Dubnyk Excited For Opportunity With Familiar Avs

Devan Dubnyk had never worn the burgundy and blue unlike the Colorado Avalanche's other trade deadline acquisitions, but the Avs' newest goaltender is very familiar with the squad.
"It's crazy to think back at all the rowdy nights we had on the other side in Denver," said Dubnyk. "I am excited to play in front of some home fans, obviously haven't had that opportunity this year. It is an exciting opportunity for me, obviously one of the best teams in the league. I've been on the other side of the fire power many times, so it's nice to be on the right side."
Since entering the league in 2009-10, Dubnyk has played in 537 games and has a 250-204-54 record with a 2.60 goals-against average, .914 save percentage and 33 shutouts with the Edmonton Oilers, Nashville Predators, Arizona Coyotes, Minnesota Wild and San Jose Sharks.

During his tenure, the goaltender has competed in more contests against Colorado than any other team, appearing in 39 games against the Avalanche.
The Avs acquired the netminder from the Sharks on Saturday and he met the team in Southern California after the transaction. While he hasn't played with the majority of the players on the roster, having contested against them many times creates a familiarity with the faces in Colorado's dressing room.
"I am familiar with some of them," said Dubnyk. "It's one of those things where it's obviously a team that I've played a lot of games against over the last few years, so you kind of feel like you know some guys even if you haven't officially met them yet."

Since entering the league in 2009, Dubnyk ranks sixth in games played (537), is tied for 10th in wins (250) and ranks ninth in saves (14,070). He had four straight seasons of 30 or more wins from 2015-16 to 2018-19 while a member of the Minnesota Wild and was a Vezina Trophy finalist in 2014-15.
With Pavel Francouz out for the rest of the year, Dubnyk will be the backup to starter Philipp Grubauer moving forward, but his role will also include being a steadying presence as the Avalanche push for the top position in the West Division and more as the Stanley Cup Playoffs grow closer.
"Grubi has had an incredible year and he is a great goalie. You just come in and each opportunity you get you just want to go 'I'm excited to be able to play for this team,' obviously one of the best teams in the league," Dubnyk said of his role. "It is an exciting opportunity. You just go in and work as hard as you can each opportunity you get. You want to earn a chance to start, whether it's the next game or soon after that, you just go in there and earn it.
"Like I said, Grubi has had an incredible year and he's been a big part of why this team is where they are. My job is to come in and support him and enjoy it. Like I said, every time you get out there you work as hard as you can to have the team want you to be playing."
The 34-year-old has an 8-18 record, 2.72 goals-against average and .904 save percentage in 26 career outings in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. With the Avalanche currently competing for the top spot in the league, he has an opportunity in front of him to go on a long postseason run with Colorado.
"A bit of a whirlwind [this weekend] when you get told and trying to figure life out a little bit, but when I was sitting in the car, it kind of hit me a little bit how great of an opportunity this is to have a chance to win the Stanley Cup," said Dubnyk. "That was fun when it kind of hit me, and I started to think about it and started to think about how exciting this opportunity is."