Colorado’s NHL franchise mostly stood pat at this year’s trade deadline. As a result, Avalanche futures at future Colorado legal sportsbooks correspondingly didn’t move.
Colorado ranked among the second tier of 2020 Stanley Cup title contenders before Monday’s cutoff. That hasn’t changed, but unfortunately for Avalanche fans, their chances of hoisting the Cup this year may not have improved either.
Avalanche futures at future Colorado legal sportsbooks
At all of the sportsbook brands that have made market access deals for Colorado so far, the line on the Avalanche winning this year’s NHL postseason tournament was unchanged Monday evening. At DraftKings, for example, the line on Colorado winning the Stanley Cup this year prior to Monday’s 3 p.m. ET zero hour was +1000.
When 3 p.m. ET Monday came and went, the line at that book still sat at +1000. DraftKings plans to eventually open up shop in Colorado through a deal with Twin River Entertainment.
While those odds weren’t moved, it isn’t completely accurate that the Avalanche did absolutely nothing. Colorado did send its 2021 fourth-round pick to the Ottawa Senators for center Vlad Namestnikov.
As the fact that the Avs only had to part with one fourth-round selection suggests, Namestnikov isn’t an earth-shattering acquisition. It was more of a depth move for Colorado.
Why the Avalanche’s trade didn’t move the needle
Namestnikov has accumulated 25 points in 56 games so far this season and compiled a -7 net rating. Because of injuries on the front line for his new team, he may see more time on the ice than his performance merits.
Avalanche forwards Matt Calvert, Nazem Kadri, Mikko Rantanen and Colin Wilson are all battling injuries of varying severity right now. Namestnikov may prove useful when Colorado is at full strength, but he’s unlikely to provide all the offense the Avalanche need while that quartet works to get healthy.
Additionally, Colorado has injury concerns in goal. Philipp Grubauer is on injured reserve, and the Avalanche doing nothing via trade to shore up that position likely contributed to the fact that expectations for Colorado didn’t improve.
Unfortunately for Avs fans, the teams standing in the way of league supremacy this season weren’t so content. The odds reflect that.
Vegas is even more of a problem than it was before
The Vegas Golden Knights acquired keeper Robin Lehner in a move that makes them the front-runner in the NHL’s Western Conference to some. Lehner comes to a team that had already accumulated 76 points through 64 games.
He posted a very respectable .918 save percentage for the Chicago Blackhawks so far this season, remarkable given how poorly Chicago’s season has gone thus far. Not only does this move set Vegas up to wrap up the Pacific Division but to challenge the defending Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues in the West as well.
It also makes the path for Colorado more difficult. It’s likely that the Avalanche will have to face off with at least one of those two teams, if not both, in the postseason.
Vegas currently has the shortest Stanley Cup odds out of all Western Conference teams at +800. That demonstrates the effect that a big deadline move can have on futures lines.
Perhaps Colorado can get healthy and hot during the postseason. If that’s the case, the Avalanche may have the firepower to upset St. Louis and Vegas. If not, the reason that the Avalanche futures didn’t move at the deadline is justified.
