There has been lots of change in Colorado, but Joe Sakic is still there.

Winds of change buffet Avalanche
By Phil Coffey | NHL.com
Sept. 8, 2005

Change is inevitable, and sports is one area of life more susceptible than most to the comings and goings of players and coaches.

Change certainly swept through the Rocky Mountains since the Colorado Avalanche finished the 2003-04 NHL season. The last time we saw the Avalanche, they were coming off a 40-22-13-7 regular season. Colorado then ousted the Dallas Stars in the first round, but fell to the San Jose Sharks in six games in the Western Conference semifinals.

But that was then. The roster for this season will be decidedly different.

The Avs, an NHL powerhouse since moving to Denver for the 1995-96 season, will take the ice minus some lineup fixtures, notably center Peter Forsberg and defenseman Adam Foote. Two other more recent acquisitions, Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne, also have departed. Also moving on are veterans Matthew Barnaby and Chris Gratton, meaning that quite a bit of experience has left town.

So, what's left?

A lot more than most people are giving the Avalanche credit for, and that's a credit to GM Pierre Lacroix and his ability to acquire top-notch talent.

Despite the wailing and gnashing of teeth from some corners, the Avalanche will still ice a very representative time -- perhaps not as deep or talented as in past seasons, but still one that has the capabilities of putting together a very successful season.

Any team boasting the likes of Joe Sakic, Milan Hejduk, Alex Tanguay, and Rob Blake has a nice foundation in place, so it's highly unlikely that the Avs will plummet from the lofty heights they have enjoyed since the move to Colorado. And with a shrewd GM like Lacroix, you never know when his next big deal is coming.

Forwards

Losing Forsberg, who's averaged better than a point per game, hurts. No question about it. He's missed a lot of time because of injury, but the bottom line is that he is one of the most talented players in the world. Replacing him after his departure to the Philadelphia Flyers as a free agent, won't be easy. But having Sakic, Hejduk, and Tanguay around makes it much easier for new coach Joel Quenneville to tackle this challenge.

The classy Sakic remains an elite player. He topped the Avalanche in scoring in 2003-04 with 33 goals and 54 assists in 81 games. He was plus-11 and scored 13 power-play goals. It remains to be seen whether having a year off helped or hurt Sakic, 36. But keep in mind that the Avs have piled up a lot of playoff games over the years, so the time off may well rejuvenate Sakic.

Tanguay, second on Colorado's scoring list in 2003-04 with 25 goals and 54 assists in just 69 games, is still polishing his game. At age 26, he has yet to reach his peak.

Hejduk, 29, is among the NHL's best forwards. In 2003-04, he scored 35 goals and added 40 assists to finish third in team scoring. He also led the Avs with 16 power-play goals.

In the wake of Forsberg's departure, Colorado signed Pierre Turgeon, who had been released by the Stars. Turgeon, who's joining his sixth NHL team, can still be a capable scorer. He netted 15 goals and 25 assists in 76 games in 2003-04. Obviously, he isn't a replacement for Forsberg, but Turgeon has averaged more than a point per game over his career and enters the season with 495 career goals.

Another addition to the Colorado lineup is veteran winger Andrew Brunette, who has been a highly productive player for expansion teams in Nashville, Atlanta, and Minnesota. In 2003-04, he scored 15 goals and 34 assists for the Wild. A solid, capable winger with a good scoring touch, Brunette never takes a shift off. He has carved out a terrific career after being selected 174th overall in the 1993 draft.

Antti Laaksonen, another former Minnesota player, figures to be the everyday third-line left wing for the Avs. It's a role he fulfilled well with the Wild for four seasons, where he was as consistent as the calendar, posting 28, 33, 31, and 26 points.

Veteran Steve Konowalchuk joined Colorado early in the 2003-04 season and immediately showed the work ethic and professionalism that made him a fan favorite with the Washington Capitals. He scored 19 goals and 20 assists in 76 games with the Avs and will need to step up those contributions this season.

Veteran Brad May was signed as a free agent from Vancouver and figures to patrol the left side for Colorado's fourth line.

