Report: Andre Burakovsky signs with Colorado Avalanche, Boikov signs in KHL

Today, the Colorado Avalanche have announced that Andre Burakovsky has signed a one-year contract with the team with a reported AAV of $3.25 million. Burakovsky came to the Avalanche this summer in exchange for Scott Kosmachuk, a second-, and a third-round pick in 2020.

Burakovsky appears to have signed the mandatory Qualifying Offer sent to him by the Capitals (that transferred to the Avalanche in the trade). In most cases, the qualifying offer is the player’s salary from the previous season given to him again on a one-year deal.

Qualifying offers expire at the end of the day today, so players who feel they don’t have much leverage in contract negotiations will tend to sign it and bet on themselves for one more year. A recent example of a player who did this to great effect have been Andreas Johnsson on the Maple Leafs, who took less than a million dollars last season, scored 20 goals on Auston Matthews’ wing, and now makes $3.4 million for four years.

This is a good decision for Burakovsky, who was in a really bad situation with the Washington Capitals, playing with low-skill players in tough minutes rather than with the stars. You can read our piece on the trade, with details on what worked and what didn’t for Burakovsky in Washington. It goes down the full rabbit hole.

In Colorado, he should be able to get ice-time with either Nazem Kadri, or on a sheltered third line with JT Compher, and put up way more points than his current career high of 38. He has the skills to be a 50-point player and is now on a team known for its high-tempo offense that is young and skilled and only getting better.

Below is an excerpt from the press release sent out by the Avalanche on the signing. You can read the whole thing here. It indicated a one-year deal, but doesn’t speak to the dollar amount or whether it was his qualifying offer. That information comes from the above report by Ryan Clark.

“We are excited to be adding a big, fast, skilled winger like Andre,” said Avalanche Executive Vice President / General Manager Joe Sakic at the time of the trade. “He already has a lot of NHL experience at a young age and is a Stanley Cup winner who has performed well in the playoffs. At just 24 he is entering the prime years of his career and we feel with an added role, he will be a great addition to our team.”

In other news, 2015 sixth-round pick Sergei Boikov is going back to Russia for two years after a third disappointing season in the AHL.

Boikov, a left defenseman, had a really tough stint in the AHL. His first year he put up 16 points in 63 games, but was sent to the ECHL for the final stretch of the season and playoffs. He did well for the Eagles, putting up 10 points in 18 games. His second season was a complete write-off as he didn’t play a single game due to a shoulder injury. In his third year, he played in 56 games, scored one goal and had 11 points.

This summer, Boikov was going to be a restricted free agent following the completion of his entry-level contract but he wasn’t qualified, making him a UFA on July 1st. This is probably the best-case scenario for the 23-year-old late-round pick. He gets to go home and make a lot of money playing for one of the best teams in the KHL. There wasn’t going to be anything worthwhile for him in North America.