- Mike Chambers of the Denver Post: The Avalanche will select the best player available with their No. 10 pick in next weeks draft according Joe Sakic.
“We know there are some good D (defensemen) that are going to be up top, and there’s also a lot of real good forwards,” Sakic said. “It is a deep draft, especially the top 12-13. And then you get down to second, third and fourth rounds and there seems to be a pretty good grouping there as well.”
On if trading the pick is an option.
“When we get to the draft, a lot of things can happen, a lot of different opportunities,” Sakic said. “But we’re content at 10.”
Signing Ryan O’Reilly to a contract extension is a priority, but a trade is still an option. The Avalanche have been talking with O’Reilly’s agents.
“We know where they are, and I’d like to have him signed by the start of the season, hopefully, but right now is a time where we’re focusing on the draft and free agency,” Sakic said.
Patrick Roy on hiring two assistant coaches.
“Right now it’s going well. I met a few candidates,” said Roy, who is replacing Andre Tourigny and video coach Mario Duhamel. “There is no time frame for me to decide when it’s going to happen. But it’s going well. I just want to take my time and make sure I’m going to hire the right (bench) person.”
Sakic wouldn’t comment on speculation that they could be recruiting Alexander Radulov.
Sakic wouldn’t say which free agents they won’t bring back.
- Mike Chambers of the Denver Post: When looking towards free agency on July 1st, the Avalanche will be looking at left-handed defensemen to play on their top two pairings – with either Erik Johnson or Tyson Barrie.
“As a coach, yes, we’d like to have somebody to play with EJ (inaudible) and Tyson. Obviously, we have (Nick) Holden and (Brad) Stuart, who are left shots, but we’d like to add a defenseman in the top four,” Roy said. “I think it will help our team tremendously.”
Top left-handed defensemen include: Andrej Sekera, Christian Ehrhoff, Matt Irwin, Johnny Oduya and Paul Martin. Sekera is the top lefty, with Irwin being a darkhorse.
The Avs will have around $10-11 million in cap space if they don’t re-sign Jan Hejda, Ryan Wilson and Daniel Briere. Cap space could get to $13 million if they don’t re-sign Joey Hishon, Freddie Hamilton and Jordan Caron. Hedja could return if they don’t find what they want in free agency.
“We have room (now), but we also have to look down the line as well — and we do have four guys (including pending UFA Jamie McGinn) that are going to have probably pretty healthy raises the following year,” Sakic said. “So it is a time you have to be careful as well and make sure you get the right fit and it has to make sense financially.”