The Colorado Avalanche are taking a chance on a former top prospect.

The Colorado Avalanche have added to their defensive depth, signing Erik Brannstrom to a one-year, $900,000 contract.

Brannstrom, 24, became an unrestricted free agent after the Ottawa Senators elected to not send him a qualifying offer. The 2017 first-round pick will now look to put together a strong showing for the Avalanche in 2024-25 because of it.

Brannstrom will likely have a spot on the Avalanche's bottom pairing next season. He offers great versatility, playing both the left and right sides, so that should make him a nice depth piece for Colorado. In fact, the left-shot defenseman prefers playing on the right side, so he could become Sean Walker's replacement. Brannstrom could also compete for some time on the Avalanche's second power play, as he is known for his offense-first style of play.

While the Senators let Brannstrom walk this summer, he had the best offensive season of his career in 2023-24. In 76 games, the 5-foot-10 defenseman posted new career highs with three goals, 17 assists, and 20 points. He also had a career-high 111 blocks and sported a plus-5 rating on a bad Senators club.

Ultimately, this is a nice, low-risk signing for the Avalanche. The Eksjo, Sweden native is a young defenseman who still has time to improve and could benefit by playing with star forwards like Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen.