NHL Insider: How much Colorado Avalanche overhaul is necessary in offseason?

May 6—Every week during the offseason, Denver Gazette beat writer Kyle Fredrickson will take you around the NHL and inside the Avalanche:

WHAT THEY SAID

"He's in a good place. He's making decisions on what he has to do in order to get back healthy. This year was tough for him. Getting some clarity on his situation now, for him and our organization, is a positive thing. He feels good about it. We feel good about it. We'll kind of release what he does next when he makes his final decisions here."

—Avalanche coach Jared Bednar last week on the status of injured captain Gabe Landeskog (knee) on Altitude Sports radio

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WHAT I'M THINKING

—Gabe Landeskog's future is the most important storyline facing the Avalanche after a surprise first-round postseason exit. How do we decipher Bednar's comments? The most revealing piece of the above quote is how "clarity" is a "positive thing" for "(Landeskog) and our organization."

—Translation: The Avalanche, much like their fanbase, are impatient to learn what's next for Landy. His plan will determine their roadmap for Colorado's offseason roster retool to compete for another Stanley Cup in 2023-24.

—Landeskog confirmed in April a third surgery is on the table to address the cartilage injury below his right patella. If that procedure happened soon, in theory, it would give him a solid five months of recovery time before training camp. That's an optimistic timeline for getting Landeskog back early in the regular season. But his lack of recovery progress over the past year suggests a darker possibility.

—How many options does Landeskog have left to explore? Could this end his playing career? What is the organization's plan if he's unable to return? These are important questions that will go unanswered, for now, because of team policy. Let me explain.

—The Avalanche, for no good reason, do not provide "exit interviews" after playoff elimination. NHL players and coaches from across the league have given deep, reflective insight in this space — like recently when Wild defenseman Matt Dumba was reduced to tears when asked about his time in Minnesota possibly coming to an end: "My heart is definitely here."

—Instead, local Colorado scribes are forced to ask big-picture questions immediately after a season-ending loss. It stinks for both sides. One example: J.T. Compher is an unrestricted free agent after a career-best season. Has he thought about his future yet? Compher, visibly exhausted after Game 7, said: "No. Not at all."

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WHAT I'M READING

—Bedard watch. The No. 1 overall pick in the NHL draft will undoubtedly be generational talent Connor Bedard. But who will get the first pick in the draft? The lottery takes place Monday night and CBS Sports reported the Ducks and Blue Jackets have the best odds to land Bedard.

—Senators spotlight. Two groups are vying to become team owners of the Ottawa Senators include significant names from the entertainment industry: TV/film actor Ryan Reynolds and music mogul Snoop Dogg. It's a positive sign for a league that often struggles to compete with visibility in comparison to other professional sports leagues (via ESPN).

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WHAT'S HAPPENING

—Mikko Rantanen isn't done playing hockey. He'll join the Finnish national team for the IIHF World Championship hosted in his home country May 12-28. It appears Rantanen is the only Avs player to represent his country in the tournament after a long season with numerous injuries.

—It's no fluke the Kraken ousted the defending champs. Their second-round series with Dallas is tied 1-1 heading back to Seattle. Sound familiar? If Philipp Grubauer continues standing on his head, and forward depth continues churning out goals, don't be surprised if they advance.

—The Florida Panthers are wearing glass slippers. But no one should be surprised by this Cinderella story. They've got a 2-0 stranglehold over the Devils in Round 2 after upsetting the juggernaut Boston Bruins in Round 1 thanks to elite goaltending (Sergei Bobrovsky) and a tenacious 100-point forward (Matthew Tkachuk). These cats have claws.

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NHL INSIDER

Time for Avs general manager Chris MacFarland to ditch the training wheels. The honeymoon is over, and the next steps won't be easy.

Colorado fell short of expectations with a first-round exit, and there are essentially two schools of thought moving forward in the offseason.

1. The Avalanche, with a complete/healthy roster, had the talent and chemistry for a legitimate shot a repeat title. Forces out of their control never allowed that to happen. Add one or two more key pieces and Colorado is right back in the title chase for 2023-24.

2. The Avalanche must make bold offseason moves and trade players to fill notable lineup gaps. It's unrealistic to expect Gabe Landeskog to return anytime soon. Valeri Nichushkin's absence still lingers over the team. MacFarland must be aggressive to remain a contender.

The Avs have their core players — F Nathan MacKinnon, D Cale Makar and F Mikko Rantanen — signed to long-term deals. That keeps their championship window open for years to come — so long as the team surrounds them with championship-caliber role players. That's no easy science in the flat salary cap era.

MacFarland's strategy will likely find middle ground between standing idle and significant overhaul. My 2 cents? Embrace change, folks.

The Avalanche have a dozen pending unrestricted free agents and none are essential to bringing the Cup back to Colorado. Let J.T. Compher walk for more money elsewhere and identify the team's 2C of the future. Bring back either Jack Johnson or Erik Johnson (but not both defensemen). Offer Evan Rodrigues another one-year contract to prove he belongs in Colorado. Don't sweat if he bolts town.

Expect that Landeskog won't be ready Game 1 and make a strong push to sign available top-six forwards like Erik Haula (Devils), Jonathan Toews (Blackhawks) or Jason Zucker (Penguins). Package current players in trades that make it work.

Be bold.

Of course, it's easy for me to say as an armchair GM with none of the real pressures facing MacFarland. His vision helped that Avs bring home a Stanley Cup a year ago. But this is a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately business. MacFarland's push for another championship is already underway.

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THE LIST

Three memorable aspects of a forgettable Avalanche series loss to the Seattle Kraken.

1. Erik Johnson forces Game 7. The veteran defenseman scored the game-winning goal in Seattle to keep the Avs alive in the series. It was a poignant moment, especially if Johnson's days with the organization are numbered as a pending unrestricted free agent.

2. Oh my, Mikko. The only Avalanche constant in the playoffs? Mikko Rantanen's brilliance. The Moose did everything he could to lift Colorado in Game 4 with two goals and one assist. But it still wasn't enough in an overtime loss. Rantanen finished the series with 10 points (7g, 3a).

3. Get loud. Give it up to the home fans at Ball Arena for a predictably great atmosphere all series. The excitement from last year's Cup run certainly carried over into 2022-23 with sellout crowds through the entire season.