Colorado Avalanche Top 25 Under 25: No. 6 Tyson Jost

A young veteran, Tyson Jost has established himself as a key part of the Colorado Avalanche

By Tom Hunter@PuckDontLie Aug 27, 2021, 8:45am MDT

NHL: Los Angeles Kings at Colorado Avalanche

The Top 25 Under 25 is a collaboration by members of the Mile High Hockey community. Eight writers have ranked players under the age of 25 as of August 1, 2021 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.

Name: Tyson Jost

Age: 23

Position: C/LW

Height: 5’11

Weight: 187 lbs

2021-22 Team: Colorado Avalanche

Final Ranking: #6

Fan Ranking: #6

High Ranking: #4 (Hardev, Adrian, Evan)

Low Ranking: #7 (Jackie)

2020-21 Statistics:

Colorado Avalanche: 54GP; 7G, 10A, 17 PTS

Though he may not have developed into the players many expected when the Colorado Avalanche drafted him 10th overall in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, Tyson Jost has turned himself into an integral part of the team. Still only 23-years old -and with a fresh $4m contract in his back pocket - Jost will be counted on to fill an even bigger role this coming season.

A big part of the reason why the Avalanche didn’t look to fill the holes created by the departing Brandon Saad and Joonas Donskoi is that they believe Jost can step up and play a bigger role on the wing in the top-6. Playing as the 2LW alongside Nazem Kadri and Andre Burakovsky could be a role perfectly suited for Jost.

He’s never going to be a point per game player but given the right role, Jost has the opportunity to see a big jump in production while providing everything else that a line needs to be successful.

For the last two seasons, Jost has been one of the best play driving forwards on the Avalanche. Aside from Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen, Jost’s possession metrics and shot-assist numbers have been among the best on the team. He just rarely plays with anyone who can take advantage of it. Jost’s on-ice shooting percentage is one of the lowest on the team, meaning that despite his play-driving ability, his lines haven’t been able to score. That could change if he’s given a chance to play alongside two guys who have a history of being legitimate finishers. Kadri and Burakovsky can both score a lot of goals - add that to Jost’s possession numbers and we could see an explosion in his point total.

Beyond his play at 5v5, Jost has established himself as one of the team’s best penalty killers. With Donskoi, Matt Calvert and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare all leaving the team, the Avs have lost a lot of PK minutes. Newly acquired Darren Helm will help fill a lot of that void but Jost will likely see an increase in his short handed TOI as well.

Because the point totals leave a lot to be desired, a lot of people have underappreciated Jost’s impact on the Avalanche over the last few seasons. It feels like if he didn’t have a the “top-10 pick” label attached to his name, Tyson Jost would be much more appreciated for the player he is.

Jost is an elite defensive forward who can play all over the ice and delivers high-end possession metrics. He hasn’t been able to score regularly but he has been a much better offensive player than the counting stats would have one believe. Still only 23, Jost is just entering his prime and will play a big role in any success this Avalanche team has going forward.

He opened a lot of eyes last year and there’s a very good chance he will open a lot more this season. After the success the Tampa Bay Lightning have had over the last two seasons building an elite middle-6 to play behind their stars, every other team is looking for their own Blake Coleman. The Avalanche might already have their own in Tyson Jost.