Morning Flurries: Dominic Toninato gets the nod

The Colorado Avalanche lost NCAA championship-winning Denver Pioneers captain Will Butcher this summer, when he signed as a free agent with the New Jersey Devils instead of staying put in Colorado.

Their consolation prize, though, was snagging a college free agent of their own from that final NCAA game. Runner-up Minnesota-Duluth’s captain, Dominic Toninato, opted against signing with the Toronto Maple Leafs - who had drafted him in 2012 - to ink a deal with the Avalanche.

He’s been in the AHL ever since, putting up six points in 13 games so far.

Now, though, he’s up with the big club, following a broken arm for newcomer Vladislav Kamenev. [Mile High Hockey]

Kamenev came to the Avalanche, of course, as a part of the deal that sent Matt Duchene to the Ottawa Senators.

It was a long time coming, it’s over, and both sides seem to be moving on nicely.

In a baffling display of petulance, though, the Denver Post put out a column taunting Duchene for his lack of scoring through three games with Ottawa so far. [DP]

In honor of Hockey Fights Cancer month, here’s a heart-wrenching tribute from the Foligno family:

The Vegas Golden Knights got some excellent news on Friday, by the way, when Malcolm Subban was activated off of injured reserve. Prospect Dylan Ferguson can now return to his WHL club, where he’ll hopefully stay for the next two years. [Knights On Ice]

In some good news for the Avalanche, it looks like Alex Kerfoot is doing all right:

Finally, one of the luckiest saves you’ll see all year, straight from Boston University’s Joseph Woll: