Colorado Avalanche Top-25 Under 25, #4 Tyson Jost is ready for the big stage

The Top 25 Under 25 is a collaboration by members of the Mile High Hockey writing staff. Our writers, plus a special vote from the readers, ranked players under the age of 25 as of September 1, 2017 in the Colorado Avalanche organization. Each participant used their own metric of current ability and production against future projection to rank each player. Now, we’ll count down each of the 25 players ranked.

After being selected 10th overall in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, Tyson Jost spent last season proving to Colorado Avalanche fans that he is going to be a huge part of any future success the franchise has.

Playing as a freshman at The University of North Dakota, Jost was one of the more exciting players in the NCAA last season. Averaging more than a point per game, Jost answered a lot of questions that came from playing against inferior competition during his draft year.

Upon completing his season, the Avs signed Jost immediately and gave him a taste of the NHL. Though the season was long over and he was a part of a disastrous team, if nothing else, the 6-games can act as a learning experience for the youngster. Getting that taste of the NHL let Jost know just how different the game is at the highest level and it gave him the ability to spend the summer working on very specific aspects of his game.

“A smart, strong player with excellent vision and a great shot, Jost was called “the real deal” by one NHL scout I spoke to and he’ll definitely be a first-rounder this summer when the draft hits Buffalo. Committed to North Dakota, Jost will be fun to watch with the Fighting Hawks next season.”–Ryan Kennedy, The Hockey News

Jost’s calling card is his hockey IQ - especially on the offensive side of the puck. He is a smart player that has tremendous vision and the ability to make his linemates better. He says he likes to pattern his game after for UND center Jonathan Toews, but Jost might have the potential to put up more points season to season as he has shown flashes of being a more offensively dynamic player.

We should assume that Jost is going to be given every opportunity to play a big offensive role with the Avs this season. A top-6 role with powerplay time is something that Jost will be able to take advantage of. Along with Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen, Jost is going to be the offensive catalyst for this team, and there’s no reason that shouldn’t start this season.

“Tyson Jost is a crafty goal-scorer that carries out plays as quickly as he envisions them. As someone who thinks and plays at a fast tempo, it comes as no surprise that he creates a lot of energy as an offensive catalyst. He sees the ice very well and has the willingness and determination to win battles in the tough areas. All-in-all, a dynamic offensive forward with top-6 potential at the next level.”–Curtis Joe, Elite Prospects

If Matt Duchene is still in the lineup this season, it would be very easy for coach Bednar to play Jost between Rantanen and Yakupov on a line that gets a lot of offensive zone starts and is isolated from tougher matchups. If he is deployed this way, there’s no reason to think Jost can’t exceed Mikko’s 39 points from last season and come close to the 52 points from Landeskog’s rookie of the year season.

Does Jost have a chance at winning the Calder? I wouldn’t rule it out. This year’s rookie class is strong, but nothing compared to last season and Jost is going to be given every opportunity to succeed on an Avalanche team that is building towards the future.

I wouldn’t be at all surprised if it only took one season for Jost to jump up to #2 on this list next summer. There are many reasons Avs fans should want Tyson Jost to succeed, not the least of which is this incredible reaction from his mother and grandfather on draft day.