Tanguay returns to Avalanche in four-player deal

The Colorado Avalanche acquired forward Alex Tanguay, a member of their 2001 Stanley Cup-winning team, along with defenseman Cory Sarich, from the Calgary Flames on Thursday in a four-player trade.

The Avalanche sent forward David Jones and defenseman Shane O'Brien to the Flames.

"This trade adds needed size up front and grit on the back end while also allowing us to get younger," Flames general manager Jay Feaster said in a statement. "We like the fact that Jones plays a north/south game, drives hard to the net, kills penalties and is a right-hand shot. O'Brien is a hard guy to play against, knows how to get under the skin of the opposition and stands up for his teammates. We are pleased to add both of these players to our organization."

Tanguay, 34, will be returning to the team with which he spent the first six seasons of his NHL career. A 1998 first-round pick of the Avalanche, he joined the team in 1999-2000 and had 17 goals and 51 points as a rookie. Tanguay was even better in his second season, scoring 27 goals and finishing with 77 points. He added six goals and 21 points in 23 Stanley Cup Playoff games, and scored twice in Colorado's 3-1 victory against the New Jersey Devils in Game 7 of the Final.

The Avalanche traded him to Calgary in 2006 after he had a career-high 29 goals and 78 points. He scored 22 goals and had a career-best 81 points in 2006-07, his first season with the Flames. But after one more year in Calgary, he spent a season with the Montreal Canadiens and another with the Tampa Bay Lightning before returning to the Flames in 2010-11, putting up 22 goals and 69 points in his return. He declined to 13 goals and 49 points in 2011-12 and finished with 11 goals and 27 points this past season.

In 922 NHL games, Tanguay has 249 goals and 762 points. He also has 19 goals and 59 points in 98 playoff games.

“We are excited to have Alex back with the organization,” Avalanche executive vice president of hockey operations Joe Sakic, a former teammate, said in a statement.  “He is coming off a solid season and his experience will be beneficial to our young players. Cory is a veteran defenseman who will help our back end."

Sarich, who waived his no-move clause to allow the trade to happen, is a 34-year-old stay-at-home defenseman who has 20 goals, 148 points and 1,051 penalty minutes in 915 regular-season games, including two assists and 16 penalty minutes in 28 games in 2012-13. He was a member of the Lightning's 2004 Stanley Cup-winning club and has spent the last six seasons with the Flames.

Jones, a 28-year-old native of Guelph, Ontario, has spent six seasons with the Avalanche, totaling 70 goals and 56 assists in 272 games. He had three goals and nine points in 22 games with Colorado in 2012-13 after back-to-back 20-goal-seasons.

O’Brien, 29, has played 483 career games with Colorado, the Nashville Predators, Vancouver Canucks, Tampa Bay Lightning and Anaheim Ducks. He had four assists and 60 penalty minutes in 28 games with Colorado in 2012-13. In his career, the native of Port Hope, Ontario, has 13 goals, 88 points and 853 penalty minutes.