Colorado Avalanche 2009/10 Season Preview
Colorado Avalanche
2008/09: 32-45-5 – 69 pts (5th in Northwest, 15th in West)
Arrived: Tom Preissing (LA), Kyle Quincey (LA), Craig Anderson (FLA), David Koci (TAM)
Departed: Joe Sakic (Retired), Ryan Smyth (LA), Andrew Raycroft (VAN), Ben Guite (NSH), Tyler Arnason (NYR), Ian Laperierre (PHI)
Paul Stastny (C) – The son of NHL Hall of Famer Peter Stastny is the only legitimate fantasy forward on the Avalanche, but his value will be hurt by the loss of Smyth. With a pair of real first line wingers, he could be a 90 point player. However, he will probably be playing with Wojtek Wolski and Milan Hejduk so I would not count on him for more than 70 points.
Keep an eye on: Wojtek Wolski, Milan Hejduk, Marek Svatos
Kyle Quincey – Quincey finally broke into the NHL last year with the Kings, scoring 38 points, 27 of which were on the powerplay. His offence will be sorely needed, but I would not count on him in Colorado. He will be a number four fantasy defenceman at best.
Tom Preissing – Preissing is a guy who plays well on good teams and terrible on bad teams. In 154 games with San Jose and Ottawa from 2005-07, he scored 81 points and was +57. After moving to LA, he played in 99 games, accumulating 31 points and a -13 rating. The Avalanche are a bad team so I would not expect much from Preissing.
John-Michael Liles – Even though he was Colorado’s top scoring defenceman last year, Liles is a stretch as a legitimate fantasy player. While his 39 points are solid, his -19 rating and 31 penalty minutes leave much to be desired.
BETWEEN THE PIPES
Craig Anderson – Anderson had an excellent year in Florida in 2008-09, winning 15 games and posting a .924 SV% in 31 games while splitting time with Tomas Vokoun. Any goalie who is slated to play more than 50 games is worthy of a roster spot, but if you count on Anderson to be anything more than a third goalie you are in trouble.
Keep an eye on: Peter Budaj
Bonus: The 2009-10 Avs only have six players who scored more than 21 points last year.
Bonus #2: A Google Image search for Tom Preissing yielded more pictures of Ryan Smyth than Preissing.