Avalanche acquire goaltender Keith Kinkaid from Boston

The Colorado Avalanche have acquired Goaltender Keith Kinkaid from the Boston Bruins, in a one-for-one swap for Colorado Eagles Forward Shane Bowers. The move comes as a bit of a surprise, as the Avalanche have Jonas Johansson waiting in the wings, but the move may have some negative implications surrounding the status of the injured Pavel Francouz.

Kinkaid, 33, was in his first season as a member of the Bruins organization while primarily serving as the starter for the AHL’s Providence Bruins. With an 8-7-4 record, accompanied by a .909 SV% and a 3.10 GAA, Kinkaid has been forced into a bit of a timeshare in Providence, as rookie Netminder Brandon Bussi has added his name to the list of Bruins goalie prospects to begin turning heads under their development. Kinkaid hasn’t been a regular backup in the NHL since his days backing up Corey Schneider with the New Jersey Devils, about half-a-decade ago, but in one appearance at the NHL level this season, Kinkaid was solid, stopping 30 shots out of 31 en route to a 3-1 Bruins win over the Buffalo Sabres (Nov. 12).

Photo by Bill Wippert/NHLI via Getty Images

Bowers, 23, was acquired as one piece in the massive Matt Duchene trade back in November 2017. Having just been drafted 28th overall by the Ottawa Senators that June, Bowers was seen as part of the Avs future plans, which began to ramp up around the 2019-20 season. As the Avalanche made their jump to legitimate contender, the need for quality veteran depth became vital, and made Bowers path to the NHL in Colorado more difficult. After years of anticipation, Bowers would finally get his NHL debut on Nov. 10, 2022 against the Nashville Predators, where after 1:46 of ice time he would exit with a wrist injury that sidelined him for six weeks. A former BU Terrier, Bowers returns to the city he played his college hockey in, and while an NHL future seems unlikely in Boston at this point in time, one can only hope that some familiarity is all that Bowers needs to get his hockey career back on the right path.

Photo by Michael Martin/NHLI via Getty Images

As for the Avalanche, this trade sparks some concern. Goaltender Pavel Francouz, who mysteriously landed on the injured list after appearing in the starter’s net the morning of Feb. 11 just two weeks ago, was slated to miss approximately three weeks by Head Coach Jared Bednar last week. While not ideal by any means, that timeline garnered no kind of long-term concern— but a random trade for a random third string Goaltender will. As of writing this, there are no reports that indicate Francouz has suffered any setbacks in his recovery, this is purely speculation. This trade could simply be a matter of bolstering goalie depth for a playoff run, but Francouz’s health will be something to monitor closely in the coming days. For the time being, Kinkaid will report to the Eagles.