Avalanche Acquire Brassard from Panthers

For the third time in two seasons, Derick Brassard is on the move. The Colorado Avalanche acquired Brassard from the Florida Panthers in exchange for a 2020 third-round draft pick. As part of the trade, Colorado will also receive a sixth-round pick if they do not re-sign Brassard. Florida acquired Brassard via trade from the Penguins on February 1.

Brassard has seen his production fall off since joining the Senators ahead of the 2016-17 season. The one-time 60-point player has just 10 goals and nine assists in 50 games split between the Penguins and Panthers this season. Brassard was widely speculated to still be on the trade market after being acquired by Florida, so today’s news should come as no surprise. He registered just a single goal and three assists in his ten-game stint in Florida. Today marks the fifth time Brassard’s been traded in his 12-year career.

Where He Fits In

Despite his struggles, Brassard still offers some offensive upside to an Avalanche team that is in need of scoring depth. Head coach Jared Bednar recently split up his dynamic top line in an effort to strengthen lines two and three. The addition of Brassard gives Bednar a legitimate second-line centre to skate with Gabriel Landeskog or Mikko Rantanen. It will be interesting to see if Bednar opts to go this route or reverts to skating both Landeskog and Rantanen with Nathan MacKinnon. Brassard is expected to make his Avalanche debut tonight against the Panthers.