche. These are usually pretty well done, especially with regards to the Avs' needs. He also has some potential additions (Mikael Samuellson, Matt Carle and George Parros). Definitely worth the read, at least I can get off my ass and do one of my own.
That kind of financial flexibility could open up opportunities for the Avalanche to get active in the trade of free agent markets this summer. Ideally, a move to add a high-calibre defenceman would likely have the most immediate impact, but any additions of proven NHL talent can't be dismissed for a team with a core that is relatively unproven.
Since we all know the NHL awards are rigged, Travis Hughes put together an SB Nation Blogger awards, with voting by - you guessed it - SBN bloggers. Sandie and AJ were among the 15,000 bloggers to vote (it might have been closer to 40). Yesterday, the SBN Vezina was awarded to Jonathan Quick.
Be sure to check in with your favorite SB Nation hockey blogs to see how writers covering each team cast their ballots. Check back on Tuesday as we announce our winner of the James Norris Memorial Trophy, awarded annually to the NHL's top defenseman.