Dan Hinote gives the Avalanche an injection of grit.

On the right side after Hejduk, the Avalanche will ice the gritty and abrasive Dan Hinote, who was limited to four goals and seven assists in 59 games in 2003-04. He is a solid penalty killer and puck hound.

Hard-nosed Ian Laperriere, who had 10 goals and 12 assists in 62 games with Los Angeles in 2003-04, joined the Avs. He brings all-out hustle to every shift. Cody McCormick, who had five points in 44 games in 2003-04, should remain in the forward mix too.

Defense

Blake remains the anchor of the Colorado defense, and with good reason. He is big, tough, and is a highly skilled puck-handler from the blue line. In 2003-04, Blake chipped in 13 goals and 33 assists. Eight of his goals came on the power play.

Foote's departure to Columbus leaves a void, as he is one of the NHL's top defensive defensemen. But veteran Bob Boughner plays with a physical edge and should pick up some of the slack.

Colorado also signed veteran Patrice Brisebois as a free agent. In 791 regular-season games, Brisebois has scored 79 goals and 263 assists and should be a valuable addition to the backline. Also signed was veteran Curtis Leschyshyn, a former Av, who is back after playing in Ottawa in 2003-04.

John-Michael Liles, with 10 goals and 24 assists in 2003-04, was a very pleasant surprise for the Avs in his rookie season. He was so impressive that he earned a place with Team USA at the 2004 World Cup of Hockey.

Karlis Skrastins came over from Nashville prior to the 2003-04 season and fit right in with the Avs. He went from a minus-18 the previous season with the Predators to a plus-18 with Colorado.

Kurt Sauer was added late in the 2003-04 season from Anaheim, as was Ossi Vaananen from the Phoenix Coyotes in the Derek Morris trade. Both figure to be regulars for the Avs.

Goaltending

David Aebischer was dogged by critics throughout the 2003-04 season who doubted if he could handle the top job for the Avs in the wake of the retirement of Patrick Roy.

After three seasons as Roy's understudy, Aebischer stepped in and took the job -- and took it convincingly. He posted a 32-19-9 regular-season record and a 2.05 goals-against average.

With only rookie Philippe Sauve as the No. 2 goaltender, the Avs acquired veteran Tommy Salo for the stretch run, but he was insurance only. In the playoffs, Aebischer was 6-5 with a 2.07 GAA, an average remarkably consistent to his regular-season numbers.

Salo has retired and Sauve was traded to Calgary, opening the backup job to another rookie, Peter Budaj, who played very well for the Hershey Bears in the AHL during the 2004-05 season. Budaj was 29-25-2 for the Bears with a 2.65 goals-against average and .919 save percentage. He will likely be brought along in much the same way as Aebischer was earlier in his career, playing around 20 games and learning a lot watching from the bench.

Outlook

How will Colorado perform in 2005-06? A lot depends on whether you view the glass as half full or half empty. The pessimist won't be able to get past the loss of players like Forsberg and Foote. The optimist sees a roster that still includes the likes of Sakic, Hejduk, Tanguay, and Blake. As is usually the case, the truth lies somewhere in the middle.

The Avs are far from bereft of talent, but they've come back to the pack in the Western Conference. In this time of significant change around the NHL, they remain a contender, but will be tested more than they have in the past.

On defense, Blake is a stud, but Liles or Sauer needs to step up to fill some of the minutes previously filled so credibly by Foote.

Up front, the additions of Turgeon and Brunette may not equal the totals Forsberg posts with the Flyers, but the Avs have learned to live without Forsberg in the past when he was recovering from injuries.

Expect Quenneville, a solid, organized coach, to implement a system that will exploit the offensive talents of Sakic, Hejduk and Tanguay while making sure the Avs don't get into too many crazy offensive games where Aebischer is looking up at breakaway after breakaway. Quenneville will find the proper balance and as a result, the Avalanche's fall from the lofty peaks of the NHL won't be nearly as dire as predicted by the naysayers.